Case evidenced total interpretive structural modelling of service – network disintegration in Indian telecommunication sector

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Telecommunications industry has been a consistent witness to technological disruptions. The changes have transformed service consumption patterns, business models, revenue streams, and market compositions. This research is an industry-driven exploration of the factors and their inter-relationships associated with the disintegration of communication services from the underlying high-speed networks in the Indian telecommunication sector due to the availability of high-speed networks. Evidence of these factors and their linkages is found in the cases of Vodafone Idea telecom service provider and WhatsApp OTT communication provider. Our findings suggest an association of technological evolution in India with the emergence of new over-the-top (OTT) service-providing companies without a commercial or technical collaboration with telecom service providers (TSPs). The OTT players have successfully reached the customers without intervention from the TSPs. TSPs that were able to swiftly develop new business strategies to capitalize on their data service offerings, upgrade their network technology, and enhance their coverage could retain customers and revenue. Others who failed disappeared from the competition. The remaining few TSPs protected their dried-up revenue streams by merging with others. Rapid adaptation and consolidation through mergers were the strategies found to be effective in the cases discussed in the research.