Aircel launched its GSM mobile services in Delhi

Aircel, a joint venture between between Malaysia's Maxis Communications and Apollo Hospital Wednesday launched its GSM mobile services in Delhi and said it will invest $10 billion for rolling out services in the country's 23 telecom circles.

ircel, which was operational in south India (Tamil Nadu), now plans to enter 11 circles, nationally. It has expanded its network in the northern and eastern parts of the country, and has already started operations in states such as Assam, North East, Orissa, West Bengal, J&K, Himachal Pradesh and Bihar. The other four circles where the services of Aircel are to be operational soon, include, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh (East), Uttar Pradesh (West) and Kolkata. With this, the brand will have to compete with other national players such as Airtel and Vodafone.

Considering its plans of expansion, the ‘Aircel’ brand needs to be looked upon with a larger perspective. A 360 degree communication, spanning across television, print, and below-the-line activities will be part of the plan.

Aircel’s network in Tamil Nadu spreads across 1,000 towns and 11,000 villages, serving over 40-lakh subscribers. With its plans to go pan-India shortly, 13 new circles are to be operational soon.