Chandigarh-based firm to manufacture SIM cards

Mohali-based Masterline Telebiz, a small outfit that produces mobile recharge cards for most of the mobile telecom operators in India, will shortly foray into mobile telephone SIM ( Subscriber Identification Modules) cards, primarily for international players.

Naresh Nanda, managing Director and CEO, Masterline, is on the threshold of signing a joint venture partnership with one a leading telecom player in West Asia to offload 35 per cent stake in the company.

Nanda, an electrical engineer from Punjab Engineering College Chandigarh, had a modest beginning in 1994 and now dreams of proving value added services (VAS) to the 3G telecom operators in the global market.

Nanda said the revenue sharing propositions were better with the players in South America and Africa. “This is why, we prefer a partnership with global players than the domestic players for offering value-added services (VAS) for 3G spectrum.

The financial meltdown, according to Nanda was a blessing, for the international market as it led to the compression in costs.

He added the SIM card business would be rolled out by March 2009 and is expected to touch Rs 10 crore in the first year.

Nanda added that he started his venture with a very small team in Chandigarh and supplied recharge cards at Rs 17 a card to telecom service providers. Today, the same card fetches him Rs 0.60 per card. “Its still viable for me as the volumes have grown manifold,” Nanda added.

He added that whatever little success he achieved was without any support from financial institutions as he ploughed back all his profits into the business to raise the scale. He aims to increase his market share in the recharge card segment from present 18 per cent to over 30 per cent in two years.

The company is also in process of getting a separate trademark for supplying integrated state-of-the-art security systems in Indian market.

Nanda plans to import a range of security equipment from Italy, Spain, Singapore, Malaysia and Taiwan and provide customised service on project-to-project basis of integrated security systems.