Nokia Siemens in talks with Airtel, RComm
Communication service provider Nokia Siemens Network (NSN) is in talks with major Indian telecom operators, including Bharti Airtel and Reliance, for implementation of its new solution - Village Connection.
By PTI |
SINGAPORE: Communication service provider Nokia Siemens Network (NSN) is in talks with major Indian telecom operators, including Bharti Airtel and Reliance, for implementation of its new solution - Village Connection.
The cost-effective solution will help the service providers to roll-out telephone services in rural areas for as low as three dollars a month.
"We are in discussions with most of the operators as well as regulators in India. The product will be made available in the second half of 2008 and the trials will start in the beginning of next year," Nokia Siemens Head of Technology (Asia Pacific) Michael Murphy told PTI on the sidelines of CommunicAsia 2007.
However, he warned that there are some potential regulatory hurdles which may needed to be sorted out before the solution is commercially launched.
The solution would bring affordable connectivity in the rural areas and coverage in the new growth markets, he said, adding that it would support GSM-based voice and SMS services besides a range of value-added features such as internet.
The solution would be comprised of GSM access points located in villages and regional access centres. A village would typically host one access point module, comprising GSM radio, power and IT hardware and software components.
The access point only requires simple installation and powering can be done, for instance, by solar energy.
Each access point connects to standard GSM mobile devices and autonomously handles calls within a village through local switching. Access points are connected via Internet Protocol links to a regional access centre, which joins villages to the main GSM core network and handles calls between them.
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