Hutch to strengthen network, may invest Rs 300 crore more

CEO Sanjoy Mukerji says break-even is very near, will increase cell sites by 33%

Hutch Gujarat, the first cellular operator in the state to achieve the ten lakh subscriber mark, on Monday said it will increase its cell sites by 33 per cent to cover highways, rail routes and congregation points like pilgrimage and tourists centres.

It will also add to its 650 recharge zones across the state and extend the concept of Hutch mobile shops to upcountry locations across the state.

Hutch will break even in the near future, possibly within a year, officials said.

"We are moving towards break-even. That will happen in the near future and it can be six month from now or a year. It will be a bit early to think about that," said Sanjoy Mukerji, chief executive officer, Hutch Gujarat.

He did not specify the total investment Hutch has made in the state so far. However, the company is expected to invest an additional Rs 300 crore this year in Gujarat, most of which will go into enhancing the coverage along highways, rail routes and congregating points.

"Our endeavour this year will be to strengthen our coverage across the state. It will be a difficult task, but Hutch will enhance its coverage along highways, rail routes and congregating points," Mukerji said.

Hutch has also invested substantially in putting in place an error-free billing system, even providing free itemised bills to all post-paid subscribers for the first two months.

Hutch had 350 sites 18 months ago. Today it stands at 650 cell sites across the state.

Hutch will increase this network to over 800 sites by the year-end. Similarly, it will increase its Hutch mobile shops "" three more are being launched in the next fortnight "" and recharge zones across the country.

"The number of subscribers is not the sole measure of success. The amount of usage and the ratio of default is important. We have found out that quality of subscriber behaviour is dependent to a large extent on the kind of service provided," Mukerji said.

Recently, Hutch launched the 'Click and Print' service in association with Kodak and Nokia.

It has also launched MS Outlook on Hutch, where subscribers can send and receive e-mails on their phones.

Hutch Gujarat topped the Trai Customer Satisfaction Survey 2004 and was declared Creative Advertiser of the Year by Abby 2004, the company said.