KARACHI: Since it rolled out its infrastructure in the country in mid-2010, wi-tribe has quickly become a formidable force in the market of internet service providers (ISP) that had earlier been dominated by much bigger players such as the local telecom giant which leverages the strength of its massive infrastructure.
Wi-tribe has not only received a roaring welcome from local internet users; the company has also been declared the best ISP in terms of customer satisfaction, according to a recent independent survey.
Business Recorder Research recently caught up with the company’s chief executive officer, Mustafa Peracha to find out how the company has entered the big leagues, with a bang.
Customer is king
“Competition before us has only been talking about technology, which is the lowest form of communication” said Peracha, explaining that marketing campaigns dominated by mention of different kinds of technology used to provide internet services to clients are largely irrelevant to the average user.
“When you buy a car, do you really care about who made the pistons?” he questioned rhetorically. The chief executive contended that users are much more concerned about the quality of service they receive, explaining that “our communications are always centred around the uses, the benefits that customers derive from our services”.
Wi-tribe’s initial marketing campaign was driven by the slogan, “online with no line”. Peracha explained that this slogan was meant as a targeted communication that highlighted the benefits of plug and play over services offered by competitors.
Since then the company has changed its tagline to, “create your own world”. The internet is endless and it is to each person, “what they want out of it”, he said adding that the communication is designed to encourage users to utilize the company’s services to expand their own horizons and networks. “If we can give better service than our competitors, we will attract and retain customers” he said.
Market Segmentation
Mustafa Peracha contended that until wi-tribe entered the market, internet service providers were not catering to customers’ changing requirements and typically offered only one or two different packages. “So what was happening was that a customer who wanted an entry-level package was being forced to pay for more, which is not good from a customer’s perspective. On the flip side, customers who were willing to buy more quality-focused packages for a higher price were being forced to compromise” he said. The chief executive asserted that this meant that service providers were creating discontent among customers and “leaving money on the table” by not evolving products in line with the needs of their clientele.
On the contrary, wi-tribe has offered flexibility to users so that they purchase only what they use. “Not everyone needs unlimited downloads and endless internet access” said Peracha. He insisted that “while all the competition is clamouring about providing unlimited downloads, I can personally guarantee that a standard package meets the needs of 98 percent of the market”.
Offering details about the company’s market segmentation strategy he revealed that the company offers five separate “add on packages”, which can be used to obtain extra downloads or to “double the speed of your internet connection”.
Software as a Service
“We are the first operator to offer software as a service”, Mustafa Peracha proudly highlighted. Customers using the company’s services can subscribe to a parental control software, powered by Net Nanny that lets them block access to websites that are unsuitable for children. Similarly, customers can pay a monthly subscription to obtain an anti-virus powered by Norton.
“So far people have relied on pirated software to install anti-virus and other software on their computers” said Peracha pointing out that not only does this promote piracy, but also endangers users as pirated discs are often infected with viruses or provide obsolete versions of software. “By subscribing to the service with us, customers get regular updates to the software so they are always better protected against emerging threats” he said. “We also partnered with Microsoft for the launch of Internet Explorer 9, in Pakistan. This is a much more powerful web browser with in-built safety features and other options” said Peracha.
Urging other ISPs to follow suit, he says “the focus must shift to products and services that make the internet relevant to Pakistanis”.
Reaching the masses
Peracha admits that internet accessibility is still in a nascent stage in the country, but he insisted that the picture is not entirely bleak. Citing PTA numbers that put the number of internet connections at about one million, he pointed out that out of a total of 30-35 million households in the country, about “30-40 percent are in lower socio-economic classes that are not particularly savvy with the use of such technology, leaving about 16-17 million households, where present penetration is about 1 million households” he said.
“The first opportunity for ISPs lies in urban areas where there is still a significant proportion of untapped demand” he said adding that ISPs must first ensure that the quality of services being offered to customers in urban centres is maintained, before they target clientele outside these areas.
“When we look at the telcos, there is a tendency to base conclusions on its performance over the last seven years, when in fact the journey for telcos has spanned over about 15-17 years” said Peracha. He added that, “broadband in Pakistan is only 3-4 years old”, suggesting that the future is bright for a booming industry.
USF: Result-orientation needed
The Universal Service Fund (USF) was established by the government in 2007 to bridge the digital divide in Pakistan by spreading information and communication technology infrastructure to un-served and under-served areas.
The USF has been in the limelight in recent weeks after media reports suggested that the government was considering diverting funds from this kitty towards the Benazir Income Support Program, instead of spending them for their intended purpose.
While most major telecom providers have lashed out against any such prospects, the chief executive of wi-tribe felt that the arguments heard so far, miss the real point. “Government should be focused on improving the overall communication infrastructure of the country and increasing the teledensity in the country” said Peracha.
“However, what needs to be debated is the kind of program that needs to be undertaken to accomplish this and if there is a program that was established for this purpose, then its results have to be evaluated on some scorecard” said CEO, wi-tribe. He adds that if the program is achieving the desired results, regardless of its benefit to telcos and other contributors, the program should be continued. But if the desired results are not being achieved, the program should be revisited in favour of better alternatives.
About the company
Wi-tribe is a subsidiary of Qatar Telecom (QTel). QTel embarked on a massive expansion plan about six years ago, under which it spread its internet services business to 18 countries. The commercial launch of wi-tribe was held on July 1, 2009; while the company completed the roll-out of its infrastructure by mid-2010. At present, the company is managed from within the country while the board of directors at QTel is present for oversight and convenes periodically to review the company’s performance.
About Mustafa Peracha
The chief executive of wi-tribe brings more than 17 years of professional experience to the company. Prior to this position he has worked for Ernst and Young, General Motors, Gateway and Sabre in the United States; as well as at Mobilink in the capacity of vice-president, broadband and carrier division. He holds an MBA degree (finance and Strategy) from the University of Chicago, along with a BS degree (Electrical Engineering) from the University of Michigan.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2011
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