Bharti Airtel Ltd has announced on Tuesday that it would buy the entire equity stake in JV with Alcatel-Lucent.  The companies did not give any financial detail in a joint statement.

In a statement the company said that the entity would operate independently and it would invite other telecommunications operators for equity participation and bring the management of their broadband and fixed-line networks under the entity.

Bharti Airtel provides broadband (DSL), data and telephone services (fixed line) in 87 cities across India with 3.3 million customers of which, 1.4 million subscribe to broadband / internet services.

It said that it was introducing a new business model for managing fixed line and DSL broadband networks, on the lines of Indus Towers. Bharti Airtel subsidiary Bharti Infratel holds 42 per cent stake in Indus Towers, with the remaining stakes in the company with Vodafone (42 per cent) and Idea (16 per cent).

"The operations of the entity will be strengthened by the transition of proven tools, processes and all manpower and skilled resources from the existing joint venture," the statement said.

Bharti Airtel CEO (India & South Asia) Sanjay Kapoor said that with this innovative model, we are breaking new ground in an industry which is on the cusp of a massive data growth.

"The formation of this new model is a step in that direction and will leverage the core competencies that Alcatel Lucent Managed Network Service India has built over time," he said.

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