It is amazing that in the year 2009 (not 1989) some of our local GSM service providers still ask customers to come to their offices or to place telephone calls to request for their lines to be provisioned in order to have access to the network’s data (or value added) services.
While deploying a data service is well appreciated, the networks should go a step further to make it convenient for subscribers to have access to these services.
For example, there’s no valid reason why the networks cannot provide their SIMs already provisioned for internet. It is a fact that at least MTN and Etisalat are doing it right in this regard. Etisalat especially is to be commended, for though being a new player in the Nigerian telecoms ecosystem, they are more forward looking in terms of user-friendly data provisioning than the older boys like Zain and GloMobile.
Surely, it cannot be so difficult for network operators to deploy over-the-air (OTA) configuration such that soon after inserting your SIM into a GPRS or 3G-enabled phone, the data settings are pushed automatically to the phone and the subscriber can simply launch his phone browser and start surfing the web away.
Both MTN and Etisalat are again the leaders in this department. And once again, Etisalat are getting two thumbs up from me for implementing this from the word go.
My experience with Etisalat is one I remember with fondness. I popped in my SIM into a phone, the settings were pushed to me via SMS, and within minutes I was browsing without having to go to their office, call for my line to be provisioned, or manually input any settings. I said to myself, “This is the way it should be“.
Network operators need to remember that the average phone user is not a geek, does not care to go beyond the basic menu of his phone, and would rather not be bothered with the extra hassles of getting value added services setup.
The average subscriber wants these services to work out-fo-the-box, and the networks that respond appropriately to this fact will have subscribers eating out of their hands. Mobile Data will become more mainstream when the hassles of data configuration are eliminated.
This post was written by
Dayo Olutunfese – who has written 56 posts on Mobility blog.
Dayo Olutunfese is a mobility consultant and seminar facilitator. He is on the staff of Mobility.
Related posts:
March 31st, 2009 at 12:31 am Browsing with
Thank you Dayo for this article. When MTN was misbehaving, I decided to try and use Glo but when I waited for 24hrs without being activated, I gave up.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
March 31st, 2009 at 10:26 pm Browsing with
Sad, Bayuze. Glo just lost some extra revenue because they wouldn’t do it right. I know others who tried unsuccessfully for months to get their Glomobile prepaid SIMs activated for GPRS/3G.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
April 1st, 2009 at 7:58 am Browsing with
I once wanted to activate a glo sim in Akure & was asked by the customer care rep. to go to Ibadan to get it done. Can you imagine that?
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
April 1st, 2009 at 8:11 am Browsing with
How could they have asked you to travel all the way from Akure to Ibadan just to get your line activated? Surely, they couldn’t have been that bad. Stop lying
Seriously now, these guys say downright unbelievable things at times. Go to Ibadan all the way from Akure? I hope you simply picked a SIM from another network instead.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
April 1st, 2009 at 8:38 am Browsing with
In 9ja, anything is possible. A lame customer service rep could have asked him to travel just for that.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
April 4th, 2009 at 3:28 pm Browsing with
@Yomi: No kidding. I’m used to hearing stuff like that from these guys. This is just one out of the “many many”. I just hope the networks concerned have/will somehow come across this post/site & change for the better.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0
June 3rd, 2009 at 1:37 pm Browsing with
It’s all a different story in Benin City’.
Thanks to MTN.
Like or Dislike:
0 
0