Airtel Lanka gears to launch 4G services this year

In trial process and discussions with TRCSL for spectrum at advanced stage Subscriber base reached 2.58mn as of March 2019 indicating 14.1% YOY growth

Has invested US $ 0.5bn as of last year; employs over 60,000 people directly and indirectly

Bharti Airtel Lanka, a unit of India’s Bharti Airtel plans to launch its 4G services in Sri Lanka this year as discussions with the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) have reached advanced levels to obtain the necessary spectrum.

“We are in the process of trials and we are in an advanced stage of discussions now,” Bharti Airtel Lanka Chief Executive Officer/ Managing Director Jinesh Hegde told Mirror Business.

He was optimistic that Airtel would be able to launch its 4G service in Sri Lanka this year.

However, Hegde pointed out that as the mobile consumers engage in video streaming 90 percent of the time, Airtel is capable of serving the needs of those customers with 3G.

“It only requires 1mbps speed for video streaming and our network

is good enough to offer that requirement to customers,” he said.

He noted that 75 percent of customers still rely on 3G for video streaming in Sri Lanka.

Hegde acknowledged that TRCSL and Airtel’s technology partner Huawei have recognised Airtel as the best 3G-service provider in Sri Lanka. ‘ Meanwhile, Airtel yesterday launched a new promo product, which offers unlimited voice calls for their customers within the network at Rs.98 per month.

While noting it’s the first product in this nature to be launched in Sri Lanka by any telco operator, Hegde said that this product will further foster the growth of Airtel in Sri Lanka.

According to him, Airtel’s customer base has grown considerably in the past two years beating the average industry growth in Sri Lanka.

“Our momentum is very good in Sri Lanka. We will continue to grow at this pace and I’m sure with this initiative, our growth will accelerate,” he stressed.

Airtel’s customer base in Sri Lanka reached 2.58 million as of March this year, indicating a 14.1 percent YOY growth.

Commenting on the merger between Hutch and Etisalat last year, Hegde said that it didn’t have an impact on the operations of Airtel in Sri Lanka.

“Five operators were too many for a market such as Sri Lanka, and I believe the consolidation is very positive for the industry,” he added.

Airtel commenced its operation in 2009 and has invested US $ 0.5 billion in Sri Lanka as of last year while employing over 60,000 people directly and indirectly.