Airtel celebrates 8 years, pushes to expand network

By Himal Kotelawala

India-based telecom operator Bharti Airtel celebrated eight years in Sri Lanka yesterday, announcing plans to expand its network and coverage with a focus on youth empowerment. 

Fielding questions from journalists at the conclusion of the event, Bharti Airtel CEO/MD Jinesh Hedge said the company would continue investments in building capacity, particularly in urban areas.

“We continuously invest in not only expanding our network; we also invest in building capacity. Especially in urban areas, we see that capacity is a major issue for all the operators. There are two technologies we’ve brought in: smart cache technology and dual carrier technology,” he said.

Smart cache involves content such as images and videos being stored in a local server, enabling faster transfer of data by bypassing international servers. Combined with dual carrier technology, bonding two 3G channels together for downloading and uploading, Airtel has announced a 40% increase in its 3G internet speeds.

Responding to a question by Daily FT on the speculated sale of Bharti Airtel to competitor Etisalat three years ago, reportedly due to allegedly unfair regulations on the part of the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC), Hedge declined to comment, but reiterated the company’s plans to expand the network.

“We have taken this position in the past as well. We don’t respond to speculation. Our focus is on expanding our network. We’ll continue to invest in our network. The TRC rates Bharti Airtel no. 1 in terms of 3G speeds. We will continue to invest - our agenda is right here. We will continue to empower youth, the entire team is completely focused on that,” he said.