JTM to introduce new pre-paid cards in November

JT Mobiles Ltd., the cellular operator in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh circles, will introduce new pre-paid card services during November, which will be more user friendly, besides preventing frauds. Speaking to CIOL Bureau, JT Mobiles president K.S. Reddy said that the new services would be voucher based and the subscribers would be able to refill at any shop where the cards are sold.

The company has not yet decided on the marketing strategy for the new pre-paid cards. It is exploring the possibility of selling under a new brand name. Currently, the company sells pre-paid cards under the Cash Mobile brand in the two circles. A decision in this regard will be taken soon, said Mr Reddy.

He said that due to increasing detection of frauds in the pre-paid cards, the company do not plan to aggressively market this segment for the moment. "We will wait till the new technology is implemented. Eventually, the pre-paid business will take over from its post-paid counterpart," Mr Reddy added. Globally, 60 per cent of the cellular usage is through pre-paid cards.

The company is in the process of introducing new features in its cellular services, which will include short messaging services. Mr Reddy said that JTM was in talks with various Internet Service Providers to explore the possibility of integrating Internet services with cellular operation.

On the introduction of Calling Party Pays (CPP) regime, Mr Reddy admitted that the revenues of cellular operators are expected to temporarily fall once it was implemented. "However, it will change after a period of about 3-4 months, as we will see new surge in subscriber volumes. The pager segment is expected to shift to cellular mode with the advent of CPP," he added.

JTM plans to increase its subscriber base to 300,000 by the end of 2000. Currently, it has 80,000 subscribers in the two circles. Mr Reddy said that JTM should have about 400,000 subscribers by 2001 in order to break even in three year's time. "By July 1999, we have paid Rs 800 crore as various fee to the department of telecommunications," he pointed out.

Mr Reddy said rejected the possibility of any further reduction in cellular tariffs. "Due to the entry fee that the operators had to pay, it will not be viable for us to introduce any more reduction in tariffs," he said.

Mr Reddy criticised the entry of Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. in the field of cellular operations. He, however, said that it would not cause any serious threat to the private cellular operators. "It is unfair on the part of the government to give the MTNL, its own organ, tariff advantage by allowing it to build the network on CDMA technology," Mr Reddy said.