US telecommunication giant Verizon Communications is applying for a long-distance operating license in India that will allow it to compete more fiercely in the region with AT&T and other telecom firms offering phone and Internet services to multinational companies.
The application by a business unit of Verizon follows its decision to form a partnership with five major Asian telecom carriers to spend millions of dollars to build a high-speed undersea cable system that links the US and China.
Verizon, a former US regional phone carrier, is expanding on the international stage following its acquisition of former rival MCI, which already had international operations, t
he Wall Street Journal said.
Verizon Business India is a Verizon-controlled joint venture between Verizon and Leo Communications, which is part of the Videocon Group of Mumbai.
Verizon holds a 74 per cent stake in the partnership, the maximum stake allowed by the Indian government for foreign ownership in a telecom operation, the report said.
Verizon currently offers services to multinational customers in India through partnerships it operates with licensed Indian carriers.
Having its own license will allow Verizon to collect more revenue and meet the increasing demand from multinational corporations for data and Internet transmission, the Journal said.