Indian mobile giant continues to diversify and considers reorganisation

Mobile entertainment? Or highly practical applications designed to assist people out of extreme poverty? Last month I pondered the question of which of these is most likely to grow strongly in emerging markets.

In a recent interview with the Economic Times, Bharti Airtel Deputy CEO Sanjay Kapoor made the case for the giant Indian cellco becoming a major player in both areas. Certainly, the MNO is keen to be much more than a provider of highly commoditised voice and SMS. Says Kapoor: "we are moving away from share of telecoms to share of the customer’s wallet. We will do so by being in a position to offer a wide array of services."

Bharti Airtel is, according to Kapoor, "already the largest music company in the country" selling "more music than any other music company - both, in revenues and, volumes".

In terms of services aimed at India's poorer citizens, Bharti Airtel sees "a big opportunity in banking, says Kapoor, notiing that "about 85% of the country’s population is unbanked."

Diversifying the business may call for changes to the way in which the company is organised. In March, Global Mobile Daily noted that the operator is planning to split its business into separate operating units, according to local reports. That article stated that the firm would reportedly appoint new CEOs to each of nine operating units, which would include separate units for its mobile, broadband and DTH businesses.

Indian mobile giant continues to diversify and considers reorganisation