Challenge:
Forthnet, wished to enter the mobile market as an MVNO and had secured a full MVNO wholesale agreement with Vodafone through national regulatory intervention. Already providers of fixed telephony, broadband and satellite TV, the move to mobile represented a significant shift in strategy in a market badly affected by the 2008 global financial crash and the well-documented backdrop of austerity across Greece.
With a mobile proposition as part of its portfolio, Forthnet would be able to offer a quad-play service (landline, broadband, mobile and Nova TV) to compete in the increasingly consolidated Greek market. Since the mobile landscape was relatively unknown territory for Forthnet they turned to Piran to provide them reliable, practical, and experienced support.
Solution:
Now part of United Group, we were competitively selected to support Forthnet’s development of new MVNO and associated quad-play propositions. Piran devised a 17-week programme to deliver a market-ready programme with a six-year outlook encompassing go-to-market, target operating model design, business strategy and project management workstreams. Our engagement also included extensive support to ensure Forthnet’s sales, marketing, finance, technical and operational teams were ready for launch and thereafter. It started with an immersive introduction to MVNOs for the Forthnet senior leadership identifying the unique characteristics of both mobile sales and MVNOs in general.
We subsequently undertook market segmentation and competitor analysis, in partnership with Forthnet’s marketing agency, to develop a short-list of potential propositions. We also formulated Forthnet’s market entry strategy and marketing plans, to address existing and new consumer and enterprise channels.
With potential propositions identified, Piran identified the systems, processes and people requirements needed to build and operate a sustainable MVNO. The added challenge being to ensure these could be integrated with Forthnet’s existing target operating model, which was key to delivering an all-round triple-play offer.
In parallel with the go-to-market, proposition and target operating model activities, Piran developed the overall business case aligning this with the wider Forthnet strategy and existing business plans. Financial modelling included the development of 72-month profit, loss, and cashflow and risk analysis models identifying churn reduction and cross-subsidisation opportunities arising from introducing the new triple-play offer.
Outcome:
Our work delivered a comprehensive ‘blueprint for launch’. It addressed market analysis and evolution, proposition design, market entry strategies and competitive responsive planning. It was coupled with target operating model design, MVNO organisation and personnel requirement identification, and extensive customer lifecycle mapping overlaying existing Forthnet business processes with those required to support the MVNO.
Shortly after Piran’s engagement, Forthnet successfully launched their new mobile service, starting with a widespread internal friends and family user trial to shake down all systems and processes. Our detailed profitability and financial analysis also helped provide the senior leadership with a clear understanding of the new MVNO’s financial model and its sensitivities, cashflows, investment needs, key metrics and sensitivities and importantly means to track outcomes against forecasts.
