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International investors are continuing to express interest, with major telcos like France Telecom and MTN rushing to the subcontinent.



While MTN is still discussing a merger with India’s Bharti, France Telecom and Australia’s Telstra this week reported talks with Malaysia’s Maxis Communication to buy a minority stake in Indian telecom operator, Aircel.



Aircel is one of the major regional players in India and is dominant in the Chennai and Tamil Nadu markets. The company is in the midst of a USD5-billion expansion plan that will make it an all-India player.



Indian wireless subscribers are growing by 10 million per month. 380 million subscriptions are currently active, and the subscriber base is expected to hit the 500 million mark by 2012.



France Telecom is proposing to buy a 20-25% share in Aircel from parent company Maxis, which would give the world’s 3^rd largest phone company an important foothold in this growing market.