The Convergence India Experience

NEW DELHI -- Convergence India 2012 -- On Day 1 of this year's event at the Pragati Maiden show grounds in the Indian capital, customer experience is the hot topic, for a number of reasons.

First, a number of vendors are telling us that customer experience management (CEM) has risen to the top of the agenda at all of India's mobile operators. The key catalysts for this, it seems, are the country's slowing subscriber number growth rates and the introduction of mobile number portability services.

Those companies also say that the operators are actually doing something about their CEM strategies instead of just talking about them, with specific systems being deployed for real-time analytics and other CEM-related procedures. (See Bharti's New Experience and Customer Experience Management: The Next Frontier.)

At the same time, some of the operators are still at the relatively early stages of figuring out just what they need to be doing in order to implement and meaningful and lasting CEM strategy.

The other customer experience matter here at the event is that, after years of Internet access wilderness and poor coffee experiences, we have great examples of both on the show floor. There is a great cappuccino to be had from the Lavazza stall in Hall 11, while the show has remarkably fine Wi-Fi coverage courtesy of Tata Communications Ltd.

It's long been my view that industry events need decent Internet access and great coffee as base line, must-deliver services, but very few communications services shows actually deliver, especially (ironically) on the Wi-Fi front. Convergence India can claim, at least, to have delivered on both these key requirements in 2012.

Now all we need to find are some insightful conference sessions and innovative technology developments on the show floor!

Ray Le Maistre, International Managing Editor, Light Reading