Airtel Test Launches 3G Service in 3 Metros
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The Economic Times reports that Airtel has launched its 3G mobile services in the cities of Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore on a test basis.
Sanjay Kapoor, Bharti Airtel President (Mobility) told PTI
“We have tested 3G applications at three places - Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore - on a trial indoor spectrum given to us,”
Since the announcement by the Department of Telecommunication (DoT) to allocate the 3G spectrum by auctioning, all the major players have been gearing up for providing the 3G access to its subscribers in the city.
Airtel refused give details regarding the network vendors that Airtel is sourcing the 3G
equipments from but said they are dealing with more than one network companies.
On question that whether Airtel has the technology to offer 3G services, Kapoor said,
“We as an operator have 3G services in Seychelles. Our license for Sri Lanka is for 3G services as well and by the time 3G services are launched in India we will have enough experience. Moreover, we have SingTel as our partner who has wide experience of offering 3G services,”
He further added that 3G is just an incremental service for someone who has operations in 2G already.
Seems like after a really long wait Indian subscribers will get to see the benefits of 3G services. However, as we speak, operators in some countries are already testing the 4G services. China has decided to move to 4G, bypassing the 3G completely. And there is a looming question that should India move to 4G networks ?
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Very well written Ankit….I would like to say that when the country like China has totally bypassed the 3G phase and moved on to test the 4G then y should we be content with 3G…. A 4G system will be able to provide a comprehensive IP solution where voice, data and streamed multimedia can be given to users on an “Anytime, Anywhere” basis, and at higher data rates than previous generations.I strongly feel that instead of working towards 3G india should make an update towards 4G regarding the costs aswell….if we first move on to 3G and then to 4G would cost many times more as if compared to we moving directly on 4G…..
Dear Anshu,
I agreed with you to implement 4g technology in INDIA but the main problem that we will face is there are not so much sources that people can use 4G even 3G services can be used very less by people. U c that there are very less mobile phones that have 3G services and if they have then they are having a little bit high cost, 4G service enabled phones hav’t launched in India yet.
So i think that first of all we should move to 3G first and then we can know that r we able to use 4G tech or not and people in India are well familier to use that tech or not.
4G? What for? Spend a lot to buy a 3G handset and no 3G and Anshu u r saying to upgrade to 4G. I agree with Amit Kumar
Would you invest in a business in billions even b4 you know who your consumers would be?
Which operator do you think would be willing to take that risk to move to 4g directly instead of testing with 3g. It is not only the cost, but also the risks that needs to be considered. Services provided by European operators are not the same as what is going to be what Airtel and Vodafone would provide in iPhone here in India. You dont get all the features like in European countries. I agree that that there are more mobile users in India, however how many do you think would purchase stuff, gamble in the name of gaming, browse and check mails in their new 3g?