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Virgin goes CDMA in India with TataNow that Vodafone has shown the way, Virgin Mobile is heading towards Indian
shores with a joint venture formed with Tata TeleServices (TTSL). Like the joint
venture Virgin operates with Sprint in the USA and Bell Mobility in Canada, Tata
runs a CDMA not GSM network. Typically for Sir Richard Branson, the new Virgin
Mobile India will be targeted at the youth market. That will leave Tata's
existing Indicom brand as aiming at the mass market. According to reports, a
standard MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) setup in Indian isn't currently
legal – although the local telecoms watchdog (TRAI) is expected to recommend that they
should be allowed. So that leaves Virgin Mobile acting as an agent for TTSL.
Since TTSL is a CDMA2000 1X network, that means Virgin will have to offer its
services over CDMA handsets. Good news for Qualcomm. TTSL has a customerbase of
over 2.68 million, but along with its subsidiary, Tata Teleservices
(Maharashtra), it currently serves 4.58 million subscribers. Seeing as the joint
venture is 50:50 and Virgin won't be operating the network, it nicely side-steps
all the hassle Vodafone had over foreign ownership of a telecoms network.
Although Virgin Mobile India is reportedly recruiting already, there's no
mention of it on the Virgin Mobile site yet. The full Inquirer story ... Virgin Mobile picks CDMA once again |
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