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Free is free! Everybody is interested in free stuff. Internet connections are
not an exception. ISPs providing free dial-up access have managed to make a mark
in India, by overtaking big ISPs like VSNL and Mantra Online in their own
backyards. Going by the latest subscriber data collated by Department of
Telecommunications (DoT) dated up to 31 December 2000, the free ISPs lead in
three out of the four metropolitan areas in India and in the silicon valley of
India, Bangalore, as well. Caltiger.com the Calcutta-based ISP is the leader in
Mumbai, Calcutta, and Bangalore while Freedialin.com of Jain Internet leads in
Delhi.
In Mumbai, Caltiger had a subscriber base of 161,110 as compared to VSNL’s
160,645, Satyam Infoway’s 54,453, and Dishnet’s 37,045. Caltiger’s
subscriber base of 58,606 in Bangalore was ahead of VSNL’s 46,110, Satyam
Infoway’s 28,836, Mantra Online’s 19,605, and Sigma Online’s 16,100.
Calcutta was won hands down by Caltiger once again with a subscriber base of
97,405 as compared to 44,837 of VSNL, 16,400 of Sigma Online, and 15,129 of
Satyam Infoway.
In the capital city Delhi, it was the turn of the less-heard Freedialin.com
to overtake reputed giants like Mantra Online and VSNL. Here, Freedialin.com
with a subscriber base of 82,000 lead the field comprising, among others, Mantra
Online, VSNL, and Satyam Online which had respective subscriber bases of 81,505;
78,584; and 67,312.
Chennai was in effect the last bastion not yet stormed by the free ISPs.
Dishnet was the market leader here, with a subscriber base of 122,312, followed
by VSNL with 62,528. Here too, free-specialist Caltiger was fast catching up
with a subscriber base of 46,873.
Though it may not be fair to directly compare the free ISPs’ subscriber
base with the paid-subscriber base of the regular ISPs, the tremendous growth of
the free ISPs points to the intensity of the competition in the Indian market
and the price-sensitivity of Indian customers.
Shyamanuja Das and Nareshchandra Laishram