Factsheet |
CEO: Sanjay Kapoor Year of Start-up: 1995 Area of Operation: Cellular Service Address: D-184 Okhla Industrial Area Ph. I Tel.: 9810098100 Fax: 681 0041 Web: www.airtelworld.com |
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India’s largest private communication service provider, across all types of
licensed communication services, Bharti Cellular Ltd, slipped to the 16th
position despite a 33.1 percent growth in gross revenue. All thanks to the
impressive growth recorded by most carrier infrastructure companies.
Bharti Cellular recorded a gross billed revenue of Rs 471.48 crore, out of
which an estimated Rs 388 crore was its net revenue, after the service tax and
the pass throughs (on account of roaming and BSNL/MTNL access charges). The
subscriber base of the company grew by an impressive 78 percent to reach 3.28
lakhs by March 2001 (the highest in the country). It was an eventful year
otherwise, too. While the fanfare introduction of WAP services received a
disappointing response, SMS usage grew by more than 100 percent. Bharti Cellular
also launched massive advertising campaigns - it aired the AirTel (the brand
common to its services in all circles and Delhi) campaign on primetime
television slots. Though the quality of service came under some strain due to
increased subscriber loading, AirTel managed to keep it at a satisfactory level.
Customer service, however, suffered badly, with call centers getting heavily
loaded.
The MTNL challenge came as a mere walkover for Bharti as the former
completely failed to market its service. However, with a fourth operator coming
in and Hutchison preparing to give it a tough fight, this year will be testing
time for Bharti Cellular.