chain healths: Carrier IQ gives its remote smartphone diagnosing tool a global release

Carrier IQ has let customer service reps diagnose smartphones from afar with its IQ Care software for a while, but now the solution has been given a worldwide release. By wielding IQ Care (and asking a phone owner's permission, we're assured), technicians can see device-specific stats such as a battery's drain rate, percentage of app failures, frequency of dropped calls and more. The outfit hopes that its software will make support calls shorter and ensure that fewer fully-functioning devices aren't misdiagnosed and returned needlessly. As of now, however, there isn't any word on which networks or hardware manufacturers will join the metric-hungry flock.

Show full PR text

Carrier iQ Reinvents Customer Care with iQ Care[TM]

Leading Mobile Intelligence Provider Brings Proven Device-Centric Big Data Customer Care Solution to the Global Telecommunications Market

Mobile World Congress 2013
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Carrier iQ, a pioneer in mobile intelligence, today announced the worldwide availability of its iQ Care[TM] device-side care solution designed to reduce customer care costs, increase subscriber satisfaction, and reduce churn.

With the market for connected mobile devices accelerating, and smartphones and tablets continuing their market penetration, support costs are sharply increasing, fueled by a combination of factors, including uncertified applications, new interfaces, complexity of devices, fragmentation of operating systems, and the frequency of updates.

Mobile operators typically have access to a wealth of data from their networks and some user-generated information, but they have little insight on what is happening on the device itself. Only device-sourced metrics can give operators a true representation of the performance of a device to help resolve device support issues and improve the consumer experience.

"To truly create a differentiated experience across the customer lifecycle, mobile operators have to see the world from the customer's view - the mobile device," said Sheryl Kingstone, Yankee Group Research Director. "Operators are constantly striving to increase service quality and customer satisfaction to improve the overall customer experience. There is a great need to focus on improved care, particularly from the consumer's perspective."

iQ Care[TM] is a customer care solution aimed at reducing the duration of customer support calls, decreasing the number of no-fault-found device returns, and improving the consumer experience. Built upon Carrier iQ's unique, big data Mobile Service Intelligence Platform[TM] (MSIP), iQ Care[TM] utilizes iQ Agent[TM] on-device software to analyze relevant user experience metrics from the device. With explicit permission from the end user, and without tangible impact on battery drain rates, data plan usage or user experience, iQ Agent[TM] gathers system information on the performance and usage of the device and delivers this information to the MSIP. Device-sourced information and actionable insights are presented to the care agents, enabling them to diagnose and resolve the consumer's problem quickly and efficiently.

"iQ Care is a proven solution with the most recent deployment now handling eight million simultaneously reporting devices. We are charting a path forward for operators, device manufacturers and other service providers to leverage device-side insights, first for reactive care, then for proactive care and, ultimately, for self-care. This approach delivers a quick and substantial ROI while dramatically improving customer experience. iQ Care is another step in our vision to become the provider of choice for mobile intelligence to the smartphone industry and to the roaring growth of mobile-connected devices," said Larry Lenhart, CEO of Carrier iQ.

iQ Care[TM] provides mobile operators and mobile device manufacturers with:

Reduced handling time on support calls

Higher first call resolution (FCR) scores
Ability to dramatically reduce unnecessary device returns (no-fault-found returns)
Robust privacy features that can be seamlessly customized to comply with customer privacy policies and applicable legislations
Actionable big data analytics about the device, its operation, and actual consumer experience
Ability to measure a device by comparing its performance to millions of other devices

iQ Care[TM] will be showcased at Mobile World Congress[TM] in Barcelona, Spain, February 25- 28 at the Carrier iQ booth (5H34, Hall 5), as well as at Carrier iQ partner booths.

Filed under: Mobile