Bharti Airtel, launched India’s first 4G service in Kolkata. Airtel has launched the service on a network based on TD-LTE, making India one of the first countries in the world to commercially deploy this technology. With this launch, India joins the most advanced telecom markets in the world.
Airtel’s 4G (TD-LTE) network was launched by Kapil Sibal, Minister of Communications and Information Technology, Government of India. Commenting on the launch, Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman and Managing Director, Bharti Airtel said, “The 4G launch is a major milestone for India. High speed wireless broadband has the potential to transform India and provide a robust platform for building the country’s digital economy and truly empower people. India will see massive growth in consumption of data and content over mobile devices and proliferation of mobile commerce.”
Airtel 4G , besides offering rich content, will allow super fast access to High Definition (HD) video streaming, multiple chatting, instant uploading of photos and much more. In 2010, Airtel had successfully bid for BWA license spectrum in Kolkata, Karnataka, Punjab and Maharashtra (excluding Mumbai) circles. It is currently working towards rolling out networks in circles other than Kolkata. Bharti Airtel is one of the founding members of the Global TD-LTE Initiative (GTI) which was launched at the Mobile World Congress 2011. Other founding members of this global initiative include China Mobile and Softbank Mobile.