Videocon Telecom to invest Rs 1,200 cr for launching 4G services in three circles

Company working closely with Deloitte as their consulting partner and Huawei as their technology partner in existing operations

Videocon Telecom plans to invest Rs 1,200 crore over three years on launch of 4G services in three circles. The services will be launched in UP (E), UP (W) and Bihar across 29 cities, according to a company statement.

It will roll out 4G services in six cities in phase 1, 12 cities in phase 2 and another 11 cities in phase 3. The company is working closely with Deloitte as their consulting partner and Huawei as their technology partner in its existing operations.

Videocon Telecom holds 5Mhz liberalized spectrum in the 1800 MHz band in these circles plans to utilize the entire spectrum for rollout of 4G LTE services in select cities and offer voice on overlay network in these key cities. In remaining coverage area, the telco shall offer 2G voice on its own network, the company said.

It has recently bagged the class A PAN India ISP license plans to prioritize its ISP roll out in these circles to offer Wi-Fi off-loading for its 4G data services. The telco plans to offer 4G data at 2G/3G rates to encourage early adaptation, and will be offering bundled devices as well.

Arvind Bali, Director & CEO, Videocon Telecom said, "The voice market is already skimmed, with the incumbents in a dominating position having acquired a sizeable base of stable, loyal and high usage subscribers. Given the market dynamics, it doesn't make sense for a new telco to compete in the voice domain with ever shrinking margins & high cost. "

Further, 5Mhz spectrum is not enough to accommodate both Voice and Data. Looking at all the possibilities, we have strategized to look at the opportunity differently and utilize the entire 5Mhz spectrum for rollout of 4G data services in select key cities and offer voice on overlay network in these cities.

"We plan to invest over Rs 1,200 crore in the next 3 years for rollout of 4G services in these 3 circles, and with this, we also plan to prioritize our ISP rollout in these circles to compliment 4G. We will be offering bundled 4G devices including Myfi dongles, he said.