Send me your questions for Mr Operator!

I’ve been on to Mr Operator today with the feedback from my earlier post. Thank you for that.

I’ve agreed that, generally, we won’t be pulling any punches. We’ll be punching away. Or, at least, Mr Operator will be.

I’ve taken off the mask, the 10cm thick iron chains and the straitjacket.

Mr Operator is now waiting for your input. He will answer any question you care to put to him (provided it’s authored by someone with half a brain). I expect that sometimes, he might respond with a single sentence. Other times, you might get an essay.

Let’s take a step back first though. Who is Mr Operator? Here’s the original text I published when we launched the series:

There’s a chap I know. I’ve been calling him The Operator or Mr Operator in the recent SMS Text News Mobile Industry Review podcasts. He’s a little known gem that almost every mobile startup needs to talk with. Or, ideally, hire. Indeed, if you’re not talking to him at the moment, or if you’ve never heard of this service, talk to me and I’ll see if I can introduce you. He consults to a maximum of five mobile startups at any one time. His job? To rip their services to pieces. To rubbish every slide, to bludgeon the startup’s business plan. To slap the VC sitting on the startup board. To bring reality. Yes! His job is to help you craft a winning strategy to pitch a mobile operator.

How do you know he’s any good? Simple. He is that man. He’s the guy you pitch at one of the world’s largest international operators. Hardly a week goes by where he doesn’t send me a text privately ridiculing yet another high profile startup that’s just been sent marching, tail between their legs, from his office. He does the best he can to help smooth rough diamonds but, geez, the stories he tells me. He doesn’t ridicule them for spite. It’s frustration. He’s hugely frustrated with the total lack of understanding displayed by most entrepreneurs trying to do business with operators.

Here’s what I’m looking for: I’m looking for questions. Anything you’d like to know. Send me your questions with the subject Mr Operator and I’ll get him to answer.

You might like to know what revenue splits an operator implements with content providers. How to get on deck. Who runs their deck? How do you sell them an handset? How do you put a service on a handset?

Whatever your question — or set of questions — whack them to me and let’s get moving.

As ever, I’m ewan@mobileindustryreview.com.