Etisalat DB to start offering VAS by October
Etisalat DB, the joint venture between UAE's Etisalat Group and Indian real estate company DB Group, said it will start offering value added services to its subscribers in the next couple of months, probably by October.
A senior official from the company told Telecom Yatra that Etisalat DB is currently in talks with several VAS players and content providers for these services. In March, Etisalat entered a global deal with Comviva for offering VAS to its subscribers worldwide. However, the deliverables of the partnership are still to be defined in India.
The official said, “VAS is very important for our business. Considering the state of telecom in India, it is necessary for differentiating our brand from others and VAS is an alternative revenue stream which is stable in nature.”
Commenting on the kind of content that the company will offer, he said, “We will offer more or less everything. Category does not matter that much. We will provide entertainment, utility and enterprise services, among others.”
Etisalat DB, earlier Swan Telecom, had announced a soft launch of its mobile services in 15 circles last month, two years after acquiring licences in 2008.
Etisalat DB currently offers mobile services in Haryana, Punjab, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Mumbai, Delhi and Rajasthan under the brand name Cheers.
