Executive Summary

This study is catered for evaluating the performance of Oubee, the WiMax internet service provider of Bangladesh and the satisfaction level of its customers. The two companies currently operating in the WiMax technology oriented market are Qubee Ltd and Banglalion Communications Ltd. WiMax is a state of the art technology that has the potential of replacing the traditional internet technologies fairly promptly and it has become evident from the high growth rate of WiMax subscribers around not only Dhaka city but also the other parts of the country. Both the companies started with great promises and enormous promotional effort. Question arises whether the WiMax technology based service provider Qubee have really been able to provide the customers with solutions to the problems they have been facing for long or how are they performing comparing to one another in terms of the factors determining their performance in respective fields. The study however, has first identified and validated the factors determining the performance of the ISPs from the customers point of view through an exploratory research involving expert interviews. A descriptive research was conducted afterwards to collect and analyze users view on the performance of the company. The data was analyzed using statistical tools like descriptive statistical tools and the hypothesis testing methods. However, the findings found that the WiMax service providers are successful regarding some of the factors and in some cases they have lacking. Recommendations have been made in order to improve the customer satisfaction level for operators and also to rule over the future competitions.

Introduction
WiMax is an IP based, wireless broadband access technology that provides performance similar to 802.11/Wi-Fi networks with the coverage and QOS (quality of service) of cellular networks. It is an acronym meaning "Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMax). It is a telecommunications technology that offers transmission of wireless data via a number of transmission methods; such as portable or fully mobile internet access via point to multipoint links. The WiMax technology offers around 72 Mega Bits per second without any need for the cable infrastructure and is based on Standard that is IEEE 802.16. The name WiMax, was created by the WiMax Forum (http://www.WiMaxforum.org), which was formed, in June 2001 to promote conformity with and interoperability of the standard. The forum has more than 522 members comprising the majority of operators, component and equipment companies in the communications ecosystem, among which, 15 are board members. The current board members of the WiMax forum are ZTE Corporation (China), Samsung (South Korea), Aperto Networks (USA), Airspan Networks (UK), Alcatel-Lucent (France), Alvarion (Israel), Fujitsu (Japan), Intel Corporation (USA), KDDI (Japan), British Telecom (UK), KT Corp (South Korea), Sprint Nextel (USA), Motorola (USA), AT&T (USA) and Nokia (Finland). Less than one out of five people of the developed world and an even smaller, little percentage of people across the world have broadband access today. Existing technologies such as Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), cable, and fixed wireless are overwhelmed by expensive installs, problems with loop lengths, upstream upgrade issues, line-of-sight restrictions, and poor scalability. New organizations as well as individuals are increasingly adopting broadband, whereas those already using broadband are becoming dependent on it and are demanding better services with added benefits. To support this exceptional new demand, WiMax (802.16) has emerged as a feasible solution, because of its inherent features that holds great promise for the future of wireless communications. WiMax also enables the users to experience rich multimedia services on the go. This technology has the potential to do the same to broadband internet access what cell phones have done to telephone access. It could replace cable and DSL services, like how many people have given up their "land lines" in favor of cell phones.

WiMax technology became available in most parts of the developed countries whereas in our country, it is relatively a new concept. In September 2008, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) allowed companies to bid for WiMax license and among nine of them, only three won the licenseBanglalion Communication, BRAC BD Mail Network Ltd and Augere Wireless Broadband Bangladesh Ltd. However, BRAC later refused to take the license. Banglalion Communications was the top bidder among nine companies. The bidding for license acquisition started at Tk. 25 crore and the highest bidding was settled at Tk. 215 crore for each license acquisition fee. The duration of the licenses will initially be for a term of 15 years. On expiry of the initial term, the license may be renewed for subsequent terms, each of five years in duration, subject to the approval from the commission and other such conditions, including the payment of fees specified by the commission. The annual license fee is Tk 3 crore and the licensee had to submit a bank guarantee of Tk. 15 crore in favor of the BTRC within 15 days from the date of issue of the license. The Tk 215 crore bid price had become a double bind for both the telecom regulator and licensees. The regulator extended the deadline for launching WiMax services several times. Bangladesh, with the lowest internet penetration in the world at 4 percent, now experiences highspeed wireless internet by the launch of the WiMax technology. At present, the country has four million internet users among which, there are 200,000 WiMax subscribers. As Bangladesh's Telecom Industry is booming with a growing middle-class, experts expect a big demand for broadband wireless services and WiMax. Bangladesh will have around 12 million WiMax subscribers by 2012, they expect. WiMax, 30 times faster than 3G mobile technology and 100 times faster than wireless data rates, can solve the problems of rural connectivity. WiMax can replace GSM and CDMA cellular phone technologies, or increase capacity, used as a layover. It has been used as a wireless backhaul technology for 2G, 3G, and 4G networks in both developed and developing countries.

Objective of the Study

The objective of the study is to customer satisfaction level of the customer of Qubee Ltd in terms of different performance factors involved in making up the equity of satisfaction. The outcomes

of this research will be helpful for the company under scrutiny for getting a clear picture of their respective brand perception and their effectiveness of the efforts towards achieving higher customer satisfaction level. Most of the times the increasing sales figure or amount of monthly bills collected fail to show the possible future downturns due to decline in customer satisfaction and their perceived level of the brand. So, this study will help the brand look into possibly the most significant area to concentrate on. However, this study also serves as the first step of fulfilling the researchers course requirement of conducting a practical marketing research implementing the learning from the lecture sessions.

Problem Definition
The broad marketing research problem for this research is Evaluating the satisfaction level of the Qubee . Being specific, the research should provide information on the following questions (components of the broad problem statements) 1. What are the factors contributing in customer satisfaction in terms of internet services? 2. Do these factors vary when it comes to wireless internet service? 3. How are Qubee doing in terms of these factors? 4. How do the customers perceive the brands overall? 5. Which company is leading the market in terms of customer satisfaction?

Company Profile Qubee Ltd.

UK-based Augere Holdings, the parent company of Quebee Ltd., owns 60 percent of Augere Wireless Broadband Bangladesh Ltd. along with two other local companies. Teleport Bangladesh owns 30 percent and Aamra Resources Ltd. owns 10 percent in the company. 4

Quebee is one of the two WiMax service providers in Bangladesh primarily focusing on the capital Dhaka and Chittagong alone. It shares a belief that everyone should have access to hasslefree internet connectivity and to the opportunities it brings along. It also promises speed and reliable customer service to its customers. Magical internet experience is for everyone is its motto. 8Ps of Qubee Ltd. When marketers develop strategies to market manufactured goods, they usually address four basic strategic elements- Product, Price, Place and Promotion which are also known as 4 Ps of the marketing mix. But as Qubee Ltd. is in service business, apart from the usual 4 Ps , there are additional four Ps such as: Process, People, Physical Environment and Productivity and Quality (Lovelock & Wirtz, 2007, pp. 22-25). Lets analyze these Ps for Qubee Ltd. 1. Product: Here, for Qubee, the products are the different WiMax internet packages it offers to the

customers. There are in total nine different packages available for the users according to their need and affordability. The packages offer 256 Kbps, 512 Kbps and 1Mbps speed with 5GB, 10GB and unlimited usage limit. Users have the flexibility to migrate from one package to another any time they want. Apart from these packages, Qubee has 512 Kbps pre-pay packages as well which have a validity of 15 days and 30 days with a usage volume of 1GB and 2GB respectively. 2. Place: Qubee has around 150 stores and 16 experience booths all over Dhaka, covering most parts of it. Better distribution and location always gives the edge to reach the target market in a better way than the competitor. Potential buyers can easily go to any of the stores and register for the service or they can just go to the experience booths to find out the quality of the service that Qubee provides. For the current customers, the stores have made the payment system easier. However, the scenario in Chittagong is not as good as it is in Dhaka.

3. Pricing: The pricing of the Packages offered by Qubee is given below: Normal Packages Speed 256 Kbps 512 Kbps 1 Mbps Monthly Usage Allowance* 5 GB 10 GB BDT 850 BDT 950 BDT 1,250 BDT 1,450 BDT 2,250 BDT 2,750

Sky BDT 1,250 BDT 2,250 BDT 5,250

Pre Paid Packages Speed Usage Volume 512 Kbps 1 GB 512 Kbps 2 GB *Vat is applicable on all the charges inclusive A customer has to buy a modem worth BDT 3,000 regardless of the packages and there is no installation fee. The normal package-fee is payable at the beginning of every month. In both type of packages, the customers have to pay the fee in advance. So the differences among the packages lie in the speed, usage volume and the validity period. 4. Promotion: When it comes to promotion, Qubee focuses more on the direct approaches. It takes part in different sort of education fairs and various events and runs different activations to reach its target market. Sometimes, it sets up kiosks and experience booths in the educational and business institutes to raise awareness and to educate the potential customers. Through the magical internet experience brought by WiMax technology, it wants to build the brand image in the mindset of the target market. Personal communication is another promotional tool that it uses effectively to grab more market share. Moreover, it advertises in the newspapers, magazines, social networking websites like facebook and twitter, billboards, and other outdoor advertising and gives away flyers and brochures. But so far there are no promotional activities in the electronic media such as television and radio. Validity 15 days 30 days Price** BDT 400 BDT 700 ** VAT

For a service based business, words of mouth is the most efficient and effective measure to promote the brand. Qubee tries to capitalize the fact and encourages its users to spread the experience they have with the service of the company to others so that they also might end up subscribing the packages. 5. Process of the service According to the level of customers involvement, the service delivery can be categorized- low participation level, moderate participation level and high participation level. For the Qubee subscribers, its a low participation level where the customers do not need to be associated with the process deeply and employees and systems do all the work. Perhaps, in this case, the role of the customers is only to make payments to the service. But in moderate and high participation level, the customers are more intertwined with the process and the service delivery is different from the other one. 6. Physical Environment Physical environment plays a key role making an impression in the minds of the customers. Office building, furniture, interior design, printed material and overall appearance of the company reflect the tangible evidence of a firms service quality. Qubee is successful conveying this message to its clients as it has a good physical environment. 7. People In a service business, people who work there is no less important than technology or any other assets. Sometimes they have to interact and communicate with the customers directly and based on their way of communication, people perceive the quality of the service. The sales team of Qubee is very efficient in this regard as they all are well-trained and give proper attention to each customer. It also has a dedicated customer service hotline which aims to solve the problems faced by the subscribers any time round the clock.

8. Productivity and Quality

Productivity and quality are two sides of a coin, having equal important impact on the service providing firm. Managers should cut costs as much as possible without compromising the quality so the service delivery and process get more productive. On the other hand, quality of the service depends on the external view i.e. on the customers. Product differentiation and product line help the customers distinguish the quality of the service provided from the competitors. Qubee focuses a lot on how its subscribers evaluate the quality of the internet service and how it can be augmented.

SWOT
STRENGTH:
Product Quality: Within a very short time Qubee established itself by its quality. They use very high quality technology. Utility: In Bangladesh Qubee use very high quality technology and instrument. People use Qubee modem in a large number after they enter in the market and its growing very fast because of their quality speed and service. So we consider it is a important strength of Qubee. Reputation: Within a very short time Qubee developed its goodwill and popularity among its user. This is also another reputation. Uniqueness: The service offered by Qubee is unique as the service provided by the company is unique and fastest internet service provider in Bangladesh.

WEAKNESS:
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Lack of Marketing: We found that Qubee is little behind in place marketing. There are lots of opportunities in the marketing sector which their competitor frequently uses. They framed their self as a high class product. They stand behind to reach their product to the ordinary people comparing to their competitor. Lack of awareness: Qubee fail to create awareness among people.this is also a weakness of Qubee.

OPPORTUNITY:
Technological advancement: In technological sector they are far ahead from their competitor. Only qubee is using the most costly and useful modern machines. For this it is very easy for them to achieve their goal which is to provide people a very good service. This is also very cost effective. Established Marketing Base: Marketing is one of the most crucial factors for a company who is competing in the industry with other competitors. Therefore, in order to gain market share in the competitive market in Bangladesh Qubee has resorted to mass marketing. It can be regarded as highly fortunate on their part that the marketing sector in our country has developed and improved at an impressive place and level. Now Qubee can enjoy the facilities of the marketing sector in Bangladesh. Target Market: Another advantage or opportunity for Qubee is their target market. They are at a more advanced level of in regards to customer segmentation. They are now using a universal approach in regards to consumers.

Market Growth:

The internet market of Bangladesh is growing rapidly. In last few years the market becomes very opportunistic. So it becomes very easy to established one brand if it has the quality.

THREAT:
High Competition: The Internet market in Bangladesh has become highly competitive because now there are many competitors in the country. So the market has become highly oligopolistic. So its a thread for qubee. Government intervention: Government intervention is another threat. Mostly Bangladesh govt. charges high tax on this type of Company. Govt. also gives high rules and regulation in case of spreading out the business and use network. Market Sustainability: The market in Bangladesh is not that large, so many competitors in one market is a little too much for the market. So if the company cannot operate successfully accomplishing all their targets, they have the threat of losing their business in a bad way. Recession: Nowadays recession is surrounding worldwide and its harms many industrial sector. But this recession do not affect our economy yet. But if is harms it may bring a great loss for the company. The expansion of the industry is vulnerable to the downturn of the economy.

Research Design

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Type of Research Design

The entire research has been approached at two different phases. At the first stage the exploration of the customer satisfaction factors has been accomplished and later the second phase analyzed the customers rating in those areas for the brands. Phase 1 (Exploratory): At this phase, qualitative data has been collected through expert interviews and interviews of employees of the company. Those data are expected to help figure out the factors that are to be served in order to build customer satisfaction in terms of internet services and specifically wireless internet services. In addition, international researches on internet users satisfaction will be used as secondary data. Phase 2 (Descriptive): The results of the first phase worked as the ground work of this phase. The factors figured out in the earlier phase have been used as the criteria of evaluating the customers satisfaction level for the company. Survey methods have been used to obtain quantitative information; mostly online survey to obtain data from a large sample within short time duration.

Determination of the samples and sample size For the qualitative part of the research, a total of 5 persons have been interviewed, who are students in the IT concentration and have deep knowledge about the broadband and wireless internet technology. However, 2 operational level managers from Qubee have been interviewed for gaining insight about the market and identify the trends in the market, which are more likely to be well known by the operational level managers. For the quantitative part, 50 users of WiMax internet have been surveyed. Due to the constraint of time and human resource, the sample size had to be small. A total of 57 people have been reached for data collection. Data Collection All the surveys are conducted by our team members and the respondents of the internet users were selected randomly by non-probability method of sampling. Descriptive tools

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Mean: Mean has been used to understand the central tendency of the data. Standard deviation: Standard deviation has been used to identify the dispersion of the variables from the mean and any possible misleading indication by the mean. Count: Counting respondents frequency in a particular factor has given insight about the popularity or preference of that factor. Pareto diagram: This special type of combined line chart and bar chart has been used to identify the vital few factors responsible for the users switching their service providers.

Multiple R: This estimator is used to determine whether the variables of a particular regression are correlated to the dependent variable or not. A high absolute value represents high degree of correlation.

R-squared and adjusted R-squared: The percentage of variables explainable by a regression is expressed with the R-squared. It tends to increase as the number of variables used as dependent variables increases.

Hypothesis testing tools Two sample T-test for mean: This test has been used widely in the study to determine any variation in the mean of the samples. For instance, the question asking if the average daily usage in hours has increased after switching to Qubee is answered by a T-test with 2 samples, Qubee and previous ISP considering the variable hours used (daily). In all the tests unequal variances are assumed as further data to be sure about the equality of variance is unknown. Significance level () was invariably assumed to be 0.05 for all the tests. The decision rule used was that reject the null hypothesis if P-value < or vice versa.

Two factor ANOVA with replication: To figure out that if there is any difference between the speeds provided by the companies at different hours and on different days. The two factors were the time shifts4 and weekdays or weekends. Several observations have been found that demanded a test with replication. Significance level () was assumed to be 0.05 for the tests. The decision rule used was that reject the null hypothesis that the factor (shifts or days in a week) doesnt

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show any difference in speed, if P-value < or vice versa. Linear regression: Linear regression has been used to identify the performance factors that are significant in describing the overall rating a user gives the company. Significance level () was assumed to be 0.05 for the tests. The decision rule used was that the factor is significant, if corresponding P-value < or vice versa. However, the regressions were run twice. Firstly, all the performance factors had been taken as independent variables and then only significant factors have been singled out. Finally the regressions were run using only those variables.

Analysis & Findings (Exploratory Phase)

As mentioned earlier, for getting insights and understanding regarding to the issue in hand, we interviewed the experts to get a slice of their perception. They encountered us with many technical and fascinating terms which will be very helpful for our project.

Factors behind switching ISP

At the beginning, the experts explained the reasons or factors behind the switching the brands among the internet users. The factors are illustrated below1. Price- this is one of the most important factors for switching brands. Usual broadband or Mobile connections are comparatively more expensive than the WiMax internet. By paying the same price, now they are allowed to access to many facilities. 2. Customer service- a strong customer service always pays off in service industries. Qubee and Banglalion both offer superior customer services to the customers. To many of the experts, its a very crucial factor that helps retain and nurture customers for a longer period of time. 3. Speed- to cope up with the up-to-dated world, everyone needs high speed internet connectivity which the typical internet providers cannot provide. No one likes slow internet connection. 4. Network availability- in a month, it is frequently seen that the users of cable broadband line have no connection or very fluctuating speed. People in our country are ready to pay a good price

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for a good, hassle-free service. Thats why WiMax internet connectivity is getting more and more popular every day. 5. Extra features- in some internet connections, users are not allowed to access to some features. But in WiMax, the opportunities are immense. Many users switch to WiMax packages only to capitalize these facilities like torrent support, LAN sharing etc. 6. Download limit- This is a key feature for the users who download a lot over the internet. Generally, most of the people dont even have proper idea about the subject matter. If they can be educated properly, it may increase their revenue. Still price and speed are the core benefits a customer looks for. 7. Technical support- people count on this factor only in the time of need. If they get it properly, they are very satisfied and tell others about it. It creates good brand image for the company. 8. Payment flexibility- the payment systems and policies for WiMax internet Connection are more or less same like the other ISP packages apart from a fact that one have to. So far, the factors responsible for switching brands were explained. Now its time to illustrate the performance factors of the WiMax connection.

Performance factors
Speed- the customers should be quite happy with the connection as they receive the desired speed most of the time. (There might be some exceptions). Consistency in speed- The consistency rate of the WiMax packages is far better than the consistency rate of other broadband connections as they have better technology and support. For the prior bad experiences, the customers are expected to rate this factor pretty well. Network

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Coverage- rating for this factor can be confusing as some WiMax users might get better network than the others. It depends on the number of bits present in that area and the density of building and other barriers. Hassle free setup process- the WiMax users love this facility as the set up process is really easy. On the top of that, WiMax gives the people mobility with good speed- the best selling point for WiMax internet users. Setup charge- few users especially the new ones might rate this factor low as initially, they had to pay a good amount of money for the modem. But for the old customers, it wont matter to them that much considering the facilities that it provide. Customer care center- it is a very important part of the service process after the sales is made. As it is a service product, interaction with the clients is mandatory. So companies with better customer care service will be rated high, whereas, the company with no-so-good customer care service will be rated low.

Information service- As WiMax is a very sophisticated telecommunication service, people might expect smart ways to get interacted, feedback. They will love it if the services are provided to their doors even before they ask for it. Good customer relationship is a competitive advantage over the competitors and it ensures more sustainability in the market.

Analysis & Findings (Descriptive Phase)

Popularity of offerings
Download limit: In case of download limit, Banglalion offers unlimited packages at fairly low price ranges5 while Qubee offers unlimited download packages at no less than BDT 1250. Apparently this enables Banglalion to attract more customers to the unlimited packages and to the company overall. Though most of the customers really dont use the full capacity of their download limits, they like to go for the unlimited packages as people dont like to be constrained from any aspect and always want to at least have the exposure to the best and the most. However,

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observing the data about download limit and amount of monthly bill paid, it is concluded that the responses about the download limit are susceptible to being inaccurate. Because, in many cases the respondents are really ignorant about their lines download limit and even unaware of the exact sense of download limit. Modem type: Interestingly, almost all Banglalion subscribers use portable USB dongles. However, Qubee shows consistency in the sales of desktop and portable modems. The reason behind this is that Banglalion has been offering the portable device (USB Dongle) for a long time, apparently from a few months after its inception. But Qubee has recently introduced its portable solution (Qubee UH235) and the device has become popular right away. Nevertheless, Qubee had introduced the USB dongle much before, but the device couldnt gain much popularity as the customer managers and the technicians used to suggest the desktop modems over the USB dongle.

Factors which are important for internet users

The respondents were asked to rate the factors that is important to them for choosing the internet connection. The following are the responses for each of the factors: Speed:

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Consistency of Speed

Consistency in Connection

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Network Coverage

Hassle free Setup Process

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Monthly Charge

Setup Charge

19

Customer Care Center

From the above pie charts, it is seen that speed, consistency of speed, consistency of connection are the driving factors for choosing the type of internet connection.

Performance of Qubee
Rating of the performance factors: Based on the ratings the respondents gave in terms of different performance factors (validates earlier in the exploratory phase) the performance of Qubee is illustrated in the following figure through mean and standard deviation. Factors Speed Speed Consistency Connection Consistency 2 Network Coverage Spontaneous Setup Monthly Charge Initial Charge Mean 8 7 8 7 8 6 7 20 Standard Deviation 2 2 2 2 2 3 2

Customer Service Information Update Overall

7 8 7

3 2 2

Figure 3: Average performance rating by users (Qubee)

The figure shows that Qubee is rated 8 (on a scale ranging 1-10) in speed, connection consistency, spontaneity in setup process and regular information update. However, in terms of monthly charge Qubee is rated 6, which is the lowest for it. So Qubee is observed as having a pricing strategy not reasonable enough in the customers opinion. Nevertheless, a high standard deviation shows a fairly high dispersion in the respondents perception towards the price. Overall, Qubee is rated 7 by the users that represents its moderate performance as a whole. From the rating obtained from the sample, it can be assumed that the overall rating by all the users of Qubee will be between 6.2 and 7.8. Difference in speed during different shifts of the day: As the users have rated Qubees performance during different shifts in a day during weekdays and weekends over a scale of 1-10, a test11 has been conducted to find out if there is any significant discrepancy in the speed for different shifts or weekdays and weekends. This test has been done because of the users experiencing similar issues for their previous broadband and mobile internet connections. The hypothesis for the test was that the average rating for speed during 4 different shifts 12 (6 hours each) doesnt vary and the average rating for speed during weekdays and weekends doesnt vary. However, the test result shows that for Qubee, performance in terms of speed remains same for the whole day regardless of being a weekday or a weekend (not rejecting null hypothesis as P-value
Day shifts

= 0.285 > = 0.05 and P-value

Week shifts

= 0.903 > = 0.05)13.

However, different shifts of weekdays or weekends also dont show variance in mean (not rejecting null hypothesis as P-value Interaction = 0.998 > = 0.05). Factors Significant in Overall Impression This analysis is targeted for singling out the performance factors that are consistent with the overall rating of performance or in other words the factors that might contribute to create an

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overall impression of an internet service provider. To achieve the objective a regression has been done taking the overall rating as the dependent variable and all the other performance factors as independent variables. The test has been done for all the respondents, individually for Qubee users and for Banglalion users. Overall: The factors those are found to be significant in explaining the overall performance of all the WiMax vendors are speed, connection consistency and customer care service18. The regression equation is Overall Rating = 0.49 + 0.38*Speed rating + 0.24*Connection Consistency Rating + 0.27*Customer Care Rating The regression is a valid and acceptable one as the correlation of the variables is as high as 0.89 and approximately 77.85% of the variables can be explained by this model. Qubee: The factors those are found to be significant in explaining the overall performance of all the Qubee are connection consistency and customer care service19. The regression equation is Overall Rating = 2.08 + 0.38*Connection Consistency Rating + 0.33*Customer Care Rating The regression is a valid and acceptable one as the correlation of the variables is as high as 0.87 and approximately 72.86% of the variables can be explained by this model.

Conclusion & Recommendation

Based on the findings illustrated in the previous section, it may be concluded that 1) Most users are interested in subscribing in the lines featuring 256 Kbps of bandwidth, unlimited download permission. They prefer buying portable modems over the desktops. 2) While switching their service provider the users usually look for high speed, consistency in speed and connection, sincere support on any technical issue, justified price and convenient and useful customer service center. 3) WiMax internet services have been able to increase the satisfaction of internet users by reducing zero and fluctuating connectivity issues.

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4) Due to most users being mainly plain browsers, the need of high usage in terms of time and download merely changes with increase in convenience in internet experience. 5) Qubee is performing well in terms of speed, connection consistency, spontaneity in setup process and regular information update. 6) Qubee is perceived to be charging higher with regard to the service provided. 7) The speed doesnt vary shift to shift or during weekdays and weekends. 8) Overall performance of Qubee is moderate, rated 7 on a scale of 10. 9) Speed, consistency in connection and customer care service are the factors explaining the overall performance rating to the highest extent. However, this doesnt show any cause and effect relationship between the variables, rather its a mere correlation.

As the findings show that both the companies are lagging behind in terms of some performance factors, it is evident that they should take necessary actions to cover up the shortcomings before the competition increases. Even if the companies are financially sound for the time being; in the long run, these drawbacks are likely to become the selling points of the upcoming competitors and the existing service providers are likely to be defeated in terms of brand equity and thus market share. Based on the findings the following actions are recommended for Qubee 1) The company should promote packages with 256 Kbps bandwidth and unlimited download permission in general. The other packages should not be promoted in the same manner; rather they should be communicated to niche segments like movie lovers, music lovers, corporate houses etc. More direct approach should be adopted for attracting these segments. The communication efforts should take care of the fact that people are still ignorant about the meanings of an internet connections features. Educating the customers is a prime concern as the packages offered are not often well understood by the customers.

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2) Portable modems should be focused more during advertisements and sales. 3) The important factors like high speed, consistency in speed and connection, sincere support on any technical issue, justified price and convenient and useful customer service center should be focused more. 4) Qubee should revise on their price plan. Either the monthly payment has to be brought down or features should be enhanced to justify the high price.

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