MTN Trying To Enter India Through Loop Mobile

MTN has the habit of being in the news recently. One more instance is that it is in talks with Loop mobile to purchase a stake in the company which operates in 21 circles in India. Loop, initially BPL mobile, the country’s oldest mobile telecom service provider, has been on a lookout for investors for quite some time now and is willing to sell up to 45 per cent of its stake. Loop had earlier talks with NRI billionaire investor C Sivasankaran, but he said he was not interested in investing in the telecom sector then. Loop began looking out for prospective investors after it got clearance from the DoT (Department of Telecommunications) earlier this month. DoT had been investigating into a claim that the Essar Group held more than 10 per cent stake in Loop. Current norms prevent companies from holding more than 10 per cent in another operator operating in the same circle. Essar, which holds a 33 per cent stake in Vodafone Essar, cleared the air by saying that it held less than 10 per cent in Loop. MTN, headquartered in Johannesburg is Africa’s largest mobile service provider. It is negotiating with Loop through merchant banks. This is the fourth time that MTN is trying to get into the giant Indian telecom market which is already oversaturated. Its previous two attempts with Bharti Airtel and one with Reliance Communications fell through. The deal with Airtel was touted to be the unifying factor between Africa and India. If the deal with Loop falls in place, MTN will get entry into the coveted market that adds around 14-15 million mobile phone users every month. The Indian telecom sector is a very lucrative market which everyone has recognized. It is already saturated with new players vying to procure a niche. Loop mobile has been quite a dormant player in the industry. MTN wants a share of this pie. But will its history of trying to enter the Indian market haunt it again? What do you think of an African player operating in India? Will its stake change the future of Loop mobile? Related Posts GSM Shows A Marginal Dip In August Subscriptions And the Reliance – MTN Saga continues… Bharti Airtel To launch 3G By October 2010 – The Heat Is On! Bharti-MTN Merger-beneficial in the long run Bharti Airtel Spreads its Wings – Diversifies Into 9 Arms Need Help With Social Media Marketing?? – Contact WATConsult – India’s Leading Social Media Agency Submit Your Work To The 1st International Social Media Awards

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MTN Trying To Enter India Through Loop Mobile

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