China Mobile wants to enter India

China Mobile, the world’s largest mobile telephony operator with 457 million subscribers, is now turning its attention to the world’s fastest growing telecom market: India. Speaking on the sidelines of the world GSM Congress, CEO Wang Jianzhou said, “We are looking to enter the Indian market.”

Jianzhou did not elaborate on his company’s India plans.However,industry analysts said if it wants to enter the country,it would only be through a partnership with a new licensee,as most incumbents already have foreign partners.In the telecom sector,74% FDI is allowed,of which up t o49% is via the automatic route.

Such a move could test how far the Indian government is willing to open up a ‘sensitive’ sector like telecom to Chinese FDI without raising the hackles of the security establishment.

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Vodafone may enter MTN race

The bidding war for South African telecom major MTN may have just started, with the largest telecom company by revenues, Vodafone, too eyeing MTN. According to foreign media reports, the company is examining a £20 billion ($39.02 billion) bid for MTN.

However, a Vodafone spokesperson told a foreign news agency in London that, “we have no intention of pursuing a bid for MTN.” Vodafone is the second largest mobile operator with about 250 million subscribers worldwide and acquisition of MTN would add the latter’s 68 million users to its fold, taking it closer to China Mobile, which is the world’s largest mobile company by subscriber base close to 400 million.

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