TATA-DOCOMO rings in GSM service in India

NEW DELHI, INDIA: TATA-DOCOMO, the GSM brand of Tata Teleservices Limited, today announced the commercial launch of its operations in India, beginning with Chennai and Tamil Nadu.

The company’s Next Gen GSM service started on a heady note, with TTSL managing director Anil Sardana making the first phone call from TATA DOCOMO’s 3G-ready network to Union Minister for Telecommunications and Information Technology A Raja.

TATA DOCOMO’s pan-India service roll out would be completed this year, with south Indian circles going ‘live’ in a fortnight, said a press release.

In a message at the launch press conference, Ratan Tata, chairman, Tata Sons, said, “The value proposition offered by Tata-DOCOMO is a unique and revolutionary idea which symbolizes the spirit of innovation and inventive genius. This launch is truly a moment of triumph for the consumer.”

He further added that the launch of pay-per-use, per-second concept offered by Tata-DOCOMO would create a paradigm shift in the overall telecom experience for the customer and provide a service that is refreshingly different.

TATA-DOCOMO also announced the introduction of the pay-as-you-use advantage for many of its value-added services, including all its voice portals, 24-hour music, cricket commentary and voice chat.

While talking about their pricing and customization options, Deepak Gulati, president, TATA DOCOMO said, “In a market that is cluttered with many operators and throws up confusing options, we will offer simplicity to consumers. The first move on this front is to cut through the clutter and redefine the entire pricing paradigm.”

He added that from day one of their launch, they will work on a per-second pricing model for almost everything, be it voice calls, VAS services, IVR interactions.

Yatish Mehrotra, TATA-DOCOMO’s Hub-head for South India said, “We are focusing strongly on network superiority, coverage and service offerings. Our presence in 775 towns and 4,370 villages makes our network footprint the largest among all telecom operators in Tamil Nadu, at the time of launch.”

The company has earmarked an investment of $2 billion on its pan-India GSM network rollout, added the release.