HIGHLIGHTS
- Merger created the country’s largest telecom operator
- Combined entity will have a total customer base of around 400 million
- The entity would be a formidable rival to Reliance Jio
Idea Cellular and Vodafone completed the merger of their India operations on Friday, creating the country’s largest telecom operator by subscribers and revenue after the entry of a new player sparked a bitter price war.
The merged entity would be a formidable rival to billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio Infocomm, which has caused a widespread disruption in the domestic telecom industry.
Stiff competition triggered consolidation in world’s No.2 mobile phone market, with Vodafone and Idea agreeing to merge their operations in India in a $23 billion (roughly Rs. 1.6 lakh crores) deal last February.
The combined entity will have a revenue share of about 40 percent in the market and a total customer base of around 400 million, racing ahead of Bharti Airtel, Idea said on Friday.
The entity’s board will have 12 directors, with Kumar Mangalam Birla as chairman and Balesh Sharma as chief executive officer.
Source: gadgets.ndtv.com
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