RCom Soft-Launches GSM Network in Indian Cities

India's Reliance Communications (RCom) has soft-launched its GSM network in several major cities across the country, with a commercial launch expected within the next couple of months. The service has been launched with employees only - in the cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Gujarat, Punjab Bangalore and Chennai.

The company has deployed some 2,500 GSM towers in the two largest cities Mumbai and Delhi - and launched services for 10,000 employees of the Reliance group by handing out SIM cards to be used in their existing handsets.

According to Mumbai-based Macquarie Research, "We expect RCom to have a GSM subscriber base of 12.8 million by March 2009, 21.6 million by March 2010 and 28.6 million by March 2011,"

RCom already operates a GSM network, and though clever use of CDMA licenses has become the country's largest CDMA operator. The company's CDMA network has been engaged in a sharp price war with the GSM operators, and it is presumed will seek to undercut the GSM service when its national network is ready.

According to figures from the Mobile World, RCom had some 42.7 million CDMA subscribers at the end of the first half of this year, along with 8 million GSM customers.

Posted to the site on 29th September 2008