ASSESSMENT OF QUALITY OF SERVICE OF MOBILE NETWORK OPERATORS IN AKURE, NIGERIA

Abstract

This study assessed and compared the Quality of Service provided by the four major Mobile Network Operators in Akure as well as assessed their level of compliance with Nigerian Communications Commission standard. The study also examined the level of customer satisfaction on the services delivered by the Mobile Network Operators. The effect of Quality of Service on the satisfaction of the customers of the Mobile Network Operators was also investigated in this study. This study adopted the use of quantitative research approach conducted in a cross-sectional design. Primary data was collected in this study using both the drive test and survey questionnaire techniques. The drive test technique was used to collect data on the Quality of Service provided by the Mobile Network Operators while the survey questionnaire was used to collect data on customer satisfaction from 527 respondents. Descriptive statistics was used to assess the level of Quality of Service provided and also to examine the level of customer satisfaction. The one-way ANOVA was adopted to compare the Quality of Service provided among the Mobile Network Operators while Regression analysis was conducted to examine the effect of Quality of Service on customer satisfaction. The study revealed that the Quality of Service of the Mobile Network Operators in Akure differed significantly (P<0.05). It also revealed a moderate level of satisfaction among the customers. Though the Quality of Service provided by the Mobile Network Operators was found not to meet Nigerian Communications Commission standard for most of the key performance indicators, MTN was found to be the best. The study also revealed that the effect of Quality of Service on customer satisfaction is insignificant. The study recommended that the Mobile Network Operators should focus on building more base stations in order to increase their network coverage and reduce coverage gaps and blind spots.