Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), was once the undisputed leader in India’s telecom industry, now stands at a crucial crossroads. The state-owned telecom giant, which once enjoyed a dominant position, has faced numerous challenges over the years, from corruption scandals to the aggressive rise of private competitors.
However, recent market dynamics and customer dissatisfaction with private players have given BSNL a unique opportunity for a much-needed revival.
BSNL’s ‘Golden’ era.
BSNL’s journey began with promise and potential. Established in 2000, BSNL quickly became a household name, providing reliable and widespread telecom services across India. In that era, it was a luxury to have a BSNL connection that time, and the family who has the connection was considered as the rich and successful.
As the largest telecom operator in the country, it played a pivotal role in connecting millions of Indians, especially in rural and remote areas.
Later, many private companies too joined the race and start competing with BSNL.
The beginning of the end: Scams and stagnation.
BSNL’s growth story hit a major roadblock with the 2G spectrum scam. It was one of the biggest corruption scandals in India’s history. The scam, orchestrated by former telecom minister A. Raja, involved the allocation of 2G spectrum licenses at throwaway prices to local and private companies, leading to massive revenue losses for the government.
DMK MP Kanimozhi as well as officials of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, Unitech Ltd. and D B Realty were accused in the cases.
The scandal not only tarnished the reputation of the telecom ministry, but also severely impacted BSNL’s operations and growth prospects. The focus shifted from expansion and modernization to dealing with the fallout of the scam, causing BSNL to lose its competitive edge. While this given private players enough time to succeed.
On top of these scams and stagnation, BSNL employees too looted the company by showing babu culture (rude behaviors and not giving any attention to consumer) in office, they didn’t care about the availability of their services and uptime.
People still want to have connection with BSNL faces lots of delays and inconvenience to talk with BSNL employees that it seems better option to move with private players.
We can say that this was the true end of BSNL, since it is state-owned, it never ended.
The rise of private players.
While BSNL was grappling with internal issues, private telecom companies were on the rise. Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, and Idea Cellular (which later merged to form Vodafone Idea or Vi) rapidly expanded their networks and customer bases.
Some new players like also entered the game and enjoyed a good time like Aircel, Telenor, Tata Docomo, Reliance Communication (Anil), etc. This all went well for mobile users and for private players as well, till Reliance Jio entered in to the market.
The entry of Reliance Jio in 2016 further disrupted the market. Jio’s aggressive pricing strategy, offering free voice calls and dirt-cheap data (even free), revolutionized the telecom industry, forcing other players to slash their prices to stay competitive.
The telecom landscape quickly changed, with many smaller operators unable to sustain themselves in the face of intense competition. This consolidation left the market dominated by three major players: Jio, Airtel, and Vi. These companies captured the majority of the customer base, leaving BSNL struggling to retain its users.
Jio’s market disruption and price hike.
Reliance Jio’s disruptive entry initially benefited consumers with low-cost data and free voice calls. Jio made other private players suffer too as their infrastructure was modern and didn’t require heavy investments, while other competitors unable to cop up with the aggressive discounts and growth. In just 2–3 years, many small private players either merged into big entity or sell off their business.
Jio successful grabbed the majority of the market, Airtel survived the competition, and Vodafone Ideas (merged entity) is lagged behind everyone. BSNL is still stuck with 2G and 3G technology, where private players successfully migrated to 4G and 5G.
By this time, Jio was the first one to successfully upgrade to True 5G PAN-India. Airtel too joined the 5G (non-standalone) race, Vi had funding issues so stuck with 4G now.
However, recent developments have seen Jio increase its prices by 12% to 27%, making telecom services instantly more expensive. Other private players, Airtel and Vi, followed suit, adopting similar price hike strategies. This sudden rise in costs has not gone well with consumers, who are now looking for affordable alternatives.
Most people complained that this is duopoly between Jio & Airtel, and Vi’s move to increase price is unfair as they didn’t even have 5G to charge more.
Cheating by every private players.
There is continuous cheating by private players like 28 days of recharge by default that made them earn for 13 months in a year. They made even 24 days and 14 days recharge plans that lead to soft dissatisfaction. Now sudden price hike made everyone shocked.
So the majority of users who use limited data or no data and only calling have to recharge expensive data added plans which starts from expensive ground.
It seems like private payers are only looking to increase their ARPU (Average Revenue Per User) only and not focused on offering consumer friendly service.
BSNL: A glimmer of hope.
The recent dissatisfaction with private telecom operators has sparked a renewed interest in BSNL, as not every customer use data where private players are only focused on data.
With consumers facing higher costs and seeking reliable alternatives, many are now either porting their numbers to BSNL and buying new SIMs. This unexpected turn of events presents a last chance for BSNL to make a significant comeback.
BSNL: The path to revival.
For BSNL, this is an opportunity that cannot be squandered. Here are key steps the company must take to fix things for itself and for consumers:
- Technological upgradation: BSNL’s delay in rolling out 4G services has been a major drawback. Accelerating the deployment of 4G and preparing for 5G is crucial to compete with private players and attract data-savvy customers.
- Improving service quality: Enhancing network quality and customer service is essential. BSNL must address coverage issues, reduce downtime, and improve customer support to retain existing users and attract new ones.
- Competitive pricing: Offering competitive and transparent pricing plans can help BSNL win back price-sensitive customers who are disillusioned with the recent hikes by private operators.
- Operational efficiency: Streamlining operations and reducing costs through initiatives like the voluntary retirement scheme (VRS) can improve financial stability. Merging with MTNL can also enhance efficiency and market reach.
- Government support: Continued backing from the government in terms of financial aid, policy support, and favorable regulatory measures is vital for BSNL’s revival.
- Digital initiatives: Leveraging digital platforms for customer engagement, billing, and support can enhance user experience and streamline operations.
Conclusion.
BSNL’s journey from a market leader to a struggling entity has been marked by unusual challenges and setbacks. However, the current market scenario where consumers are sad with the pricing game of private telcos offers a unique opportunity for a turnaround.
With strategic planning, technological upgradation, and a focus on customer satisfaction, BSNL can reclaim its position in the telecom industry. We can say that, this is the last chance for the state-owned giant to make a comeback, and the telecom industry and millions of hopeful customers are watching closely, rooting for BSNL’s success.
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