There are smart people who are helping erstwhile technophobes such as my dad get tech smart -- an industry which is working to enhance usage patterns of the exponentially growing mobile subscriber base in the country. And considering the fact that every day we add more and more mobile phone users, the value-added services market for the mobile also has to offer more to help these users optimise the use of the device.

There’s a big population out there that spends more on mobile value added services, than on mobile calling.

What are value-added services?
Mobile value added services, in very simple terms, add value to the standard voice service. Text SMS, albeit a ubiquitous feature, is a value-added service. It adds value to the primary purpose of the phone, which is calling. Many services might be value-add initially but a few years down the line might become a part of the core offering.

Broadly speaking, the mobile value added services can be divided into three categories depending on the delivery platform used:

SMS-based services: These services use SMS as delivery platform. Some examples of these are: ringtones, quiz contests, mobile-banking, mobile-ticketing, news etc.

IVR- based services: These services use Interactive Voice Response as delivery platform. Some of its examples are: music on demand, religious chants, astrology, mobile banking, etc.

WAP portals-based services: These services use Wireless Access Protocols to allow consumers to access the Internet through mobiles or PDAs. Some of its examples are: Mobile TV, messengers, gaming, mobile-radio, etc.