Bharti Airtel Ltd. And Qualcomm announced that they have signed an agreement for the former to acquire 49 percent interest in Qualcomm Asia Pacific's or Qualcomm AP Indian BWA entities.
Under the agreement, Bharti made an initial investment of around $165 million to acquire 49 percent interest in Qualcomm AP's Indian entities that hold BWA licenses in Delhi, Mumbai, Haryana and Kerala.
The stake acquisition is partly by way of acquisition of 26 percent equity interest equally held by Global Holding Corporation Pvt. Ltd., and Tulip Telecom Ltd., and the balance by way of subscription of fresh equity in those entities.
The agreement contemplates that once commercial operations are launched, subject to certain terms and conditions, Bharti would assume complete ownership and financial responsibility for the BWA entities by the end of 2014.
Bharti already has BWA licenses in four circles - Kerala, Karnataka, Punjab and Maharashtra - and 3G licenses in thirteen circles in India.
With this agreement, Bharti has secured a nation-wide broadband leadership through a combination of 4G and 3G, with its own networks in 18 circles. It already taken the lead in LTE TDD space by launching 4G services in Kolkata and Karnataka Circles.
Qualcomm expects to provide technical assistance to Bharti in connection with network architecture and optimization, infrastructure and device testing, as well as continuing to develop and support the underlying technology and the LTE TDD ecosystem.
Commenting on the partnership, Bharti Chairman and Managing Director Sunil Bharti Mittal said, "We are delighted to partner with Qualcomm, who shares our commitment to the Government's agenda of broadband for all. This partnership will combine the strength of Bharti's national telecom footprint and Qualcomm's technological leadership in the LTE TDD space. With a broadband ready network across India, Bharti is well positioned to lead the next phase of Indian's telecom revolution."
Qualcomm Chairman and CEO Paul E. Jacobs commented, "One of our key objectives has been to include a strong partner in the Indian venture with the scale, experience and resources to deploy LTE TDD networks. We are pleased to have Bharti's participation and support in this effort."
He added, "GHC and Tulip have been great partners in facilitating this transaction. Qualcomm remains dedicated to the continued progress and success of the BWA venture and to fulfilling our commitment as a key equity stakeholder."
At the BSE, Bharti Airtel closed Thursday's trading at Rs.297.80, up 5.62 percent from the previous close.
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by RTT Staff Writer
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