Service set to be available in 750 cities by June
Idea Cellular, India’s third largest mobile telephony operator, said it commercially launched LTE service in 75 cities in the southern states of Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.
In an initial phase, the service will be available in small towns and cities, and will be commercially available in large urban areas including Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, Thiruvananthapuram, Mangaluru and Coimbatore by March. The telco is looking to roll out service in additional key markets including Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra & Goa, Punjab, Haryana, North-East and Odisha. By June 2016, Idea’s expects its footprint to reach 750 cities across 10 telecom circles.
Idea currently has spectrum in the 1800 MHz band in 10 telecom circles across India. The telco said it will be able to launch LTE services in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh (East) once regulatory authorities approve a spectrum trading deal with local operator Videocom.
Rival operators Bharti Airtel and Vodafone offer commercial LTE services in the Indian market. In August, Bharti Airtel said its LTE network was on air and services were commercially available in 296 towns and cities across India. Bharti Airtel launched India’s first LTE network in Kolkata in April 2012, through spectrum in the 2300 MHz band.
Vodafone India recently announced the commercial launch of its FDD-LTE networks in Kochi and Kerala using spectrum in the 1800 MHz band. Vodafone’s goal is to launch LTE services in Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata by March.
Xiaomi to start distribution in the Middle East and North Africa
In other APAC news, Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi said it expects to start selling devices in the Middle East and North Africa next month.
Dubai-based partner TASK FZCO will be in charge of the distribution. Xiaomi smartphones will be initially available in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. In a second phase, the devices will be available in the rest of the Gulf States and North Africa.
