| PRESS RELEASE |  Hutchison Max Telecom Ltd. Stanrose House New Prabhadevi Road Mumbai - 400 025 INDIA Tel: +91-(0)22-4314000 www.orange.co.in |
Introduces lead plan with airtime rate of Rs.1.49
Move aimed at significantly expanding cellular market size
Mumbai, May 30, 2001
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Orange has announced a new range of tariff plans with airtime rates dropping to below rupees two for all plans effective June 1, 2001. The rates for its lead plan Talk 295 would be as low as Rs.1.49 per minute for both incoming and outgoing calls. This plan has a commitment level of only Rs.295 per month and replaces Talk 500 which had a commitment level of Rs.500 earlier. Besides the consumer will have an option to choose even more Talkathon numbers under most plans. The move is aimed towards significantly increasing the market size for both contract and prepaid segments. As Sandip Das, CEO, Orange puts it, "The Orange brand promise has always been to continually offer value added services at affordable rates. This is an exciting time for the consumer. The deposit rates have been reduced recently, good quality feature rich handsets are available at cheaper prices and now with the last barrier of tariff rates dropping to Rupees 1.80 and in some plans as low as Rupees 1.20, the consumer has an unbeatable package. We have also announced flat airtime rates, and are continuing with the attractive features like Talkathon and NightSpeak. We expect our move to open up the cellular market in Mumbai." |
The new tariff plans are as below :
| Talk Easy | Talk 295 | Talk 795 | Talk Incoming | |
| Monthly Rentals (Rs.) | 395 | 395 | 395 | 395 |
| Monthly airtime commitment (Rs.) | 0 | 295 | 795 | 1,995 |
| Rate per minute (Rs.) | 1.8 | 1.49 | 1.2 | 0 (incoming) 1 (outgoing) |
| Monthly Talkathon Fee (Rs.) (Optional) | 75/ number | 75/ number | 75/ number | 75/ number |
| Talkathon numbers | 1 | Maximum of 5 numbers | Maximum of 5 numbers | Maximum of 5 numbers |
| NightSpeak | -- | Optional | Optional | Optional |
| Monthly NightSpeak Fee (Rs.) | -- | 175 | 175 | 175 |
Sandip Das further adds, "With this phenomenal airtime slash, we have turned the entire cellular strategy on its head. Today, Orange customers will enjoy some of the lowest rates in the world, without being compromised on technologies such as WAP, email on any cellular phone, mobile banking, etc."
A comparison of the Old Plans and the New Plans is as below:
| Old Plan | New Plan | |||||||
| Min. commitment - Rs. | Outgoing | Incoming | Equalised 50:50 ratio | Min. commitment - Rs. | Airtime Rate | Reduction - Rs.p.m. | % reduction | |
| Entry Plan | Nil | Rs.2.80 | Rs.1.60 | Rs.2.20 | Nil | Rs.1.80 | - Rs.0.40 | - 18% |
| First commitment plan | Rs.500 | Rs.2.65 | Rs.1.50 | Rs.2.08 | Rs.295 | Rs.1.49 | - Rs.0.59 | - 28% |
| Second commitment plan | Rs.1000 | Rs.2.25 | Rs.1.25 | Rs.1.75 | Rs.795 | Rs.1.20 | Rs.0.55 | - 31% |
The airtime rate for JustTalk has also been reduced from Rs.3 per minute to Rs.2.25 per minute. There is no change in SIM card price of Rs.250 and refill slips denominations of Rs.500, Rs.750, Rs.1500 and Rs.2500 continue to be available.
Hutchison Max Telecom Limited is the leading cellular service provider in Mumbai with its Orange brand. Orange offers a broad range of value-added services; high quality customer service and international quality network. They were the first operator to provide Global Text Messaging Service, EFR Digital Super Sound and Mobile Banking. It has the largest Autoroaming network coverage amongst the cellular operators in India, providing access to over 400 cities in over 76 countries across the globe.
For more information, please contact :
| Sunil S. Mehta | Kartik Upadhyay |
| Hutchison Max Telecom Ltd. | Genesis PR, Mumbai |
| Orange : 9820018600 | Orange : 9820211064 |
| Tel : 431 4000 | Tel : 491 1783 / 460 3028 |
| Fax : 431 1111 | Fax : 491 1788 |
| Email : sunil.mehta@orange.co.in | Email : kupadhyay@genesispr.com |
For a copy of this press release, log onto Press Room at www.genesispr.com.