The Hindu Business Line : Aggressive plans for affordable 3G devices

New Delhi, Aug. 1 One of the first things before anyone can experience third generation services is to have a compatible device. Currently, a simple 3G-enabled mobile handset costs about Rs 8,000 and a high-end smart phone costs about Rs 20,000. But device manufacturers such as Nokia, Sony Ericsson, and chip makers such as Qualcomm are taking a slew of initiatives to make these devices affordable in India.

Qualcomm, for instance, is working on smart phones that cost Rs 10,000 and a PC-like Internet access device priced at around Rs 8,000. The company is also planning to launch a USB port priced at around Rs 3,500, which will allow consumers to access high speed wireless broadband on their laptops or PCs.

“We are aggressively taking initiatives to make 3G devices affordable. We have the devices and using our single chip solution we have been able to arrive at a price point that is suited to the Indian market,” Mr Kanwalinder Singh, President, Qualcomm Indian and South Asia, told Business Line.

Qualcomm is also in talks with Indian mobile operators to launch carrier branded 3G mobile handsets. “Operators such as Vodafone and Hutchison have their own handset brands for 3G services in Europe. In India, too, we think that Indian GSM operators will launch 3G services bundled with their own branded handsets. We are in talks with them to work out the deal with an OEM manufacturer,” Mr Singh said.

Nokia, which has more than 25 3G enabled handsets in the market is also working on the affordability issue.

Mr D. Shivakumar, Vice-President and Managing Director, Nokia India, said, “The announcement of the 3G policy heralds the next phase of growth for India’s growing mobile industry. Nokia has a holistic approach towards driving the adoption of 3G in India, both at the infrastructure and at the handset level.

“As the market leader, we firmly believe that 3G technologies and future enhancements will offer the most expeditious and cost-effective means of providing mobile Internet access to the mass market.”

High stakes

Analysts said that since the success of 3G in India is paramount to the interest of all these global vendors, they will be announcing India-specific initiatives. “No other market can give volumes like India can. Globally, 3G services is still at an early stage and if it succeeds in India, then the vendors can go to other developing countries with cheaper devices,” said analysts.

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