After snapping its ties with QUAD of Hyderabad for manufacturing of the low-cost tablet, Datawind has roped in another Hyderabad firm, VMC Systems, to deliver one lakh tablets by August.

Currently working at 15,000 units a month, VMC Systems is planning to double the capacity next month.

So far, VMC Systems has shipped 15,000 units to Datawind, which is in talks with other telecom service providers to sell the product with Internet plans below Rs 100.

“We have got Rs 25-crore order from Datawind for the one lakh units. But we expect this to be a continuous order. This is not going to be a bar on us from producing tablets for other manufacturers,” Mr B. Venkataramana, Executive Director of VMC Systems, said.

Showcasing the manufacturing lines at the Maheshwaram Hardware Park near here to newspersons, he said the product was similar to the Aakash-2 version.

The company registered a turnover of Rs 1,100 crore last year. Fidelity Capital invested Rs 100 crore in 2008 to pick 25 per cent in the telecom equipment and power conversion equipment manufacturer.

Bundled offer

The Canadian tablet maker Datawind has tied up with a telecom service provider to offer the sub-Rs 3,500 Ubislate tablet with every SIM sold by the telecom firm. It comes with Internet pack of Rs 100 a month.

The seven-inch tablet, which doesn’t have any internal memory, could be used as a phone, a feature that is available only with high-end tablets. Though indigenous players too have started offering tablets at sub-Rs 10,000 price points, Datawind tablets are expected to destabilise the tablet market.

The company is also in talks with original equipment manufacturers and service providers to foray into digital set-top box business.

“With digitisation is made mandatory, we see a good potential in this segment,” he said.

kurmanath@thehindu.co.in

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