Mobile operators must reconnect with consumers

The main criticism levelled at service providers, particularly within the mobile or cellular phone segment of the market, is that whilst new products and solutions are continuously being brought into the market, these regularly fail to meet expectations in terms of bandwidth, speed and other functionality promised by the service provider.
Click to expand...
Am I missing something here?

A hardware vendor (SMC Networks) says that products supplied by companies like them do not meet the expectations created?

Is he admitting that they create unrealistic expectations? Or is he saying all other vendors lie but their (SMC's) products are delivering on every single promise?

I've had the privilege to sit in vendor presentations for more than 20 years now. And the one thing you learn from this is that anything is possible on a Power-point slide. But often the products rolled out is a mere shadow of the Power-point version. :rolleyes:

And invariable the poor SP is blamed because they made the cardinal mistake to promise what was promised to them, to their end-users.

Look how often networks have to deploy new technologies from new vendors. For sure they're not doing it because the like blowing money and have too much time on their hands. Rather something in the kit being replaced did not live up to some promise. Just like Mr. Luff seems to state.
 
And this is not what we, the users, experience. In some cases, and it happens quite frequently, there is a blatant disregard for basic business ethics on the part of service providers. Only these service providers legally sell ‘product’ on contract knowing they cannot deliver.
Click to expand...
+1
 
vodacom3g said:
I've had the privilege to sit in vendor presentations for more than 20 years now. And the one thing you learn from this is that anything is possible on a Power-point slide. But often the products rolled out is a mere shadow of the Power-point version. :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

I have to agree. Over hyping stuff seems to be a normal part of IT especially in wireless networking.

That said I would like more data each month for cheaper ;)
 
pkid said:
I have to agree. Over hyping stuff seems to be a normal part of IT especially in wireless networking.

That said I would like more data each month for cheaper ;)
Click to expand...
If they knew the products were 'hyped' then why didn't they test them. They spend weeks (months) testing our phones, so why not this?
 
Sackboy said:
If they knew the products were 'hyped' then why didn't they test them. They spend weeks (months) testing our phones, so why not this?
Click to expand...

Don't know. I don't work for them so I don't really have any inside info. For things like the Idols fiasco that the article mentions I am guessing that it is probably difficult to predict the volume of messages that will come in? How do you also load test with the 3 networks etc?
 
pkid said:
Don't know. I don't work for them so I don't really have any inside info. For things like the Idols fiasco that the article mentions I am guessing that it is probably difficult to predict the volume of messages that will come in? How do you also load test with the 3 networks etc?
Click to expand...
Generally in IT you test for the worst case scenario and you use more than a 192kb/s to ensure it happens.:eek:
 
Sackboy said:
If they knew the products were 'hyped' then why didn't they test them. They spend weeks (months) testing our phones, so why not this?
Click to expand...

:rolleyes:

Of course the networks don't test any kit. Any sane organisation would go out and spend R4B or so on a network without testing it first. :rolleyes:

Answer me this:

- How do you build a lab with 7000 towers and 15 000 000 active customers connected to it?

- How do you test the features the vendor has on his roadmap, the ones for next year or the year after?
 
Sackboy said:
Generally in IT you test for the worst case scenario and you use more than a 192kb/s to ensure it happens.:eek:
Click to expand...

How would you test millions of messages coming through from 3 networks within a few hours? If you buy a lot of bandwidth and it just sits idle then it is money down the toilet. That said they probably should have had a plan in place to organise spare capacity should they need it for the voting. It is not always that easy to do load testing especially if you are getting messages from multiple cellular networks.
 
rpm said:
Mobile operators must reconnect with consumers
Click to expand...

Yep, Mobile operators seem to have fallen into so much of a money-glut that consumer orientation went out the back door at more than one Mobile outlet. Mobile Head Office attitudes to the consumer channel is often 'high and mighty' - they could not be bothered with the consumer walking away from their brand, there are plenty replacement consumers disenchanted with the 'other' network waiting to sign up.
 
pkid said:
How would you test millions of messages coming through from 3 networks within a few hours? If you buy a lot of bandwidth and it just sits idle then it is money down the toilet. That said they probably should have had a plan in place to organise spare capacity should they need it for the voting. It is not always that easy to do load testing especially if you are getting messages from multiple cellular networks.
Click to expand...
Well, it's a little complicated to explain in such a short space, but it involves using a test network and a set of test data. Standard stuff really. Testing on live systems is frowned upon, even if you are pretty sure it will work.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X