Telektronikk 2.2008
Emerging Markets in Telecommunications
Turning Threats into Opportunities - the Social Dynamics of Missed Calls<a href="/volumes/index.php?page=author&auth_id=452">Hanne Cecilie Geirbo</a>, <a href="/volumes/index.php?page=author&auth_id=451">Per Helmersen</a>
The practice of sending intentional “missed calls” (calls that are terminated by the caller before the receiving party answers) is a familiar phenomenon in emerging mobile markets across Africa and Asia. Although generally considered to be a free-of-charge messaging service used primarily by the financially constrained, the authors document its use by a far wider range of mobile users and for a variety of other purposes, ranging from social control and relationship maintenance to entertainment. Mobile operators have long sought effective measures to eliminate or reduce the volume of missed calls since they are a major cause of network congestion and do not generate revenue. The authors argue, however, that in-depth studies of missed calls may provide the telecom industry with a much needed window into the sociocultural life space of customers, and suggest new service offerings that better match their needs and circumstances.
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