At 12:54 PM 6/18/02 +0900, Nick May wrote:
>keitai-l@appelsiini.net
>
>Any discrimination based on profiling and prior probability of default
>must be targetted as cleanly as possible to pick out only the group that
>is a problem.
Ideally it would be in Docomo's best interest to select a profile and algorithm
which minimizes:
1) its loses through bad debt.
2) customer dissatisfaction among non-defaulting customers by going through
a screening process/coughing up 30,000 Yen.
3) the costs associated with implementing and maintaining the profiling and
screening process.
4) minimizes forgone revenue from an overzealous screening criteria/process.
As they are a free enterprise, though, I don't believe we have a moral
authority to force them to select this particular screening process or that
one --
except by exerting pressure through our yen votes and where we decide to spend
them.
>While I agree that 1) we do not have sufficient information and 2) we
>should not require that Docomo put in place an expensive screening
>method, I am skeptical that it is legitimate to target "all persons with
>non permanent visa status". There are many other types of visa and
>statuses, job information is available to Docomo, length for which bank
>account is held, etc. A credit card number should also be sufficient to
>cover most cases.
I have no doubt that there are numerous and perhaps more
surgical profiling methodologies than the seemingly blanket one that
Docomo has decided on, but I don't want to see gov't intervention here
where Docomo is forced to select a politically expedient
solution. In the marketplace, if Docomo has picked too onerous of a
criteria and the foreigner market shows itself to be a
lucrative segment, Docomo will lose out and other competitors,
Jphone, AU, etc. will gain.
On the other hand, Docomo may be optimally targeting the correct
group to stem its bad debt, and these deadbeats will flock to
Jphone or AU, and these competitors will get soaked
with the bad debt.
>But then, it is just another reason to not pick DOCOMO. AU are giving
>away (0yen) the little 6.5man col TFT screened Sony Erricson phones with
>a min 6month contract of total value 21,000yen (35 min/month outgoing).
Given the realities of a 3-man yen deposit, I myself would be highly motivated
to choose the non-Docomo option as well -- and I always pay my mobile
bill on time. :)
Sincerely,
James Santagata
AudienceTrax
Audience Management Systems
Received on Tue Jun 18 10:56:02 2002