New Call Sets Aside $100 Million to Buy Telecom Firms in India

Telecom services company New Call Telecom will invest $100 million (Rs. 600 crore approximately) over the next 18 months to acquire mid-sized firms in India as it expands presence in the broadband and value-added services market in the country.

The UK-based firm said it will acquire four companies in India with the announcements being made in a phased manner.

"We are looking at strategic acquisitions for strong growth in the fast growing Indian telecom market and establish a pan-India presence. We have initially allocated $100 million for the purpose," New Call Telecom CEO Nigel Eastwood told reporters in New Delhi on Tuesday.

He added that the company is in various stages of discussions with four companies and an announcement is expected "within weeks".

"We are focussed on three areas messaging, public realm Wi-Fi and fixed line broadband. We are looking at acquiring majority stakes in these companies," he said.

Eastwood, however, declined to comment on the names of the potential companies.

"We are not investing in start-ups. These are four year-old or more companies, which are making revenues and are profitable. We will also leverage their expertise for our business in the UK. It will work both ways," he said.

Talking about the opportunity in India, New Call Telecom Chairman Jerome Booth said the country is on the cusp of a huge digitalisation movement.

"There is a huge opportunity here. While the number of subscribers is huge, broadband penetration in the country is still low. We are looking at creating a winning IPL team to address these issues and synergising operations," he said.

In the short-term, the plan is to capture the massive opportunity around data by collaborating with other telecom operators and generating newer revenue streams, he said.

"The medium to long term strategy involves looking at complimentary opportunities and building synergies around different business areas involving data analytics and e-commerce, thus developing a unified communications platform," he said.