Immediately after launching worlds lowest cost mobile phone costing less than $20, the Anil Ambani promoted Reliance Communications has commenced feasibility study of a mobile phone in the range of $12 (Rs 500). This phone is specifically being designed for rural India.
After in-depth research of over 6 months, the company is believed to have placed orders for prototypes of the GSM rural mobile phone with leading contract manufacturers in China, Taiwan and Korea. The company is also believed to be in initial stages of discussions with Ministry of Labour for launch of this handset for the 600 million-odd rural population in the country.
Recently, Oscar Fernandes Union Labour Minister said, "by pushing the digitisation of communication technology to make mobile phones affordable to the farmers of the country, the government would work along with private companies. The government is doing its best to connect village farmers with mobile phones so that with Internet accessibility, the farmers can dictate a fair price of its produce to end consumers".
The Minister said top priority of the government was to promote digital science to cut costs of mobile telephone instruments for 'aam adami' and also make them accessible to cheaper entertainment.
With the rural tele-density still in the meagre 4 per cent range, the rural mobile phone aims at capturing a lion's share of this market, which is pegged to be a major contributor in the tele-density targets going forward. The company in one of the recent forums had indicated that it is looking at 80 per cent tele-density scenario, a level that would hinge on the telecom penetration in rural India.
Reliance Communications' has designed the specifications of this phone at its in-house development lab, while its chairman Anil Ambani is personally monitoring the progress of this project on a weekly basis.
The company is targeting the launch of Rs 500 phone in the first phase of its GSM launch. The initial order size being placed is pegged at 12 million such handsets in the first year of GSM launch and RCom is aiming at selling 1 million pieces per month.
When contacted a Reliance Communications spokesperson while refusing to comment on the specifics said, "Initiatives to increase the availability and affordability is among the key pillars of Reliance's growth strategy. The company continuously looks at innovative solutions to serve the needs of various customer segments with diverse needs and varied tastes". The spokesperson added that the company has already taken numerous initiatives to increase the rural teledensity and is among the most active participants in the Government's USO initiative.
Reliance Communications had launched a Rs 777 monochrome and a Rs 999 colour CDMA handset earlier this year and has sold over 10 million pieces of this range under their proprietary brand "Classic". |
