Consumer behavior towards mobile phones in rural areas

Introduction:
A mobile telephone or cellular telephone (commonly, "mobile phone" or "cell
phone") is a long-range, portable electronic device used for mobile communication. In
addition to the standard voice function of a telephone, current mobile phones can support
many additional services such as SMS for text messaging, email, packet switching for
access to the Internet, and MMS for sending and receiving photos and video. Most
current mobile phones connect to a cellular network of base stations (cell sites), which is
in turn interconnected to the public switched telephone network (PSTN) (the exception
are satellite phones).

History:
• In 1908, U.S. Patent 887,357 for a wireless telephone was issued in to Nathan B.
Stubblefield of Murray, Kentucky.
• In 1945, the zero generation (0G) of mobile telephones was introduced.
• The first commercial citywide cellular network was launched in Japan by NTT in
1979.
• In 1983, Motorola DynaTAC was the first approved mobile phone by FCC in
the United States.
• In 1984, Bell Labs developed modern commercial cellular technology (based, to
a large extent, on the Gladden, Parelman Patent), which employed multiple,
centrally controlled base stations (cell sites), each providing service to a small
area (a cell).
• The first "modern" network technology on digital 2G (second generation) cellular
technology was launched by Radiolinja (now part of Elisa Group) in 1991 in
Finland on the GSM standard which also marked the introduction of competition
 in mobile telecoms when Radiolinja challenged incumbent Telecom Finland
(now part of TeliaSonera) who ran a 1G NMT network.
• The first data services appeared on mobile phones starting with person-to-person
SMS text messaging in Finland in 1993.
• In 2001 the first commercial launch of 3G (Third Generation) was again in Japan
by NTT DoCoMo on the WCDMA standard.

Features
Mobile phones often have features beyond sending text messages and making
voice calls, including call registers, GPS navigation, music (MP3) and video (MP4)
playback, RDS radio receiver, alarms, memo and document recording, personal
organiser and personal digital assistant functions, ability to watch streaming video or
download video for later viewing, video calling, built-in cameras (3.2+ Mpx) and
camcorders (video recording), with autofocus and flash, ringtones, games, PTT,
memory card reader (SD), USB (2.0), infrared, Bluetooth (2.0) and WiFi
connectivity, instant messaging, Internet e-mail and browsing and serving as a wireless
modem for a PC, and soon will also serve as a console of sorts to online games and other
high quality games.

Manufacturers:
Nokia Corporation is currently the world's largest manufacturer of mobile
telephones, with a global market share of approximately 36% in Q1 of 2007.Other mobile
phone manufacturers include Audiovox (now UT Starcom), Benefon, BenQ-Siemens,
High Tech Computer Corporation (HTC), Fujitsu, Kyocera, 3G, LG Mobile, Motorola,
NEC, Panasonic (Matsushita Electric), Pantech Curitel, Philips, Research In Motion,
Sagem, Samsung, Sanyo, Sharp, Siemens, Sierra Wireless, SK Teletech, Sony Ericsson,
T&A Alcatel,Toshiba, Verizon, and soon to be Apple Inc.. There are also specialist
communication systems related to (but distinct from) mobile phones, such as Professional
Mobile Radio.
Indian Mobile Market:
India has around 1 billion GSM users as per Cellular Operators Association of
India’s (COAI) latest statistics and 39 million CDMA users as per Association of Unified
Telecom Service Providers of India’s (AUSPI) statistics. Totally India has around 1.6
billion mobile phone subscribers at the end of 2009.

Cellular Network Providers:

Airtel is the biggest operator overall with 27.7% share of all ‘active’
subscribers base and 28.0% share of all ‘active’ subscriptions. Vodafone follows next,
with Reliance being a close 3rd
Airtel also has the highest ‘subscription-subscriber ratio’ and shows the highest
‘propensity’ to be a user’s next ‘active’ multiple mobile connection. BSNL follows
thereafter among only GSM players Airtel stays at the top with 34.4% and 34.8% share
respectively
Among only CDMA players Reliance Comm tops with 55.9% and 56.0% share
respectively. It is followed by Tata Teleservices and Tata DoCoMo
On ‘most used’ connection basis, Airtel tops. Reliance comes up as the joint 2nd with
Vodafone. Operators whose share fall somewhat at ‘most used’ connection level are Idea,
Uninor and Spice

Handset Usage

• There are 0.48 million more mobile handsets than the 355 million ‘active’ mobile
connections
• ‘Single’ active mobile handset users predominate in both urban and rural areas at
85%
Half of all mobile handsets ‘in use’ are claimed to have been bought in Rs 1,500 –
3,000 price range
 • Compared to rural users, urban users show a lower relative incidence of buying a
handset below Rs 1,500 and a higher relative incidence of buying one costing
over Rs 3,000.
• Mobile handsets are as much ‘entertainment device’ as ‘communication device’
for most mobile users. Mobile handsets have also become the main device for
listening to ‘music on the go’ for most of them, but a device for ‘going online’ for
only a very few of them as yet

HANDSET BRANDS

• Almost 2/3rd of all ‘active’ handsets are Nokia (on both ‘multiple usages’ basis
as well as ‘most used’ basis). LG follows as a distant second at 10%
• Samsung, Sony Ericsson and Micromax make up the rest of the top 5 list
• Nokia appears to be used more in ‘urban’ areas than in rural areas, while
Samsung, Micromax and Spice appear to be used relatively more in the rural areas
than in the urban areas
• Maxx Mobile shows the highest ‘propensity’ to be a mobile user’s next ‘multiple
handset’. Among bigger players, Samsung shows the highest propensity, followed
by LG and then Nokia

Mobile Operator Services and Facilities

Cellular operators also providing many exciting features to increase their
customer base like hello tunes, ring tones, mms, GPRS, call forwarding, call waiting,
voice mail, missed all information, call conferencing, contests, free offers, recharge
voucher discounts, life time validity, double voucher validity, favorite numbers, night
talk discounts etc..

Rural areas telecom growth in India:

When most sectors are bearing the brunt of global economic slowdown, India’s
telecom industry is continuing with its high growth
 • Majority of the numbers were from the rural market with the urban market
becoming more or less saturated. The mobile handset replacement market and the
switch from landline telephony to mobile telecom have also been the driving force
for such robust growth.
• “The overwhelming number of connections that are added every month is due to
the reach of the network to those sections of society it had never touched before,”
T.V. Ramachandran, director general of GSM operators’ lobby Cellular Operators
Association of India (COAI), told IANS.
• The country, which already boasts of the second-largest telecom user base in the
world after China and ahead of the US, now has 429.72 million telecom
subscribers, in both the wireless and mobile segments, with a record growth of
59.48 percent last fiscal.
• Today, mobile telephony is being used to provide information to the farmers
through SMS and multimedia-supported systems in many Asian countries. This
has been made possible through public, private as well as NGO sector initiatives.
• Mobile telephones have been a “dream come true” for rural areas. Connectivity to
the outside world... has been made so easy. Unnecessary commuting to urban
centers has been tremendously reduced
Rural benefits:
Mobile telephony offers some unique opportunities, including:
• providing a direct global communication channel to rural communities
• extending the impact of established rural media, such as rural radio
• making local content available making rural services more efficient (logistics,
coordination, etc) and cost-effective.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This describes the research methodology adopted to achieve the objectives of the
study. It includes the scope of the study, research design, collection of data, analysis of
data and limitations of the study.

Research Design
The research design constitutes the blueprint for the collection, measurement and analysis
of data. It is the strategy for a study and the plan by which the strategy is to be carried
out. The research design of the project is descriptive as it describes data and
characteristics associated with the population using mobile phones.
Descriptive research is used to obtain information concerning the current status of the
phenomena to describe "what exists" with respect to variables in a given situation.

Data Collection:

Primary Data
Primary data is that data which is collected for the first time. It is original in nature in the
shape of raw material. For the purpose of collection of primary data, a well structured
questionnaire was framed which was filled by the respondents. The questionnaire
comprises of close ended as well as open ended questions. In close ended questions
ranking, checklist questions and multiple choice questions are used.
Secondary Data
Secondary data is the data which is already collected by someone. They are secondary in
nature and are in shape of finished product. Secondary data was collected so as to have
accurate results. Required data was collected from various books, magazines, journals
and internet.
Sampling Design
Sampling refers to selecting some of the elements in a population by which one can draw
conclusions about the entire population.

Sample size
Sample size is the size of sample drawn from the population which is the true
representative of the research. The number of respondents included in the study was 35
for convenience in evaluating and analyzing the data.

Data Analysis and Interpretation

For the purpose of analyzing, raw data was summarized in a master table and from this
table the results have been carried out. The questions having multiple/ alternative choices
were analyzed by taking percentages. In case of explanatory questions, the general
suggestions were summarized.

Limitations of the study

Sincere efforts have been made to collect reliable information from respondents; however
the report is subject to following limitations:
• Some respondents were reluctant to give the information, so their responses may
be biased.
• Time could be a major limitation as it may have affected the inferences drawn in
the study. Only 35 respondents have been contacted.
• Sample may not be the true representative of the universe.
• Study was conducted in particular villages only. So the results of the study may
not be applicable in other areas.
Table1: Showing number of respondents owing a mobile phone

Responses No. Of Respondents %

Yes 35 100
No 0 0
Total 35 100

Having Cell Phone

120

100
% of Respondents

80

60

40

20

0
Yes No
Interpretation:
Responses
From the above table and figures, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 35
respondents i.e., 100% are using the mobile phones in rural areas. Maximum numbers of
people are having their own mobile phones in rural areas.
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 25 male
respondents and 10 female respondents are having the mobile phones with them.

Table 2: showing necessity of using mobiles by respondents

Necessity of using m obile phones
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 35 100
No 120 0 0
Total 35 100
100
% Of Respondents

80

60

40

20
Interpretation:
From the above table and figures, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 35
respondents i.e., 100% have accepted that there is a necessity of using the mobile phones.
This means that they can feel there is a necessity of using the mobile phones in rural
areas.

According to demographic factors:

Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 25male
respondents and 10 female respondents opined that there is a necessity of using a mobile
phone.

Table 3: showing why do respondents use a mobile phone

Reasons No. Of Respondents %
Quick communication 35 100
As a status 0 0
Others use it 0 0
Total 35 100
 why using mobile phones

120

100
% of Respondents

80

60

40

20

0
Quick communication As a status Others use it
Interpretation:
Responses
Above table and figure and figure, we can conclude that the maximum respondents use
mobile for communication in rural areas. They cannot use for a status symbol

According to demographic factors:

Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 25 male
respondents and 10 female respondents stated that they sue mobiles for quick
communication

Table 4: showing how long respondents are using mobile phone

Responses No. Of Respondents %
Less than 6 months 0 0
6 months – 1 year 4 11.43
1 – 2 years 12 34.29
More than 2 years 19 54.59
Total 35 100
 howlongusingmobilephone

% of Respondents
60

50

40

30

20

10

0
Lessthan6 6m
onths–1 1–2years M
orethan2
months year years
Interpretation: R
esponses
From the above table and figures, we can conclude that out of 11.43% are using mobile
phones 6 months-1 year, 34.29% are 1 – 2 years and 54.59% are using more than 2 years.
The maximum number of respondents is using mobiles more than 1 year in rural areas
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 5 male are
using from 6 months – 1 year, 8 male and 3 female from 1 – 2 years and 13 male and 6
female are using from than 2 years. This means that maximum no. of male respondents
are using more than 2 years in rural areas

Table 5: showing different brands of mobiles phones used by the respondents

Responses No. Of Respondents %
Nokia 20 57.14
Samsung 6 17.14
LG 2 5.17
Micro Max 2 5.17
Spice 0 0
Lava 1 brand of m obile phones
2.86 used
Others 4 11.43
Total 60 35 100

50
% of Respondents

40

30

20

10
Interpretation:
From the above table and figures, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 57.14% are
using Nokia and 17.14% are using Samsung, LG and Micro Max are using 5.17% 0f
respondents and 11.43% are using others like Tata Indicom and other china phones. So it
is stated that Nokia is most preferred brand of the respondents in rural areas. Samsung is
also gaining ground with regard to popularity but not like Nokia.
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents
14 males and 5 females are using Nokia, 4 males and 2 females is using Samsung and 2
male and 2 female are using other mobiles like reliance, Tata Indicom.

Table 6: showing how much money do respondents spend on mobile phone

Responses No. Of Respondents %
Less than Rs.2000 20 57.14
Rs. 2000 – 3000 10 28.57
Rs. 3000 – 4000 1 2.86
Rs. 4000 – 5000 0 0
More than Rs. 5000 4 11.43
Total 35 100
m oney spending on m obile phone

60
50
% of respondents

40
30
20
10
0
Interpretation:
From above it is interpreted that, out of 35 respondents11.43% of respondents prefer to
spend more than Rs.5000, 2.86% between Rs. 3000-4000, 28.57% between Rs. 2000-
3000 and 57.14% below Rs. 2000. It concludes that mobile phone users here are price
sensitive. This means that the maximum no. of respondents the mobile phones is used
only for necessity not for status symbol in rural. Some part of respondents are spend on
more because of status, features etc.
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 4 females and
15 males spend below 2000/-, 6 males and 5 females spend between 2000-3000/-,
3males and 1female between 3000 – 4000/- , and finally 2 male and 2 female spend more
than 5000/-.
Table7: Showing importance while selecting a mobile phone.

Items/Ranks 1st Rank 2nd Rank 3rd Rank 4th Rank 5th Rank
Quality 15 3 9 2 6
Cost 14 10 3 1 7
Brand Name 6 9 6 11 3
Popularity - 1 5 17 12
Features 2 12 12 3 6

Interpretation:
In the above table maximum no. of respondents in rural areas are given 1 st rank
for the quality and cost i.e., 15 people for quality and after 2nd rank given to the quality
by 3 people and 9 people are given 3rd rank for quality. And also more no. of
respondents is given 2nd and 3rd rank for brand name and features. i.e., 9 people for 2nd
rank and after and 6 people are given 3rd rank for brand name and 4th rank given by 11
people and 4 people are given 5th rank for brand name. The maximum no. of
 respondents is given least preference for the popularity, i.e., 4th and 5th ranks. 17 people
are given 4th rank for popularity and 5th rank given by 11 people for popularity. In the
above table more number of given 2nd rank for the features i.e., 12 people and after
and 11 people are given 3rd rank for brand name and 4th rank given by 3 people and 7
people are given 5th rank for brand name.
This means that the maximum no. of people choosing mobile phones based on
quality and cost after that they can prefer features and after that they can prefer brand
name and least preference for the popularity

Table 8: showing which technology of mobile phone attracted the respondents

Responses No. Of Respondents %
GSM 26 74.29
CDMA 9 25.71
Total 35 100

w hich technology used

80
70
% of respondents

60
50
40
30
20
Interpretation:
10
From the above table and
0 figures, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 74.29%
have preferred and using GSM and only ofGSM
them 25.71% are using CDMA. ThisCDMAmeans
that thy can given more preference for GSM technology inResponses
rural areas
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 25 male and
10 female are attracted towards GSM and 1 female and 4 male were attracted to CDMA.
Table 9: showing if it is GSM what made the respondents to choose the piece
Reasons No. Of Respondents %
Cost 3 11.54
Feature 12 46.16
Technology 11 42.30
Others 0 0
Total 26 100

why choose GSM?

50
45
40
35
30
25
20
15
10
5
0
Interpretation: Cost Feature Technology Others
From the above table and figures, we can state that respondent’s
Reasons
option to choose GSM is
that 11.54% preferred it due to cost, 46.16% is because of its features, and 42.30%
selected it due to the technology. This means that more no. of respondents are preferred
GSM due to feature and technology

According to demographic factors:

Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that reason for getting attracted towards
GSM are, out of 35 respondents 3 male and 1 female are because of cost,9 male and 3
female due to features, 9 male and 2 female because of technology.
Table 10: showing if it is CDMA what made the respondents to choose the piece
Reasons No. Of Respondents %
w hy choosen CDMA
Offers given by company 9 100
Brand name of company 0 0
Others 120 0 0
% of respondents

Total 100 9 100

80
60
40
20
0
Offers given by Brand name of Others
Interpretation:
From the above table and figures, all the respondents are choose the CDMA because of
offers given by the company
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender, the respondents out of 35 respondents, 8 are used CDMA.
In that 5 male and 3 female are used because of offers provided by the company
Table 11: showing how many respondents access internet in their mobile phone
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 4 11.43
No 31 88.57
Total 35 100

Access internet?

100
% of respondents

80

60
40
20
0
Yes No
Interpretation:
Rsponses
From the above table and figures, out of 35 respondents only 11.43% they are accessing
internet in their mobiles and 88.57% are not accessing internet. Because of they are not
aware of it, and no feature on their mobiles, and may be not useful for them
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents 4male access
internet on their mobile phones while 21 male and 10 female do not access internet on
their mobile phones. According to this, more no. of males are accessing internet in rural
areas
Table 12: showing how many respondents are satisfied with signal
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 25 71.43
No 10 28.57
Total 35 100

satisfiy w ith the signal?

80
70
% of respondents

60
50
40
30
Interpretation:20
From the above10table, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 71.43% respondents
are satisfied with
0 the performance of their mobile hand set whereas 28.57% are not
Yesfaced by them is the signal problemNo
completely satisfied. The main problem of their hand
sets. Responses

According to demographic factors:

Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 20 male and 5
female are satisfied with the signal and 9 male and 1 female are not satisfied with the
signal provided by the service company.
Interested in service offers?
Table 13: showing if respondents are interested in the service offers
Responses 80 No. Of Respondents %
Yes 11 31.43
No 70 24 68.57
Total 60 35 100
% of respondents

50
40
30
20
10
Interpretation:
From the above table, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 31.43% of respondents
are interested in the service offers whereas 68.57% are not using any service offers that
are being provided by the company. This means more no. of people in rural areas are not
interested free SMS, free talk time etc. because of they may not awareness about it.
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 6 male and 5
female are interested in the service offers that are being provided while 20 male and 4
female are not interested towards the offers like free SMS, free talk time etc.,

Table 14: showing mobile phones in these days are more interruption than utility
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 24 69
No 11 31
Total 35 100

m ore interruption than utility?

80
70
% of respondents

60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Yes No
Interpretation:
From the above table, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 69% of respondents
are feeling that the mobile phones are more interruption than utility whereas 31% are not
feeling as an interruption. This means that the maximum no. of people in rural areas feel
that mobile phones in these days are more interruption than utility
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 16 male and 6
female have opined that the mobile phones are more interruption than the utility while 9
male and 4 female said that it is not more interruption.

Table 15: showing mobile phones should have camera etc, which are being misused
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 17 48.57
No 18 51.43
Total 35 100

cam era m isused?

52
51.5
51
% of respondents

50.5
50
49.5
49
48.5
48
47.5
47
Interpretation: Yes No
Responses
 According to this 48.57% of people feel that camera phones are misused and
51.43% of people feel that not misused. Nearly half of the respondents are saying yes.
This means they can feel that features are misused
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 11 male and 6
female respondents are feel mobile features are misused and 14 male and 4 female
respondents are fell that these mobile phones like camera that are being not misused.

Table 16: showing mobile phones are the prime cause of road accidents
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 26 74.29
No 9 25.71
Total 35 100

prim e cause of road accidents?

80
70
% of respondents

60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Yes No
Interpretation:
Responses
From the above table, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 74.29% of the
respondents have agreed that the mobile phones are the major cause for road accidents
and 25.71% opined that mobiles are not at all the major reason for the road accidents.
This means that maximum respondents feel in rural areas the mobile phones are prime
cause of road accidents

According to demographic factors:

Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 20 male and 6
female said that mobiles are the prime causes for road accidents while 5 male and 4
female said that mobile phones are not any cause for the road accidents.

Table 17: showing if respondents are confused with mobile phone brands in market
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 35 100
No 0 0
Total 35 100

confused with mobile phone brands?

120

100
% of respondents

80

60

40

20

0
Interpretation: Y es No
From the above table, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, all the respondents are
Re s pons e s
confused with the different mobile phones that are being available in the market. Because
of in recent years so many verity of mobile phones are introduced
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 25 male and
10 female are being confused with the different kinds of mobile phones in the market
Table 18: showing if respondents understand the features and their utility of their
mobile
Responses No. Of Respondents %
Yes 0 0
No 35 100
Total 35 100

Interpretation:
From the above table, we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, all the respondents are
not understood the features and their utility of their mobile. Because of they are not aware
of it
According to demographic factors:
Gender: Basing on the gender we can conclude that out of 35 respondents, 25 male and
10 female are not understood the features and their utility of their mobile.
Findings of the Study
• We found that more no. of peoples using cell phones
• They can feel there is necessity of using the mobile phones
• The maximum respondents use mobile for communication in rural areas. They
cannot use for a status symbol
• Maximum respondents in rural areas prefer to spend less than Rs. 2000 on a
mobile phone. It says that mobile phones are no longer a status symbol now and
has become necessity.
• Users of mobiles in rural areas require additional features of dictionary, torch
compass etc
• Nokia is most preferred brand of the respondents in rural areas. Samsung is also
gaining ground with regard to popularity but not like Nokia.
• Most of CDMA service provider respondents are not satisfied with the signal of
service provider.
• The maximum no. of respondents in the rural areas were not accessing the
internet
• All the respondents don’t know all the features and their utilization in their mobile
phones
• Maximum no. of respondents are feel that cell phones are prime cause of road
accidents
Conclusions:
In this fast moving world mobile phones and usage is an unavoidable part of life.
Each and every day the technology is updating. Now we have the world is in our finger
tips. In rural areas also the usage of mobile phones increased day by day. Mobile
telephony effectively reduces the “distance” between individuals and institutions, making
the sharing of information and knowledge easier and more effective. Social networks can
be strengthened and individuals empowered through use of their handset.

The outcome of the survey has helped us in identifying the awareness of people in rural
areas towards mobile phone.
• The usage of mobile phone among the peoples has been increased to a great
extent. Mobile phones are not considered as a device for communication alone but
it is considered as a media for entertainment.
• Day by day the usage of mobile phones increased for the interaction of their
family members, friends and others etc.
• There are many varieties of brands and models available in the market. But, the
rural people preferred only quality and low cost mobiles. They don’t want many
features.
Suggestions: from respondents
• Use effectively utilize technology with out misuse
• Use for communication only
• Cell phone is part of our life use it better way
• Maintain more technology for communication purpose
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
• http://www.rncos.com/Report/COM02.htm
• http://wiki.answers.com/Q/When_was_the_first_mobile_phone_invented
• C.R. Kothari, Research Methodology Method and Techniques, New Age
International Publishers.
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_phones