Set up in 2001 by British Gas as Iqara Broadband, YOU Telecom India Pvt Ltd became a Citigroup Venture Capital International (CVCI) owned company in 2006.

YOU Telecom is a category ‘A’ ISP and India’s first ISO accredited broadband service provider. One of the leading independent ISPs in India, YOU offers high speed Internet, voice and video services through cable modem platform to residential, SME and corporate customers in 12 cities. As a part of its growth plans, YOU is rapidly expanding its presence in other cities across the country.

Infrastructure

YOU’s over 1155 kms of optic fibre cable and 4000 kms of last mile coaxial cable network in all its operational cities facilitates world-class service delivery to its customers. The company has so far invested Rs 4 billion on broadband cable infrastructure across 12 operational cities. The network has been put together by partnering with companies likes Motorola, Avvaya, Commscope, Cisco etc. YOU employs over 1400 people across 12 cities and plans to double up its talent base over the next two years.

Business

Broadband

YOU Telecom offers high-speed data, voice and video services through the Internet. Primarily, it offers high speed Internet services to residential, corporate and SME customers. For corporate and SME customers YOU offers dedicated leased line to enable them to send huge amounts of data. It is the first private ISP to announce 2 Mbps plans in 2007 when Government made it mandatory for all ISPs to provide the service.

Triple Play/Convergence

It is one of the few companies along with the large telcos capable of offering Triple Play services. This means, through one connection customers can access broadband, make voice calls through Internet (VoIP) and watch videos (digital cable TV). YOU offers these services to individual customers in their residences and to corporates. With an active broadband customer base of around 100,000 YOU is truly poised to be a major player in the Triple Play space.

VoIP

YOU’s Internet Telephony services (holds ITSP license) allows users to make International calls at affordable rates. To further enhance its VoIP offerings YOU acquired Ahmedabad-based ISP IceNet in 2007, which had strong VoIP solutions.

YOU is also one of the first to introduce IP phones in India. It is a fixed landline device that uses broadband connection instead of a telephone line to make calls.

YOU offers international calling cards to enable people with any broadband connection to make VoIP calls. These cards are available in range of denominations. With YOU VoIP solutions customers can save up to 75-80% of their ISD bills.

Wireless (WiFi) broadband

To further its broadband presence YOU Telecom entered into 50:50 JV with Malaysian WiFi major Red Snapper. YOU Snapper, the JV, will offer wireless as last mile connectivity to YOU broadband customers. Wireless adds mobility to YOU’s existing offerings of high-speed data, voice and video services. With this service YOU will tap new markets and enhance connectivity to existing customers in all its 12 operational cities.

Digital Cable

If 2001 is the year of establishment for YOU then 2008 definitely redefined its existence. In January 2008 YOU made a major foray in to Digital Cable (Video) business under the brand name Digivision. It launched its services in Bangalore by acquiring a local cable network Digital Infotainment Pvt Ltd. YOU’s digital cable services are present in Mumbai and Vizag.

In Mumbai, YOU formed an alliance called YOU-SCOD 18, a multi service operator (MSO), which consolidated cable operators and captured 40% market share of cable business in the metropolis. YOU currently offers video services to around 6,50,000 homes in the 3 cities.

To provide superior digital viewing experience to the customer, YOU Telecom has partnered with global networking solutions major Cisco. All YOU digital cable homes will have Cisco’s state-of-the-art set top boxes that are best in class in terms of functionality and service. YOU has already committed Rs 120 crore towards its digital cable business expansion. With all these developments, YOU has been successful in managing the roles of an ISP as well as an MSO.

Online Value Added Services

YOU offers a variety of Value Added Services to its broadband customers:

YOU Play - online gaming service with over 100 new games added every month. Content provided by Indiagames, Kreeda games etc.
YOU Learn - online education service for school and college students powered by 24x7 Guru.
YOU Call - Internet Telephony, allows making international calls at low rates.
YOU Fone - A telephone that uses broadband connection to make ISD.