VSNL adds NTT, Starhub as partners

Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL), on October 18, 2007 has announced expansion of its International In-roaming service on Wi-Fi, with the addition of NTT, Japan, Starhub, Singapore already utilizes the Company's Wi-Fi network across India for its customers.

The Company has been leading the growth of the Wi-Fi industry in India and today has the largest Wi-Fi deployment among domestic ISPs with over 350 hotspots. It has drawn up major plans this year to further enhance the footprint to over 1000 hotspots - bringing high-speed broadband internet that much more closer to the large Indian traveling population.

The Company's hotspots include the major domestic and International airports, leading premium Star hotels, educational institutions, sports stadium, hospitals, chain of restaurants and coffee shops. Its partners include companies like Taj Group of Hotels, Le Meridien, Café Coffee Day, Barista, Manipal University, Wockhardt, amongst others the Company has also been driving innovation through creating hotspots at non-traditional locations like Mobile Stores, IT stores, Railway Stations, etc.

The Company is the only Indian ISP to be a member of the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA), a leading global consortium of Wi-Fi service providers. It has been a key player in developing the Wireless market in India and has drawn up a number of initiatives leveraging the alliance. Operator members of WBA own and operate over 60,000 Wi-Hi hotspots worldwide and the membership in WBA enables the Company to leverage the same.

"Over the next six months, the Company intends to open up its extensive Wi-Fi network to millions of customers of international telecom operators, thereby enabling for travelers to India, access to high speed wireless broadband zones in key locations in the top 10 cities in the country." said Mr. Prateek Pashine, Vice President - Planning, Retail Broadband Business of the Company.