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Sabeer Bhatia launches Voicexpress

Sabeer Bhatia, co-founder of Hotmail.com, on Tuesday announced the launch of VoiceXpress - a cellular voice messaging service - at a function held in Ahmedabad.

The service offers users the facility to send voice messages to the United States and Canada.

The voice messages to the US would be charged at Rs 5.95 per minute.

"I have decided to start with India because it represents a good market to test a new technology," he said.

Bhatia also said the telecom industry in India is ready for a 'big explosion', and there is the possibility of tremendous growth for Internet and cellular services.

Bhatia, the co-chairman of NavinMail Services (India) Pvt Ltd and its subsidiary TeliVoice, is hopeful about the future of his new companies.

Talking to reporters, Bhatia said that any decision about selling NavinMail or retaining it would be taken at a later stage. He said his company was doing well at present.

When asked about whether he would do a Hotmail to NavinMail, Bhatia said he would think about it at a later stage as the time has not yet come. However, he said he may sell it or may go for public issue, based on its performance after some time.

Bhatia shot into the limelight when he sold the e-mail service provider to the software giant Microsoft Corporation in 1997.

About the future of services like Internet and mobile in India, Bhatia said that the country has a huge potential, but what is needed is a better infrastructure. He said that the market in US has saturated but India offers huge opportunities.

NavinMail Services (India) Pvt Ltd was established with the vision to make global voice communications available, accessible and affordable for people in India.

At a later stage, it introduced TeliVoice, its flagship voice messaging service to bring the benefits of technology enjoyed around the world to India just by using the most common device, a home telephone.

The TeliVoice has recently entered into a strategic tie up with Hutchison Fascel to deliver VoiceXpress, a service available for Fascel subscribers in India, USA and Canada and Fascel network in India namely Orange in Mumbai, Essar Cellphone in Delhi and Command in Kolkata.

Additional inputs: UNI

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