We have resources for 4G, but time isn?t right

After announcing the quarterly earnings, Idea Cellular MD

Himanshu Kapania shared the company?s plans with

Rhik Kundu. Excerpts:

Which are the circles where the company needs to renew licences in the next year or so?

We need to renew licences in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and Haryana circles in December 2015. In March 2016, we need to renew our licences in Punjab and Karnataka circles.

What?s the update on your 4G plans?

It is premature for company like us to launch 4G now. We await for technology and markets to mature before we invest on equipment. From spectrum point of view, out of the 65.2 MHz spectrum we bought, 45MHz can cover eight service areas. We have the raw material available to launch 4G but we don?t think that the time is right. Once the 3G capacity is fully utilised we will expand to 4G.

Any plans to introduce mobile wallet service?

We already have a company called Idea Mobile Commerce Limited which currently offers mobile banking services. We are available in Mumbai, Delhi, UP and Bihar. We have received licence from RBI on semi-closed wallet opportunities. We will launch it this financial year.