 "Videocon Telecom to invest Rs 210 crore in Gujarat in FY'16")
Primarily, the investment will be for its GSM services network expansion, where the telecom operator plans to deploy over 450 new cell sites of which 330 sites will be for geographical coverage expansion across 142 new towns, and another 120 sites for capacity enhancement to accommodate more users.
Further, Videocon Telecom will be also investing to enhance its packet core to accommodate growing data usage on its recently upgraded 2.75G EDGE network. The telco currently has 3989 cell sites in Gujarat and provides network coverage across 836 towns in Gujarat.
"Gujarat telecom circle is potential circle and of utmost importance to us. In order to strengthen our footprint in the circle, we will be investing Rs 210 crore in the circle this financial year. Our investment will primarily be on network expansion and rollout of broadband services, in addition to other emerging businesses. With rollout of 450 new sites, we will be adding 142 new towns in our Network footprint this year taking up the overall coverage to 978 towns . We plan to acquire 3.5 Mn new customers this financial year in Gujarat telecom circle, and this network expansion will be an important aspect to the same," said Arvind Bali, Director & CEO, Videocon Telecommunications Ltd.
Having bagged PAN India ISP license recently, the operator will also be investing on rollout of broadband services, primarily on fibre to the home (FTTH) and wireless broadband on the free band 2.4 Ghz spectrum. Videocon Telecom plans to rollout broadband services in select pockets across key cities including Ahmedabad, Surat and Vadodara in phase 1 of its rollout plan. Among other telecom related, non spectrum dependent new business lines, Videocon Telecom will be offering other services including smart city solutions, security solutions, e-surveillance, android & IOS platform based application including content and games. The company also plans to venture into fast growing mobile wallet and e-commerce business.
Meanwhile, focusing on its retail presence, the company plans to add another over 250 stores across its operating circles in this financial year, thereby taking up the total count to 750 across its operational circles.