July 29, 2011 - MediaTek Inc., a leading fabless semiconductor company for wireless communications and digital multimedia solutions, today announced that it has invested into Spice Digital Limited, one of the largest Mobile Value Added Services ( mVAS ) player in India with presence in close to 20 countries. In connection with this agreement, MediaTek will invest US$ 20 million.
According to a recent study of Standard Chartered, India is set to become the fastest growing major economy in the world by 2012. It is also estimated to have more than 700M mobile subscribers, with that number still increasing. In addition, market research states that the mVAS (mobile value added service) market in India will enjoy over 100% growth over 5 years and will constitute about 10% of total telecom revenue for Indian operators. It is no surprise then that an increasing number of Indian operators are putting attention and resources into mVAS, which represents a huge market potential.
Spice Digital Limited was incorporated in 2000 and has become one of India’s top VAS companies with over 30M subscribers. It offers innovative solutions for telecom operators, enterprises, and government agencies using different mobile connectivity mediums of Voice, IVR, SMS, USSD, WAP, 3G & Mobile Applications. The company is well connected with all major operators in India including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Reliance Communication and also enjoys accelerated penetration into Africa and SE Asia.
During the signing ceremony held in MediaTek headquarters this morning, Mr. Ming-Kai Tsai, Chairman of MediaTek said, “The mobile Internet presents a wealth of opportunity for MediaTek and we believe India’s IVR and mVAS market, where Spice Digital’s core business lies, will continue to grow. Through this investment in Spice Digital, we are hoping to capitalize on its market potential and reinforce its strong operator relationship and leading position in India, SEA, Africa and Middle East.”
Dr. Bhupendra Kumar Modi, Chairman of SPICE Global stated, “India is already one of the fastest growing large economies in the world and has the potential to become the world’s largest economy. Mobile Internet can help India achieve double digit GDP growth rate and our businesses continue to lead the country’s move on the digital highway with mobile Internet. MediaTek is well known as a leading Mobile IC solutions provider. We are very excited to have signed this definitive agreement with MediaTek. Through this investment, we can together offer more advanced and innovative services and enrich the digital mobile life of the future.”
About MediaTek
Since 1997, MediaTek has been a pioneering fabless semiconductor company and a market leader in cutting-edge systems-on-chip (SoC) for mobile devices, wireless networking, HDTV, DVD and Blu-ray. Our tightly-integrated, innovative chip designs help manufacturers optimize supply chains, reduce the development time of new products, and extend a competitive edge in crowded markets. Through MediaTek Labs, the company is also building a developer hub that will support device creation, application development, and services for the Internet of Things era. By building technologies that help connect individuals to the world around them, MediaTek is enabling people to expand their horizons and more easily achieve their goals. We believe anyone can achieve something amazing. And we believe they can do it every single day. We call this idea Everyday Genius and it drives everything we do. Visit mediatek.com for more information.