Bharti and Qualcomm join hands for 4G

VARINDIA- INDIA'S FRONTLINE IT MAGAZINE

 

Bharti and Qualcomm have announced that they have signed an agreement for Bharti to acquire an interest in Qualcomm Asia Pacific's (Qualcomm AP) Indian BWA entities. Under the agreement, Bharti has made an initial investment of approximately US$165 million to acquire 49-per cent interest in Qualcomm AP's India entities that hold BWA licences in Delhi, Mumbai, Haryana and Kerala - partly by way of acquisition of 26-per cent equity interest equally held by Global Holding Corporation Private Limited and Tulip Telecom Limited, 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. 

Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman & Managing Director, Bharti Airtel, 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."

"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. 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," said Dr Paul E Jacobs, Chairman & CEO, Qualcomm.

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