Uninor today announced the launch of its global GSM service in India. The launch will happen simultaneously in 7 circles. These include Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, UP East, UP West and Bihar (including Jharkhand). In terms of GSM footprint in a single day, this is the largest single day Greenfield launch operation in telecom history. On launch day, the network will cover a national footprint of close to 600 million – providing a global connection and pan-India access to the world’s largest population on day one. This is well over the population of the US, Russia and UK combined and roughly equals every 10th citizen of the world.
People more than numbers
“Ab mera number hai” or “My time is now” is the voice of the Uninor customer – a young individual eager to succeed. Our tagline isn’t our directive to the customer. We will not sell dreams or tell our customers what to do. They know what they want, and we are here to help them fulfil these ambitions.
”We’re breaking records in terms of footprint, speed and distribution. But more than numbers and statistics, this launch is first and foremost about individuals. Our business is about people – real life young, aspiring people whose dreams and aspirations our services will be tools to help fulfill,” said Vellan.
Uninor will not employ big celebrity brand ambassadors, but do this differently from others. The Uninor hero will be every single young achiever making it on their own grit.
“To succeed in today’s India; a brand must understand what is driving today’s India. I believe Uninor has – in recognizing its audience as the young impatient Indian in the path of success,” said Sanjay Chandra, Managing Director, Unitech Ltd.
Network – fresh and brand new
Uninor’s network is brand new with the most modern equipment and the very latest IT systems. It’s a congestion free network powered by the latest technology anyone can deploy today. For customers, this will mean superior voice quality, lower call drops, maximum first attempt dials and a much better experience overall on our network.
Over 210,000 retail points
On launch day, Uninor will be retailed at over 210,000 points of sale through close to 1000 exclusive distributors in the 7 circles. Again, the largest ever launch distribution achieved by any GSM operator in India.
This means a Uninor connection is available to customers right next door. At a supermarket, a kirana shop, a chemist, a corner mobile outlet or a full service exclusive Uninor shop; definitely at many more places and much closer than that of any other operator on launch day.
Value for money
Uninor is launching its service with two price plans – a base plan called talkmore@29p and a subscription plan called callmore@29p
Talkmore@29p is designed for customers who talk longer on their calls. The plan offers customers local calls at 29 paise per minute and STD calls at 49 paise per minute, with a call set up fee of 39 paise. Customers can now make calls at the lowest per minute local call rates in the market only on talkmore@29.
Callmore@29p, is designed for customers who call more often by offering the lowest per minute local call rates in the market. The plan offers local calls at 29 paise per minute and STD calls at 49 paise per minute, with a daily rental of Rs. 2.00.
“If you make more than 4 calls a day, you will get the best value on Uninor. If your calls are around 100 seconds or more, you will get the best value on Uninor,” said Vellan. ”One size cannot fit all. For a large number of users, current prices, including per second pricing, are in reality much more expensive than they appear. We have created plans that bring supreme value to customers based on our research on specific usage patterns,” he added.
As a long term player, Uninor’s proposition to the customer will go well beyond pricing. The quality of service, quality of customer support, easier access to our service and an overall experience that is better than what a customer experiences today will create long lasting differentiation.
“While we will certainly be competitive on delivering value for money, we believe competition must not only be on pricing. While listening closely to our customer’s wishes, our long term focus will be on quality. And we’re in this business for the long haul,” added Vellan.
Launching from the streets
In terms of the launch too, Uninor will stand out as a different kind of player, launching its service from the street, from where the customers are. Starting Friday, across the 7 circles, close to 30,000 people from within Uninor, from the Managing Director onwards to the last employee and its extended resources will celebrate the launch in the streets.
“I believe we will be reaching more people directly at our launch than any other operator in the country. Tomorrow, we are hoping to set another record in the streets”, said Vellan.