Airtel makes 3G debut in Karnataka first

Telecom operator Airtel unveiled its 3G services on Monday, which will offer high speed data download, video calls and live TV in Karnataka and said it plans to launch services across the other 13 circles by March this year.

Bharti airtel is the third private operator after Tata Teleservices and Reliance Communications to launch 3G services in the country. State—run BSNL and MTNL are also offering 3G services.

“India is ushering in the domain though later than most of the world but no doubt we will catch up at a much faster speed. 3G is much more than a technology migration it is a transformational shift — and airtel’s focus would be to bring to its customers an enriched user experience on the back of a world class delivery network,” Bharti airtel CEO (India and South Asia) Sanjay Kapoor said.

Airtel had bagged 3G spectrum in 13 out of the 22 telecom circles through an auction held last year for Rs. 12,295 crore.The company will offer time—based plans for light users of data, where usage and billing will be charged by hour, while offering flexi—shield plans for heavy users of data (where usage and billing will be capped), it said.

Bharti airtel, which had close to 150 million mobile customers in India at the end of December 2010, has given contracts to leading global vendors —— Ericsson India, Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) and Huawei Technologies to set up infrastructure for providing 3G services in the country.



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