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Airtel - Positioning (And Repositioning)
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REPOSITIONING AIRTEL Contd...
Moreover, as a more towards product segmentation, the Internet-Interface services
(WAP) offered to cellular users were brought under the brand name ‘Tango'in 2001. Commenting on the launch of Tango, a senior Bharti official said, “The idea was to bring
Internet and mobile in perfect harmony.” However, Tango was not as successful as Bharti had expected it to be.
The company sources mainly attributed this to the limited utility and inefficiency of WAP services. Soon the company discontinued the advertisements for Tango. However, the brand was retained for the company's permanent Internet connectivity
(GRPS ) services (on its cellular phones).
Bharti also decided to introduce a
tariff plan (specifically) to attract the youth. The service, called Youtopia, planned to cash in on the fact that with reduced tariffs, cellular phones would become accessible to teenagers. By targeting youth in the age-group 14-19 years, Bharti planned to expand the customer base, which was presently limited to the older age groups. Youtopia was a clear deviation from Airtel's earlier positioning as a brand for older people symbolizing dignity and power.
Youtopia offered lower tariff rates (at Re 0.25 for 30 seconds) at night. Special merchandising exercises were also undertaken. For instance, a special portal was created, where young people could buy or bid for
goods.
The company also announced plans for providing customers with various other services such as music download facilities, and SMS (Short Messaging Service) rates at affordable prices. According to the analysts, the company's repositioning strategies paid back well as Bharti became the leading player in most of the circles (it operated in) across the country in early-2002.
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Continued....
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WAP: Short for the Wireless
Application Protocol, WAP is a secure specification that allows
users to access information instantly via handheld wireless devices
such as mobile phones, pagers, two-way radios, smartphones and
communicators.
GPRS: Short for General
Packet Radio Service, a standard for wireless communications which
runs at speeds up to 115 kilobits per second, compared with the more
commonly used GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) systems'9.6 kilobits. |
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