Sistema to invest over $1.5 bn to expand Shyam Telelink network

JAIPUR: Sistema, one of the largest public diversified corporation in Russia and the CIS, on Tuesday announced that it would invest over $1.5 bn in India next year to build a pan-India telecom network on the CDMA platform.

The Russian major, which holds a majority stake in Shyam Telelink, also announced the launch of CDMA services under the brand name Rainbow in Rajasthan.

���We have already invested $1 bn in Shyam and will further invest over $1.5 bn in the company next year.

This marks the beginning of the expansion of Shyam Telelink���s pan-Indian mobile network. The company intends to provide its services to more than 35 mn subscribers by 2012, which represents approximately 7% of the Indian market,��� Sistema���s chairman Vladimir Evtushenkov said.

According to him, while Sistema has been focusing on launching pan-India services on the CDMA platform, it is keeping its options open with regard to offering mobile services on GSM.

���We have applied for GSM spectrum. We will take a call on GSM soon. In Russia, we offer mobile services under the MTS brand, and we will decide over the next one month whether to bring this brand to India,��� he added.

Shyam Telelink-Sistema is the first among nine new companies that were given licences earlier this year to launch mobile services.

Shyam -Sistema���s entry is also set to see a new round of tariff wars between India���s telecom operators. The company has already announced that it will offer all local calls and SMS for just 50 paise a minute in addition to offering a bundled handset for Rs 999 with lifetime validity.