Bharti Airtel would be acquiring 49 % stake in Qualcomm Asia Pacific’s (Qualcomm AP) broadband wireless access (BWA) business in India. The agreement would see an initial investment of $ 165 M by Bharti for 49 % stake in Qualcom AP’s BWA business. The business presently holds licenses for Delhi, Mumbai, Haryana, and Kerala. Bharti Airtel would be picking up 26 % equity held by Global Holding Corporation Pvt Ltd & Tulip Telecom. Remaining stake is through subscription to fresh equity in the business.
As per the agreement, post commencement of commercial operations Bharti Airtel, would take over complete ownership of the entities. This is subject to some provisions and is expected to be through by 2014.
Statement by Mr Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman and Managing Director, Bharti Airtel, on the agreement:
“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.”
Bharti presently has broadband wireless access (BWA) licenses in four circles — Kolkata, Karnataka, Punjab and Maharashtra. The company also has 3G licenses in 13 circles in India. The company has taken a lead in the launch of 4G LTE services in Kolkata and Karnataka recently.