Date:12/03/2006 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2006/03/12/stories/2006031202620300.htm

Back Indicom's single SIM CDMA, GSM global roaming

Our Bureau

One World-One Number

SINGLE NUMBER GLOBAL ROAMING

Hyderabad , March 11

Beginning next month, Tata Indicom users travelling anywhere in the world can have access to both CDMA and GSM without having to change their number.

Tata Teleservices will, perhaps, become the first mobile service provider in the world to offer a single SIM card for both CDMA and GSM services that will work in 186 countries.

The coverage encompasses 291 GSM roaming and five CDMA players in these countries.

The customers can use two different handsets depending on the network availability, or can use the handsets that allow the dual use.

Addressing a press conference here on Saturday, Mr Darryl Green, Chief Executive Officer of Tata Teleservices, said the users and those making calls to them would not have to bother about the number and networks.

The technology wouldtake care of transferring the calls from network to network to complete the call.

The company would announce the tariff for the scheme later. The scheme would initially be offered to the post-paid subscribers.

The company, which has a subscriber-base of 8.4 million in 2000, is planning to add 500 more towns by month-end as it aims to double the customer base.

"If we could double our customer base in one year, we can double this in the next year too," he said.

Mr Green was here to celebrate the one-million mark achieved in Andhra Pradesh circle. "We will double this number in one year," he said.

Investments

Referring to the recent sale of stake to two players, he said the proceeds would be used to expand the network and strengthening the existing networks. The funds would also be used for launching 3-G services.

On offering 3-G services, he said the company awaited the Government decision on the spectrum front.

On integrating the Maharashtra subsidiary with the parent company, he said there was no firm plan in this regard, but it would be logical (to integrate) at some point.

Answering a query on network congestion, he said though there was no fault from the company's network, customers might end up terminating the call. It would leave them frustrated.

He said the company registered average revenue of Rs 500 a customer across its coverage.

"In the last 20 months, this figure has been increasing," he said.

Number portability

Even as number portability is becoming an interesting topic for discussion in telecom circles and amongst mobile users, Tata Indicom said it votes in favour of the proposal.

"It is ridiculous on the part of a telecom service provider to make a customer captive just because it owns a number.It needs to work every day to satisfy its customers," Mr Green said.

His company was very much supportive of the move to offer number portability. "We would like to see it happen," he said.