Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Wednesday, Jul 18, 2007
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Business Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Wednesday, Jul 18, 2007 ePaper |
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Telecommunications Info-Tech - Outlook
Cutting edge: Mr Sunil Mittal, Chairman and Managing Director of the Bharti group, addressing a press conference in Chennai on Tuesday. —
M. Ramesh Chennai, July 17 Describing 3G as “data on steroids,” the Chairman and Managing Director of the Bharti group, Mr Sunil Bharti Mittal, today said that the cutting edge telecom technology ought not to be viewed by the Government as a means of raising revenues, but as a way to take telecommunication to rural India. “We are ready. We are just waiting for the Government to allow it,” Mr Mittal told Business Line. (3G, or third-generation wireless, refers to near future developments in personal and business wireless technology, especially relating to mobile communications.) He also said that spectrum would also not be an issue because the authorities have decided that CDMA players would get their allocation in the 800 MHz band and GSM players in 2,100 MHz. It is unclear how much spectrum would be made available for either technology, he added. “If they give 25 MHz, maybe there could be five players.” Mr Mittal rued that the Group was able to offer 3G services abroad (it is present in Seychelles and Jersey, Channel Islands) but was not able to do so in India yet. According to him, the rollout of 3G in India would be vastly more significant than elsewhere because today villages have no telecom facilities, which 3G technology can provide. “My first foray will be into rural areas, hopefully as a strap-on service to 2G.” To a question, he said that affordability would not be an issue, but hoped that there would not be a “mad rush for bidding” for spectrum. Asked if there was a big demand for 3G in India, Mr Mittal said once the technology is made available, demand would pick up. 2 group cos ready for IPO
Two companies of the Bharti group, Bharti Teletech and Bharti Telesoft, are mature for an initial public offering, Mr Mittal said. However, he did not give any timeline for a possible market entry by either of the companies. Bharti Teletech, the manufacturing arm of the Group that produces telecom equipment under the Beetel brand, had reached Rs 2,000 crore in turnover. It is nearly 100 per cent owned by the family, he said. Bharti Telesoft, which is engaged in telecom software, is “a small, Rs 100-crore company, but is doing very well.” This company is owned partly by the promoter family, partly by the senior executives and some private equity funds. Mr Mittal said that the group would exit TeleTech Services (India) Ltd, a BPO joint venture, at the opportune time. The Group owns 40 per cent in the venture; the rest is with a US-based company called TeleTech Inc. “We don’t run the company; we don’t even count it as a Group company.” Bharti Infratel Ltd, the company that owns and operates telecom towers, would shortly get some private equity funding, Mr Mittal said. The company today owns about 40,000 towers across the country and plans to add 30,000 in the current year.
Related Stories: More Stories on : Telecommunications | Outlook | Bharti Tele-Ventures Ltd
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