For how long will MTN maintain its lead?

I need your candid opinions on this topic for research purposes. Thanks a lot.

Hello Vicuzo,

What do you mean by MTN's lead?

Globacom and Vmobile, not MTN, have the lead when it comes to customer satisfaction and good public relations:
- Globacom tariffs are just as high as MTN's tariffs, the per-second billing rate they pioneered was more expensive than MTN's per minute billing, yet the masses see Glo-mobile as a liberator and MTN as an expensive network.  This is called good public relations.  It helps that they also have the most advanced network (GPRS, WAP, MMS) though in practice it can hard to activate those features!
- According to a recent NCC Report on the quality of service of GSM Phone Networks in Nigeria, the the Vmobile Network is at least as bad as the MTEL network, yet if you poll their customers you will discover that most Vmobile subscribers simply have nothing bad to say about the network.  This is called customer satisfaction.

So where does MTN have the lead?
- Number of subscribers?  Could this simply be because mobile phone users on the MTN network are not ready to throw away their old MTN SIM cards when they buy new lines from Vmobile and Globacom?
- Quality of TV Advertising?  Is MTN in the telecommunications business or are they now in the movie business?
- 'Sponsorship' of Politicians? No comments!
- Profit?  Do we have figures from Vmobile and Globacom to compare with MTN's published financial results?

How can assume that MTN has the lead when:
- Vmobile is seen the most customer-friendly phone network.
- Globacom is seen as a liberator and the company with the best technology.
- MTEL, the most pocket-friendly phone network, is now as reliable as the others.
- While MTN is ... "like a bimbo"?

Regards.

yeah thanks seun,when i said lead i meant in terms of subscriber stength...i hear MTN has a 43% hold of the market presently

That % might have reduced well enough cos a lot of people have been dropping their MTN lines for glo & Vmobile, e.g. Me, my sister and my brother have dropped MTN for glo/Vmobile so the % is not correct my brother...

MTN's lead will continue to drop as other operators are having wider coverage, remember MTN's point of sale is their wider coverage which Vmobile and glo are improving on @ a fast pace...

I think by 2010 it should be an even field, with no lcear leader. if there is to be a leader, itll be glabalcom

Glo rocks!

@Seun has said it all. Give a couple of years from now, MTN would have lost a substantial part of the market to Globacom and VMobile. They are fast catching up on it now. Just wait and see.

Are we going to eat wide coverage? What we need is a pocket-friendly and customer's satisfaction-conscious operator. The days of MTN's dominance in Nigeria's telecom industry is gradually over.

Well, they may lost market share, but they ar elooking ot buy NITEL. that could be the worse and will give them a lot of power

...though they are not customer friendly but just keep this behind your mind that MTN can actually take the lead in better years to come BUT if someone like Vodafone decides to take maybe Vmobile back l change my statement.

Well, Well, Well
Who is actually the best
Well i think the 3 major networks in the country are really trying.in terms of service delivery and customer care ,
i would give it to Vmobile becos
1 Calls to customer care are free which most people enjoy
2 Clear call ternination
3 Presently they are giving out free txt on 080276 and 080278 lines.

As for Glo mobile
1 They lead in Added Value Services and reach
AVS include
MMS,Mobile Internet,mobile Banking etc.
intends of infrasturture,they lead the pack
Overtime i know ,they will take over

As for MTN
The big thiefs of Nigeria
Just recently they decleared one free txt per day which to me is robbish
But the xtended validity is okay.

As for me They need to work on their services in all.

why give a dog a bad name to hang it? MTN has the widest coverage and they are leading the pack with a wide margin; should they acquire NITEL then i guess it will be a different matter.

National telecommunications operator, Globacom, has attained the 20 million subscriber base mark, as it marks a five-year milestone of joining GSM operations in Nigeria.

The milestone, the company said in a statement on Thursday was a mark of the wide acceptance it has received from Nigerians.

Globacom switched on its network on August 29, 2003, with a promise to build Africa’s biggest and best network.

The company’s Executive Director, Marketing Communications, Mr. Okon Iyanam, said in a statement on Thursday, that the company was overwhelmed by the expression of faith in the network demonstrated by Nigerians.

“We are excited by the expression of faith in us by Nigerians. Within five years, Nigerians have made us what we are. This is only possible where the people are passionate about a brand that delivers on its promises as we have been doing,” he said.

In appreciation of the support, Globacom is placing “Thank you” messages in publications in the country with a focus on the areas where Nigerians had really rallied round the network to make it the leader in the market.

According to Iyanam, Globacom was taking the opportunity to appreciate Nigerians for the acceptance of the network and for their loyalty over the years.

Earlier in the year, the Group Chief Operating Officer, Glo Mobile, Mr. Mohammed Jameel, had disclosed that the company was installing a capacity for over 30 million subscribers by adding over 1,500 new base stations before the end of the year.

Globacom has extensive international roaming services involving over 200 networks in more than 100 countries and provides services on voice, SMS, GPRS roaming and BlackBerry services.

It also provides bulk sale of bandwidth and offers access to 804 networks in 174 countries via international SMS.

20million subscribers! i think we should wait for the official figure from NCC.if they have that number what about MTN? 25million?

MTN and GLO started operations at different times