Datacom promoted by Videocon group expects to start pan-India operations by end- FY09 with a network of ~35-40K towers [This is a Sunny Day Scenario with Indian Economy in reverse gear and rising Interest rates, you know what will happen]. The Company has floated its RFP for active infrastructure & said it is fully funded for electronics. Staff strength is expected to scale up from ~100 currently, to ~800 by end-CY08. Datacom’s RFP for towers/passive-infrastructure is likely in July. Datacom is keen on tower-sharing but will likely follow an equity-linked sharing model i.e. ~80% ofits towers may be rented from a Company where Datacom will have equity participation.
Merrill Lynch is not convinced about Datacom’s GSM based wireless services. After having met Ravi Sharma, CEO of Datacom, Merill report said,
We returned feeling bullish about the competitive position of current market leaders like Bharti & RCom, despite ST industry risks from potential hike in spectrum charges & possible cut in termination rates. Datacom’s current stance on tower sharing suggests that existing tower Cos may find it challenging to capture value.
Other new entrants are Unitech with 22 licenses and spectrum in 5 circles. Loop Telecom [Promoted by BPL Mumbai, Essar Group owns 10%] 21 licenses and spectrum in 4 circles. Swan Telecom [Reliance Communications company] and Shyam Telelink [Majority owned by Sistema].