State-run telco BSNL has secured its first MVNO partnership: It tied up with ADPAY, a Chennai-based mobile wallet company which runs an MVNO brand called Aerovoyce. BSNL had opened its network for MVNOs in October last year. Aerovoyce initially launched its broadband and international calling services in April, and had secured an MVNO license from the DoT prior to the launch. Note that BSNL and ADPAY had earlier partnered for direct carrier billing. BSNL is Aerovoyce’s cellular partner. Aerovoyce will ride on BSNL's spectrum, but offer voice and data under its own brand name. The Chennai-based company said it will distribute SIM cards for purchase via phone, online, kiosks, select retail stores across India and at Airports. An MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator), is an entity which buys telecom services (calling, data, SMS etc) in bulk from multiple telecom operators, and provides them to its customers, as a part of a differentiated offering. Virtual operators act as an aggregator of telecom services. What Aerovoyce plans to do While securing the DoT in April, Aerovoyce’s CEO Sivakumar Kuppusamy told MediaNama that the company will start with TN circle but move onto more circles in the future. The company also claims to have invested more than Rs 300 crore into its MVNO business and additionally plans to bundle ‘ADPAY mobile wallet services with its voice and data connections. Currently, ADPAY provides operator billing, Mobile WAP/VAS, mobile ad networks and payment services to telecom companies. Aerovoyce will be focusing on “townships and rural areas” with a…
