Millicom COO optimistic, ready to invest more

by Sureka Galagoda

Millicom International Cellular S.A. is optimistic about the future of Sri Lanka and therefore we will continue to invest, said the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the company Mikael Grahne who was in Sri Lanka on a brief visit in connection with the name change from Celltel to tigo.

He said the main aim of the name change was to have one brand name globally and thereby have one approach .

At present Millicom provides cellular telephony services in 16 emerging markets in Central America, South America, Africa, South Asia and South East Asia but under different brand names.

Therefore we launched the concept two years ago in Latin America and it is a success. Now we have started the process in Asia to bring the different brand names we own under the umbrella of tigo.

He said that changing the brand name from Celltel to tigo in Sri Lanka is Challenging since people have known Celltel for a long time but we are confident that we can do it as we have a brand which is of quality. It is a new mobile experience/brand that is simple to understand, and convenient to use, and understands their lifestyle, while offering full service of coverage, quality and value added services.

He said tigo will launch some innovative facilities and services soon and are confident that this will increase the customer base by half a million people.

The company prepared the market from last year by increasing the quality and the coverage and we are targeting three segments which include youth, friends and family and the corporate sector. We have drawn up a three-pronged strategy to attract customers in these three segments of society.

At present we are the number two mobile operator in Sri Lanka and have more than one million customers in Sri Lanka while globally it is around 15 million customers .

Speaking of future plans for tigo in Sri Lanka, he said that they want to strengthen the market share, provide an excellent product and a quality service at an affordable price. This will attract many more untapped segments to tigo, he said.

Grahne said that Sri Lanka's mobile market is very attractive and at present the mobile market penetration is 20% while it is projected to double within the next three years.

Lower call charges coupled with low prices of hand sets, four strong mobile market players and the competitive market environment are all positive factors that show a bright future ahead for mobile operators as well as the mobile industry in the country.

We have invested US$100 million to expand the network and we will not hesitate to invest whatever if required.

"Speaking of worldwide investments Grahne said, "that they have invested US$350 million worldwide and they are doubling that amount this year. We will invest whatever is required to stay ahead," he said.

Grahne said that 3G technology is still premature while the handsets are expensive and complicated. Those are the reasons why we have not moved into that technology as yet.

The origins of Millicom International Cellular S.A. can be traced back to the early days of the cellular industry. In 1979 Industrial ratings AB Kinnevik, acquired a small mobile telephone company in Sweden which developed into Comviq GSM. Also in 1979, Millicom Incorporated ("Millicom") was formed to pursue cellular telephone opportunities in America, and in 1982, was awarded by the US Federal Communications Commission one of three cellular development licences.

Mikael Grahne joined Millicom in February 2002 as COO and has full profit and loss responsibility for Millicom's operations worldwide. He started his career with 11 years at Procter & Gamble and from there he went to Pepsico where he was regional president for the EMA region.

Prior to joining Millicom he was the President of Seagram Latin America. Mikael Grahne has an MBA from the Swedish School of Economics in Helsinki.

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