Ttsl To Invest $2 Billion For Expansion

TTSL to invest $2 billion for expansion The company to launch GSM services in Orissa, AP, Karnataka, Kerala and TN Jatinder Singh & Baburajan K Sunday, August 10, 2008 AGRA, INDIA: Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL) is planning to invest $2 billion in the next two years to expand its GSM and CDMA-based cellular services in the country. Speaking to Voice&Data in Agra, Anil Sardana, Managing Director, Tata Teleservices, said: "we have earmarked $2 billion to expand our presence in the country." "We have already got pan India license to roll out GSM services and received spectrum for offering GSM services for Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa. We will be launching GSM services in these states during the current fiscal. We are rolling out the network very quickly wherever we have been given spectrum so far," he added. According to Mr Navin Chadha, chief information officer, Tata Teleservices, TTSL will offer both CDMA and GSM services in the new circles. "This is to give a choice to customers to select the services. Depending on the customer response, we will decide our future plans. Tata Teleservices has already invested around Rs 20,000 crore to create pan India presence to offer CDMA-based mobile services. The company is also looking at offering 3G services. "However, we are not in a position to talk about the roadmap for 3G services. It will depend on the auction, total investment, number of players, potential of the market, etc," Sardana adds. Tata Teleservices, which pioneered the CDMA 1x technology platform in India, has already established a robust 3g-ready telecom infrastructure. It has partnered with Motorola, Ericsson, Lucent and ECI Telecom for the deployment of the network. "Once we get the 3G spectrum, we are in a position to offer 3G services in 6-8 months," Mr AG Rao, chief technology officer corporate, TTSL, said. Tata Teleservices along Tata Teleservices Maharashtra serves over 27 million customers in more than 6,000 towns across the country.