Spice Telecom launches mobile handset plus connection for Rs.599 in Punjab

Mobile phone handsets seem to be getting cheaper by the day. Now, Spice Telecom in Punjab has come out with a unique combination offer of a handset bundled with a connection for just Rs.599.

The ''sabka Spice'' offer is designed to make mobile telephony accessible to the rural population and comes with a special handset with a unique voice response technology (VRT) that can be operated even by a semi-literate. Therefore, it scores both on the price and ease-of-use fronts.

The company offers both Spice prepaid and post-paid connections, and a three-year warranty for the handset. The prepaid connection offers one-year validity with zero rental along with a call rate of 50 paise. In post-paid connection, the customer has to pay a monthly fixed charge of Rs.35. Call rates will be 10 paise per minute for Spice-to-Spice local and 75 paise per minute to any other local number.

Although the mobile penetration in Punjab is at a high of 45.67 per cent, most of it is located in urban areas. Spice expects this offer to drive rural growth and take overall mobile penetration beyond the 50 per cent mark. Additionally, it is expected that the economic benefits of mobile telephony will also percolate down to the rural areas and help improve the economic situation of the rural population.

"We can aptly call this ''sabka mobile'' (everybody's mobile). It is cost-effective and easy to use and especially made for rural population. This combo offer gives economically weaker people a chance to go mobile at an affordable price," Spice Telecom chief operating officer Subodh Srivastava said at the launch.

Spice vice-president Mukul Khanna added, "We are targeting rural Punjab with this combo offer. ''Sabka mobile'' will certainly enhance our penetration in Punjab. The mobile penetration in Punjab is at 45.67 per cent. Right now mobile adoption is mostly centred "

''There is a singular kind of intelligent audio interface system giving alerts that replaces the LCD screen. So, people who can't read can use the phone by following the audio alerts in the urban areas, whereas the majority of the population is living in rural areas, and available in different languages like English, Hindi and Punjabi.

Khanna said the handset can be charged using any mobile phone charger. There is a speed dial system that allows the users to store the often-used numbers, which can be dialed with the simple push of a button.