What Phone?
There’s an interesting press release on the LogicaCMG site that reports…
"58% of mobile phone users don’t know make and model of handset they own, hindering advanced data services take-up"
The press release goes on to say…
"Accurate, real-time handset details will enable operators to market relevant extra services with which the user’s handset is actually compatible. Having access to this information will be invaluable for operators to cross-sell relevant services via all marketing media, such as SMS, email or direct mail, and will be especially crucial when a query is made to the customer call centre."
While statistics on end-users are fascinating, the real problem is that operators don’t know what handsets their customers are using! This is despite the fact that in the majority of cases, they (or their representatives) sold customers the handset!
I know some people (like me) swap SIMs and change handsets independently of one another but I think this is probably the exception rather than the rule.
Thinking sideways for a minute, Symbian Platform Security has been introduced because it was previously explicitly requested in Network Operator specifications. This is because programmable phones were perceived to have high support costs due to rogue software. How did network operators work this out if they didn’t even know what phones their users were using?