Get off to a new start – Robi

April 6, 2010 Edit

Robi boss explains reasons for rebranding
Michael KuehnerMd Hasan
It was a blurred image, with no clear positioning. The brand was working, but no sparks were flying.
Here comes a new name ‘Robi’ for Aktel. The target is to fill a vacuum in terms of branding and secure a top position in the six-operator mobile market.
“Our plan is to become a brand, which is relevant to Bangladesh and its people, to meet their immediate needs and be recognised as a specific operator. Aktel did not really fit in.”
This is the way Michael Kuehner, managing director and chief executive officer of Axiata (Bangladesh) Ltd, the owning company of Aktel, explains his company’s new branding move, in an exclusive interview with The Daily Star.
He said Aktel was attractive in a way. “But whenever we talked to people about what was really missing, we found that customers in general could not identify what it stands for as a company or an operator.”
“I think the challenge is to change this position of Aktel into a new and bigger position. With the launch of a new name, we want to start all over again in terms of creating a perception or picture,” he says.
“In addition, it is not only that we want to have a new name — we want to be a new company altogether.”
Axiata (Bangladesh) Ltd is a joint venture company between Axiata Group Berhad, Malaysia and NTT DOCOMO INC, Japan.
Formerly known as Telekom Malaysia International (Bangladesh), Axiata (Bangladesh) Ltd commenced operations in 1997 under the brand name of Aktel. The company changed its brand name to Robi on March 28.
In terms of a subscriber base, Aktel slipped to a third position from its second at the end of 2007. The company has 10.31 million customers in the 54.15 million mobile customer market.
The mobile penetration rate in Bangladesh is about 34 percent. So Robi’s clear target is the rural population.
To market and disperse the benefits of mobile communication technology or any way of communication to people with low incomes, a really competitive proposition is required all together, said Kuehner, the former head of Nokia Siemens Networks (India, Nepal Sub-region).
He said telecom operators in Bangladesh, including Robi, have focused more on the urban population than rural, even though 80 percent of the market remains rural. Aktel was a clearly urban brand with a focus on some cities.
“So we began the journey to develop and analyse the positioning of the brand to go for rural operations,” said Kuehner, who has 31 years of experience in the telecommunications and IT industry.
Refusing to reveal all that is in store for customers under the new brand name, he said: “I think we studied our customers well in the last few months. We do not want to offer affordable services alone; we want to offer something relevant to the customers.”
Robi will come out with details on new offers soon.
On rebranding, he said: “To do a new brand, it is quite a long-term exercise. It’s not a one-day activity.”
“The first reaction from all sides, such as consumers, partners and the media, was positive. We are encouraged that we are on the right track. However, we are aware that this is not enough, as we have to deliver promises and deliver new things.”
Axiata has an investment of $170 million in 2009. The company plans to invest substantially this year for network and data service development.
Axiata is one of the 3G spectrum seekers in the market. But operators are already divided on whether an auction or a beauty contest will be apt for the Bangladesh market.
Kuehner said if the cost of 3G is high, services will be expensive. “Possibly, a beauty contest method will be the better way,” he said.
From his six months of experience here, Kuehner found the Bangladesh market to be more talkative than other markets he worked for.
In Bangladesh, people are more inclined to use voice to communicate, which is different from Japan, where people prefer to use email or data applications on their phones.
Typically, if you go to the Japanese subways, you will see everybody is looking at their phones, not speaking to someone on the other end.
Secondly, people are more cost-conscious, as the general income level is not too high.
“They are good at comparing tariffs, times of tariff and the way they deal with. These are different from other markets.”