Bharti Airtel Limited is the largest cellular service provider in India, with more than 141 million

subscriptions currently. It also offers fixed line services and broadband services. It is also India’s
largest integrated and first private telecom services provider, and a worldwide leader in mobile
and fixed wireless services.
In 1999, the National Telecom Policy eliminated the cap on the number of cellular licenses
allowed to each company; it also replaced the then prevalent fixed license fee regime to a
revenue sharing model. Airtel seized this expansion opportunity and set out on a series of
acquisitions.
In 2001, it acquired Spice Cell’s network in Kolkata. These acquisitions gave Airtel a total of six
cellular service areas with over a million subscribers at the close of 2001. In 2002, it became the
first private operator to launch national and international long distance operations service in
India. This made it more profitable and it was important, since India had the lowest telecom
tariffs in the world
Bharti Airtel knew that the key to capitalizing on its growth opportunities was to establish
deeper and more personalized relationships with its customers, as well as to provide a
consistent, high-quality customer experience. It further realized that, from an IT perspective,
the ability to integrate its diverse systems and processes was essential.

Bharti has come a long way since 1995 when it launched its cellular services in India. It has been
the market leader for the last five years, and has profitability higher than the industry average.
However by 2007, Airtel was facing serious threats to its leadership position. On the one hand,
there was the onslaught from global players such as Vodafone and Virgin Mobile, and on the
other, the threat from established Indian companies such as Reliance Communications Ltd.,
Tata Teleservices Ltd., and the state-owned BSNL, which entered the mobile segment in 2003.
Moreover, the market was expected to witness the entry of some more Indian and foreign
companies.
Airtel responded by investing heavily in expanding its network, technology, and marketing. It
was trying to cover all segments of the population from the tech-savvy youth population who
desired the latest value-added services to the Bottom of the Pyramid segment who would be
satisfied with a low-cost offering and recharge vouchers of very small denominations.
Airtel’s impressive performance in the recent past suggests that the firm is effectively
implementing its strategy with continuous innovation. Having dominated the Indian telecom
market, Airtel, made forays into overseas emerging markets with an aim to replicate its success
story. In the autumn of 2010, it acquired the mobile service operations of Zain, a Kuwait-based
public shareholding telecommunications company, in 15 African countries for US$ 10.7 billion,
making it one of the biggest overseas acquisitions made by an Indian company. Now it is one of
the top five telecom companies in the world.
Telecom being a capital intensive industry, the financial resources needed for expansion are
large. Bharti reduced its capital needs by outsourcing most of its functions, except for customer
management, people management, financial management, managing regulation, brand
management, and strategic management to outside companies.
Airtel now offers more varied services to its customers by striking strategic partnerships with
other companies. It has entered into a strategic partnership with Google that will enable Google
search on handsets to Airtel users. It has also entered into partnerships with Apple for its new i-
Phone and with Blackberry.
According to a survey in Voice and magazine, Airtel was the largest Indian telecom company
with revenues of `3880 billion in 2009-10.