PLAYA del REY, Calif.-PortaCom Wireless Inc. has signed agreements in principle to acquire a controlling interest in a paging telecommunications venture in India.
Under terms of the deal, PortaCom will secure an aggregate 65 percent interest in Microwave Communications Ltd., which owns and operates seven paging licenses covering the principal Indian metropolitan areas of New Delhi, Bombay and Calcutta, the three license areas of Uttar Pradesh, Orissa and North East, and four metropolitan areas in the state of Gujarat-areas with a combined population of about 250 million.
Each license is valid for 10 years and is renewable thereafter.
The agreement is subject to certain conditions, including regulatory approval.
Currently the third-largest paging provider in India with 71,000 subscribers, MCL has been providing paging services under the trade name Pagelink to residents in the areas covered by its paging licenses since 1995 and in New Delhi since 1996.
