vmsanghrajka 0 Report post Posted August 15, 2006 NEW DELHI: After Idea Cellular, it’s the turn of Aircel to enter the lucrative Mumbai circle. Just a few days after clearing Idea’s application for a Mumbai foray, the department of telecommunications (DoT) is learnt to have given a nod to Aircel as well. Besides Mumbai, Aircel will be permitted to go to Delhi, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh, according to a source. DoT has given an in-principle approval to Aircel’s entry into these seven circles. In a statement at its recent annual general meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Maxis Communications, which is a Malaysian mobile operator with a majority stake in its Indian joint venture Aircel, said, “as part of its strategy to be a pan-Indian player, Aircel has applied for mobile licenses in the remaining 11 circles.” Interestingly, even Idea put in its applications to DoT recently for a pan-India presence. Aircel is the leading mobile operator in Tamil Nadu. It also operates in West Bengal, Orissa, Assam, North-East, and Jammu & Kashmir. The company is also planning to roll out services in Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Currently, there are six mobile players in Mumbai, led by Hutchison Essar with over 2 million users. BPL Mobile, which was meant to be merged with Hutch Essar but is now caught in a legal battle, has around 1.3 million subscribers. Bharti Airtel has 1.3 million and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) 1 million mobile users. CDMA players Reliance Communications with around 1.7 million and Tata Teleservices with 0.4 million mobile users are the other two players in the city. Bharti Airtel is the only telecom player to be present in all 23 circles in the country. Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd is present in all circles except Delhi and Mumbai, which are the territory of its sibling MTNL. Among other significant players, Hutch Essar operates in 16 circles, Reliance Communications in 21, and Tata Teleservices in 20. News Source: DNA Ltd. Web link: http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?NewsID=1047304 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
linuxguy 0 Report post Posted August 15, 2006 when is RCL, Aircel and Idea going to start their operations?! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
GSV13 0 Report post Posted August 15, 2006 Idea will start in mumbai in january next year. For rest. Lord Knows. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
abhay 0 Report post Posted August 15, 2006 well RCL is already operating in mumbai << reliance infocomm what u mean is RTL Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
linuxguy 0 Report post Posted August 15, 2006 leave the nitty gritties alone abhay! :/ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Honest 836 Report post Posted August 16, 2006 More competition, much lower rates for the customers. I think its good if Aircel and Idea start their services in Mumbai. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vmsanghrajka 0 Report post Posted August 17, 2006 Reliance Telecom (GSM) will start its operations by March 2007, thts their internal target..Though, officially they have not commented on this issue. If they get DoT approval timely, March 2007 is what they are sure of. Cheers! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
linuxguy 0 Report post Posted August 19, 2006 vmsanghrajka, and how do u know that? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
