Bharti Airtel will pay 44.28 billion rupees ($666.5 million) to acquire 1800 MHz spectrum from Videocon in six circles under India's new spectrum trading rules.
The company announced it will acquire the rights to use 2 x 5MHz of 1800-MHz spectrum in six telecom circles - Bihar, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, UP (East), UP (West) and Gujarat.
The spectrum rights to be acquired by Airtel are valid until December 2032, Airtel said. Videocon acquired the rights to the spectrum during a 2012 auction. The license period commenced in April 2013.
The deal will signal the exit of Videocon from India's crowded telecom market.
Airtel noted that the closing on the deal is subject to the satisfaction of the standard conditions, including the conditions stipulated in the spectrum trading guidelines.
Airtel rival Idea Cellular had tentatively arranged to acquire Videocon spectrum in two circles, but called off this deal on Wednesday.
The ability for Indian operators to trade spectrum was introduced in September last year, but the multiple conditions attached have prevented more operators from pursuing such deals.
Source: http://www.telecomasia.net/content/airtel-buy-videocons-1800-mhz-spectrum