The Hindu Business Line : UTStarcom to set up unit for broadband equipment

The US-based $3 billion technology major UTStarcom is planning to set up a unit to manufacture broadband equipment in India. The company is expecting business from India to be the second largest contributor to its global revenues by next year. At present, India is the third largest market for UTStarcom after China and Japan. The investment and the location for the plant is yet to be decided.

The company has recently emerged as the lowest bidder for a Rs 650-crore broadband project of the state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and is in talks with seven other telecom operators to deploy its solutions.

Mr Brian Caskey, VP Worldwide Marketing, told Business Line that, "While China is the largest market for us, the growth there is slower compared to India which is now the fastest growing market. In terms of revenues, we expect India to be the second largest for UTStarcom by next year overtaking Japan."

Mr Caskey said that the company is also looking to introduce its range of CDMA handsets in the country. UTStarcom already has an agreement with Reliance Communications for supply of its high-end PDA handsets for business users.

Another area where UTStarcom is betting big is on IPTV (Internet Protocol Television).

The company is in the process of rolling out the service with MTNL in Delhi and Mumbai. IPTV allows consumers to not just watch TV using telephone lines but also avail themselves of services such as tele-medicine, online distance education and customised broadcast services.

"IPTV will drive the growth of broadband in India. Our solutions and business model are a big differentiator as it allows subscribers to get content according to their interest and viewing behaviour," said Mr Caskey.

UTStarcom is also bringing in its fixed mobile convergence (FMC) technology in the country, which will enable operators to offer services across various technologies.

For instance, a GSM subscriber will be able to use his handset in a Wi-FI (wireless fidelity) spot despite the fact that the two technologies operate in different radio frequencies.

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