OnMobile to buy France’s Voxmobili for Rs 150 cr

After Bharti Telesoft talks with Bangalore-based software firm Jaatayu, its the turn of another player in this space.

The Infosys-incubated and India’s largest value-added services (VAS) operator OnMobile is acquiring Voxmobili SA, France’s leading telecom solutions company, for about Rs 150 crore. The acquisition will help the Bangalore-based OnMobile expand its operations in Asia to the Pacific, Australia and the US. A formal announcement is expected as early as next week.

Voxmobili, headquartered in Paris, specialises in personal data management and wireless synchronisation. Its software solutions primarily cater to mobile operators, fixed line players, internet service providers and cable operators. When contacted on this issue, OnMobile CEO and co-founder Arvind Rao declined comment.

This is OnMobile’s second acquisition after ITfinity Solutions, which it had bought last December, after receiving $27.8 million as part of its third round of funding from Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Polygon Investment Partners.

The acquisition of Voxmobili will help OnMobile access the technological expertise of the French VAS major, which includes world-class ‘phone backup’ solutions used by some of the largest operators in the US. Additionally, OnMobile will inherit an experienced team of software developers with extensive experience in developing 3G solutions. The company feels that this would give it a headstart against its competitors in this sector, even as telecom operators roll out 3G services in the Asia-Pacific.

OnMobile is also learnt to be readying an initial public offering and raise about $150 million from its listing, which it plans to use for future acquisitions.

Industry experts are of the view that the VAS sector, which at present has more than 20 players, will see major consolidation over the next 12-18 months. “Two years from now, it is unlikely that there will be more than four major players in this space in India. While most startups in the segment receive active support from VCs, these models may not be viable in the long run,” a top executive of a leading VAS company said.

In India, OnMobile competes with Cellebrum, One97 Communications, Bharti Telesoft, IMI Mobile, Mobile2win, Mauj.

(Source: Economic Times

Bharti Telesoft in talks to buy Jayaatsu

Bharti Telesoft, one of the largest players in the mobile value-added service (VAS) space in the country, is learnt to be in talks to acquire Bangalore-based software firm Jataayu. Sources did not specify the deal size as talks were in the initial stages.

According to sources, Bharti Telesoft is looking for acquisitions to expand its rapidly growing portfolio. The company has already deployed its products and solutions in 25 countries to over 100 networks, enabling service provision to over 150 million customers across five continents.

Its customers in India include Vodafone Essar, Idea Cellular, Tata Tele and Bharti Airtel, while globally, its client list includes telecom majors Vodafone and France Telecom.

In this context, Jataayu Software will be a strategic fit to Telesoft’s expansion plans as the Bangalore-based firm has emerged as a leading provider of mobile handset solutions and VAS infrastructure solutions in mobile messaging, browsing, synchronisation and provisioning, sources said.

India’s phenomenal telecom growth over the last 18 months has increased operators’ focus on VAS software. As per industry estimates, the telecom software market grew by over 50% in FY ‘06-07, garnering revenues of Rs 17,871 crore.

Additionally, with falling revenue per user, telcos are increasingly looking at VAS products to boost their bottom line. VAS currently accounts for an average 10% of an operator’s revenue compared to about 25% in developed markets.

Bharti Telesoft is best known for its e-recharge solutions, which are currently used by India’s GSM operators. Indian operators record more than 3 million e-recharge per day on Bharti Telesoft’s platform.

(Source: Economic Times )