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Interview with Telenor Indias K.C. Narendran
The Uttar Pradesh (East) circle is one of the best performing circles for Telenor India. The operator also ranks amongst the top four
operators in the circle. The company has witnessed strong data uptake in the circle and is currently strengthening its 4G footprint in
the area to meet the growing demand. In an interview with tele.net, K.C. Narendran, Telenor Indias circle business head for Uttar
Pradesh (East), talks about the companys performance in the circle, the key initiatives taken and the challenges faced...

How has Telenor performed in the Uttar
Pradesh (East) circle? What is the circles
contribution to its overall operations?
Uttar Pradesh (East) is Telenor Indias
largest circle and accounts for the highest
revenue share (23.5 per cent) in the com-
panys overall revenues. This is largely
owing to our huge customer base (11.78
million) in the circle, making us the third
largest operator as per the Cellular
Operators Association of India March
2017 report. With a revenue market share
of 9.75 per cent in the quarter ended
December 2016, we stand in the fourth
position in the circle. We have witnessed
higher growth than the industry average
in the circle.
How are Telenors strategies for the Uttar
Pradesh (East) circle different from those for
the rest of the country?
Telenor is committed to offering affordable
and relevant telecom services to the masses,
and we have been consistent in launching
innovative and value-for-money products.
Our customer-centric approach and Sabse
Sasta-Sabke Liye value proposition is
based on our three-pillar strategy of being
the best in basic services, the best in mass
market distribution and highly cost effi-
cient in our operations. We believe in inno-
vating across all spheres of our business, be
it product, technology or retail. Our innov-
ative offerings like Tatkal credit, free life
insurance scheme Suraksha, and feature
phone handset bundling have received a
great response from customers. We have a
robust retail network and have recently
launched a retail app that offers a multi lin-
gual, self-help menu and an automated
interactive voice response system to help
retailers solve customer
queries effectively.
What are some of the recent
initiatives taken by Telenor
in the circle?
Telenors 4G services are
now available in eight
cities in Uttar Pradesh
(East): Varanasi, Lucknow,
Kanpur, Azamgarh, Rae
Bareli, Unnao, Mughalsarai and Mau. Last
year, our entire network underwent a huge
transformation. We modernised our exist-
ing sites to provide superior network qual-
ity services to our customers. In most of
these cities, Telenor has been the first
operator to offer high speed 4G services.
Also, our 4G products are the most afford-
able in the industry.
Another significant development is the
Aadhaar-based e-know your customer (e-
KYC) activation process. As per the De-
partment of Telecommunications guide-
lines, e-KYC is one of the norms that the
industry has to abide by, and this has
become a telecom industry best practice,
making the entire process paperless and
seamless. Today, 95 per cent of activations
in the circle are e-KYC-enabled.
We have also introduced a handset
bundled offer to extend the benefits of
unlimited calling to feature phone buyers
so that they can stay connected, and enjoy
good quality voice and SMS services.
Telenor has partnered with leading brands
like Samsung, Intex, Lava, Infocus and
JiVi to help them expand their feature
phone market share in India.
How has been the uptake of Telenors data
services in the circle?
Telenor is offering 4G ser-
vices in eight cities in the
circle. We are not only
working to strengthen our
4G footprint across the cir-
cle but also moving closer
to achieving the ambition
of internet for all, with a
commitment to become the
most preferred partner in
the digital life of our customers. Around 29
per cent of our customers are using data
services and this number is growing steadi-
ly. Our modernised network has helped us
provide high speed quality services as well
as value-for-money offers, thereby making
us the preferred choice of the masses.
What are the challenges that Telenor faces
in the circle?
The Uttar Pradesh (East) circle has a mix
of urban cities such as Lucknow, Varanasi
and Kanpur, and smaller towns such as
Rae Bareli, Unnao and Barabanki. Our
product strategy is aligned with the cus-
tomer needs in the circle. However, with
such a diverse user base and different
behaviour patterns, it is important to stay
relevant, yet affordable all the time.
What is your outlook for the telecom industry
for 2017?
India continues to be a voice-centric mar-
ket with nearly 65 per cent of handsets
being feature phones. However, data con-
sumption is growing rapidly and internet-
based services will witness an exponential
rise in the coming days. Data monetisation
will become crucial, with a focus on rev-
enues from digital advertising.

tele.net | May 2017 25