Airtel (, ) was the brand name of former mobile network operator, Bharti Airtel Lanka (Pvt) Ltd. It was started as the Sri Lankan subsidiary of Indian
multinational telecommunications
Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...
company
Bharti Airtel
Bharti Airtel Limited is an Indian Multinational corporation, multinational Telecommunications in India, telecommunications company based in New Delhi. It operates in 18 countries across South Asia and Africa, as well as the Channel Islands. ...
.
The company was awarded a mobile phone operator license in 2006 and was scheduled to start operations in early 2007, however, the company didn't commence services until 12 January 2009, with approximately 3 million subscribers of the Sri Lankan mobile market as of June 2024.
On 27th June 2024,
Dialog Axiata
Dialog Axiata PLC (, ) (formerly known as MTN Networks and later Dialog Telekom), is one of Sri Lanka's largest telecommunications service providers, and the country's largest mobile network operator with over 17 million subscribers which amounts ...
acquired 100% of Airtel Lanka.
Network data
*MNC: 413 05
*Operator code: 075
History
Bharti Airtel Lanka (Pvt) Ltd is a subsidiary of Bharti Airtel Limited, the
second largest mobile operator in the world, with over 480 million mobile customers as of September 2020. Bharti Airtel has been featured in Forbes Asia's Fab 50 list, rated amongst the best-performing companies in the world in the BusinessWeek IT 100 list 2007, and voted as India's most innovative company in a survey by ''
The Wall Street Journal
''The Wall Street Journal'' (''WSJ''), also referred to simply as the ''Journal,'' is an American newspaper based in New York City. The newspaper provides extensive coverage of news, especially business and finance. It operates on a subscriptio ...
''.
Airtel Sri Lanka commenced commercial operations of services on 13 January 2009. Granted a license in 2007 in accordance with the Sri Lanka Telecommunications Act No. 25 of 1991, it is also a registered company under the Board of Investment Sri Lanka. Under the license, the company provides digital mobile services to Sri Lanka. This is inclusive of voice telephony, voice mail, data services and GSM-based services. All of these services are provided under the airtel brand.
Airtel received the 2nd Place award in the 16th National Business Excellence Awards (NBEA) in 2019. Airtel Sri Lanka has 3G island wide coverage. On November Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) approved airtel high speed 4G 850 MHz band operate for indoor coverage.
Network implementation
Airtel currently uses
2G/
4G LTE and VoLTE.
and currently under testing 5G Capabilities.
The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission of Sri Lanka (TRCSL) had granted its permission to Bharti Airtel Lanka (Pvt) Ltd (Airtel) to shut down their 3G mobile network by June 24, 2022
Airtel 4G LTE broadband and coverage
Airtel invested $20 million in 2014 to improve their island-wide 3G Coverage.
Airtel has been significantly investing in its 4G infrastructure during the past few years. By November 2021, the telco added over 2,000 sites along with 400 additional towers commissioned across the country following its 4G launch. The push from the company was a result of the sharp uptick in data usage following the pandemic.
Airtel 4G will operate in the efficient 850 MHz bands & 2100 MHz Band, 2500 MHz band in dense areas, which has higher signal propagation. This will translate into a superior 4G network experience for customers with wider network availability and, most importantly, better indoor coverage.
References
External links
Official Website
{{Telecommunications in Sri Lanka
Telecommunications companies of Sri Lanka
2024 mergers and acquisitions
Bharti Airtel