BOSTON-While it failed to gain a direct foothold in the U.S. market when it was outbid by Cingular Wireless L.L.C. during the AT&T Wireless Services Inc. auction, Western European wireless customers rated Vodafone Group plc as their preferred carrier according to a report from Strategy Analytics.
The report, “Sharks and Minnows-European Mobile Operator Satisfaction Monitor,” noted that 32 percent of competitors’ customers in Western Europe said Vodafone was their preferred destination compared with 11 percent of competitors’ customers selecting Mm02 plc and 10 percent of competitors’ customers choosing Orange.
“The European wireless market has served Vodafone well,” said Phil Kendall, director of the wireless network strategies service at Strategy Analytics. “Its customers rate it highly for customer care, network quality and service scope. Customers of other operators are well aware of the discrepancies between Vodafone and their current service providers.”
Report author and senior industry analyst Sara Harris said that “among the other large carrier groups of this region, T-Mobile and TIM are failing conspicuously to meet customer expectations, and are thus finding themselves in precarious positions.
“Although these operators may be rated well on service quality, it is clear that a significant proportion of their customers are deeply dissatisfied with the pricing and customer care they are being offered,” Harris added.
