BSNL broadband in all Kerala dists soon — Looking for partnerships with content providers  ( June '14,2005, HBL)

TELECOM major Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd will soon launch its broadband service in all districts of Kerala.

The company's broadband service, which is available in Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad and Kozhikode, is to be introduced in all districts of the State by the end of the month, said Mr S.A. Thomas, Chief General Manager-Kerala Telecom Circle, BSNL.

He told Business Line the company expects to have 55,000 broadband connections in Kerala by the end of the current financial year.

To make its broadband service more attractive and useful to customers, BSNL is looking to forge partnerships with content providers who can offer local content, Mr Thomas said. The company is keen on tie-ups with content providers in areas such as gaming and video-on-demand, he said.

BSNL is expanding and strengthening its mobile phone network in the State.

The company, which has over 8.2 lakh mobile phone connections in Kerala, expects to increase capacity by 14 lakh lines in the current financial year, said Mr Thomas. Of the additional capacity, 9.5 lakh mobile telephone lines will be commissioned in three to four months, Mr Thomas said. The company is also in the process of erecting an additional 1,200 cellular towers across the State. Once these towers are in place by the end of the current fiscal, BSNL's mobile phone service will cover virtually every part of the State, he said.

With 18 telephones — including mobile telephones — for every 100 people, Kerala possibly has the highest tele-density in the country. Even rural Kerala has a tele-density of 9.5, Mr Thomas said. Despite these achievements, the company is in the midst of an initiative to increase its rural coverage in the State using WLL technology. By the end of the year, the company plans to add 2.5 lakh WLL telephone connections in the State. It is also developing a scheme to offer SMS facilities to its WLL subscribers, Mr Thomas said. BSNL is also examining the feasibility of offering Internet services in rural areas using WLL telephones.

While BSNL invests about Rs 800 crore in Kerala every year, the State also accounts for approximately 40 per cent of all international telephone calls made to the four South Indian States. Ten per cent of all outgoing international telephone calls from the country are from Kerala, while 15 per of all incoming international calls are made to Kerala.