The mobile phones would be manufactured through manufacturing agreements with the company's global outsourcing manufacturing partners, Flextronics and Foxconn, who have facilities at Sriperumbudur near Chennai.
Addressing a press meet along with Union IT and Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran in Chennai, Miles Flint, president, Sony Ericsson said production capacity from Chennai was expected to reach 10 million by 2009. He, however, refused to divulge any details of investment.
"This is a wonderful accomplishment for the Indian telecom industry. We now have the top five mobile manufacturers in India. The efforts taken by the department of telecom
to promote telecom has taken full shape," Maran said.
"We are adding on average seven million telecom subscribers a month. By February, we will reach 200 million," he said. Flint said the company's business had tripled last year. "India is vitally important for us. It is the fastest growing telecom market in the world," he said.
Later speaking to reporters, Sudhin Mathur, general manager, India operations, said the company would open 200 outlets in the country by the year end.
These would be spread across 35 cities and would be based on the franchisee model. Flint said the company had a portfolio of 45 to 50 phones, all of which would be introduced in India. He also said a research and development centre of the company in India was under "careful consideration."
