Huawei expanding India business to cash in on 4G roll out

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Eyeing 4G services roll out in India, Chinese telecom equipment maker Huawei Technologies has decided to scale up investment and operation of its Indian subsidiary.

The company which has been supplying equipment to leading telecom operators in India including Reliance Communications and Tata Communications, said the decision to increase investments and operations by the firm in India has been taken considering the expected launch of the 4G services within a year.

Vice-President of Global Media Affairs of the telecom giant, Scott Sykes, said the revenue generation of the company from India in 2011 was USD 1.2 billion and it has set a target of 40 per cent growth in revenues from India in 2012.

Huawei India Deputy Director of Enterprise Marketing of Suresh Vaidyanathan said the company was now focussing on the roll out of 4G services in India.

"4G services are being rolled out (in India). Huawei is scaling up India operation in terms of man power, technology and investment," he said declining to give the details of the investment plans.

The 4G services are likely to be rolled out in some of the Indian cities later this year. He said the company has 45 per cent market share in providing equipment and services to Indian telecom operators and now it wants to further consolidate its presence in India.

Listing new initiatives by the company in India, Vaidyanathan said a new campus for its research and development centre, which will be the biggest of the telecom firm outside China, is being set up in Bangalore at an investment of USD 150 million.

Asked whether Huawei's business has been affected by the the Supreme Court judgement cancelling 122 telecom licences allocated on first-come-first serve basis, Sykes answered in affirmative but said the company respected the ruling.

"If there is any impact for our customers then logically there is impact on us as well," Sykes said, refusing to speak further on the issue.

Queried on security concerns in India about software and hardware component provided by the company to Indian telecom operators, he said the firm 'complied fully' with the rules and guidelines of Indian government.

"Security is a global supply chain issue. We are dedicated to making sure that our equipment are most secured," he said.

The Indian government had decided to conduct testing and certification of software and hardware of all foreign telecom companies last year following security apprehensions.

The R&D centre of Huawei in Bangalore, which has around 2,000 employees, is one of the company's 17 R&D centres across the world and it provides technology solutions to various markets across the world.

"Indian market is very important for the company and that is why we are further expanding our investment," he said, adding that at present the company has over 6,000 employees in India, out of which 95 per cent are Indians.