Net4India may jump into ILD telephone service

Net4India, an Internet services and solutions provider, has applied for license to offer international long distance (ILD) services when the segment opens up on 1 April, 2002. The company hopes to get the license within three weeks as per DoT directives. 

"We are at the helm of a major revolution in Indian telecommunications today. The international voice market in India is at around 2.6 billion minutes currently and is expected to grow exponentially in India with the introduction of competition. We are very excited about this phase in our business," said Jasjit Sawhney, CEO, Net4India. 

"High telecom rates for domestic and international long distance calls are detrimental to commercial growth in a fast-paced global economy. At a time when capital markets are drying up and making it difficult for telecoms to raise money to build new infrastructure, the significantly lower costs of IP telephony make it a better alternative," added
Sawhney.

Net4India is in dialogue with prospective International telecom carriers as strategic partners for call origination and
termination. The company is in a position to begin its services within eight weeks after getting the license. 

Net4India plans to invest Rs 250 crore over a period of 2 years for offering ILD services in the market.