The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Value addition gets a religious tone this festive season

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Dec 18, 2007
ePaper

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Value addition gets a religious tone this festive season

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: Want to know when the sunset pooja begins on a specific day at the Sabarimala hill shrine in Kerala or listen to a synopsis of the Ayyappa legend? Or are you the ardent devotee who keeps a devotional song as a caller tune?

Prayers, ringtones, wallpapers and devotional songs are the flavour of the season of Reliance Communications.

In a technology-meets-devotion rollout of value added services (VAS), Reliance is totally tuned in to the pilgrim’s progress this season.

Recently, the telecom operator’s portal for value added services, Reliance Mobile World (51234), added a cache of choices for the religiously inclined, whether the prayers are directed at Sabarimala or Velankanni Church.

Innovative service

Under an innovative service, subscribers can SMS “LightCandle” to the VAS portal to have a candle lit on their behalf at Velankanni Church, devotees to which cut across diverse faiths.

Reliance has also launched a Rs. 51 “Ayappan” pack, with a 30-day validity period, which provides a host of services to prepaid subscribers.

Travel advisories and greetings too are part of the package for the impending Christmas-New Year holiday season.

Another seasonal introduction is the “Kutcheri Zone” that maps out the Margazhi music festival itinerary in detail under a tie-up with Parthasarathy Swamy Sabha. The rollout of a new service is a result of VAS teams routinely analysing customer feedback and working on response to existing or emerging needs, said R. Suresh Kumar, who heads Reliance’s Tamil Nadu Circle operations.

“The core philosophy is to maximise engaging the customer through services that are not only appealing but are also relevant.”

The operator also seeks to popularise VAS among rural subscribers. Logistically, a VAS feature added to the portal can be accessed from anywhere by Reliance subscribers. To keep things simpler, the portal managers juggle the order of choices appearing on the main menu according to regional preferences.

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