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 i
n 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.