Lyca Telecom: Bringing Your World to Your Pockets by Cutting Call Costs Overseas





Lyca Telecom: Bringing Your World to Your Pockets by Cutting Call Costs Overseas Date: Thursday , February 16, 2017 On a recent trip to the UK, Shyam Karthik turned on his smartphone and as soon as it booted up he received a text message saying ‘International data rate of $20/MB applies. Unlimited domestic data plan does not apply in this location’. $20 is a real big buck to pay for such a small amount of data, but with Lyca Telecom’s international SIM, Shyam would have experienced a seamless service, with benefits such as unlimited talk, text and data with international calls included. Unlike most networks, Lyca Telecom’s SIM card functions in the same way no matter what country it’s in. This means Shyam can instantly contact his family and friends and get connected as soon as he lands abroad without any hassle. There are no extortionate roaming charges for making calls and using data to worry about. This is why Lyca Telecom has evolved as a company with great value proposition that offers a highly cost-effective service. Offering Seamless Connectivity As per Ministry of Tourism and World Bank statistics, the Indian outbound traveler industry has already surpassed $18 million (estimated to cross $50 million by 2020) and is growing at 15-18 per cent annually with over 62 million passport holders who are potential travelers. And with India set to become the country with the youngest population by 2020, this growth doesn’t seem unrealistic. The country’s millennials have broken boundaries by traveling to international destinations for work and leisure. This work-life balance is their priority and so they want to stay connected with their loved ones at all times, no matter where in the world they find themselves. Until now, being connected without worrying about the cost was not possible, but with Lyca Telecom you have your world in your pocket. Lyca Telecom is linked to Lycamobile, which is an integral part of Lyca Group. Lycamobile is the world’s largest international mobile virtual network operator and is the market leader in the international prepaid mobile calls market, operating in 21 countries with over 15 million customers and a new one joining every two seconds. Lycamobile has over two million points of sale and a revenue of over €1.6 billion (2015). “Due to the number of international travelers, we see an estimated 28 million opportunities within India. We aim to maintain and grow our prestige as people’s first choice provider for low-cost international calls,” says Chris Tooley, Lycamobile CEO. Lyca Telecom is committed to offering its customers the lowest rates across the globe. Whether it’s for business or pleasure, Lyca Telecom has a wide range of options to fulfil the needs of all varieties of international travelers and it is the best value for money when travelling abroad. The business’ commitment to bringing new and innovative international telecom products to the masses will bring further low rates and value to customer experience. Current key markets include the U.S. and Europe, with one offer including unlimited calls, texts and data for travelers going to the U.S. from India (for just Rs.2000) or to India from the U.S. Lyca Telecom offers a global SIM card that contains multiple local number IMSIs. This enables customers to make and receive local calls, send and receive text messages, and use data in all Lyca countries globally without paying extra for roaming, which is something most networks charge for. “This award-winning product has taken the market by storm,” adds Chris. Business and leisure travelers who travel to multiple destinations find it very handy to carry a single SIM card for multiple destinations and this is something Lyca Telecom provides with its no roaming charges offer. “Our plans also have CUG (closed user group) within Europe and hence customers across the continent can speak to each other free of cost on our network,” declares Chris. The Future Lyca Telecom has a great price advantage over competition in the countries it operates in. “If our competitors change their pricing in any destination, we will ensure we compete with a better price and a higher quality service,” he adds. Leveraging Lycamobile Customer Service professionals, who can speak all major European languages along with Hindi, Tamil and Punjabi, Lyca Telecom efficiently resolves any predicament customers face anywhere across the world. The company invests heavily in R&D to make its products as innovative and effective as possible. Currently the company’s SIM cards function worldwide, with the added benefit of working like a local SIM card in 18 countries worldwide. “Our SIM card will function exactly like a local SIM card in 18 of the 21 countries in our global footprint. Subscribers will get the visiting country’s local rates and mobile number without having to change the SIM card,” says Chris. Lyca Telecom is all set to execute a business plan that it has designed following intense market research performed on India’s outbound traveler market, which included the study of MNCs, SMEs and leisure travelers in the Indian sub-continent. While the company started with a ‘Pay As You Go’ model as a prepaid SIM card company, it gradually developed to incorporate corporate postpaid services courtesy of increasing market demand. Currently Lyca Telecom sells SIM cards through various channels, including via corporate partnerships and travel agents, and has an in-house team that takes care of direct offline business. The company is working aggressively towards having a presence in all major international airports in India to better serve its customers. The Strong Backbone Lyca Telecom believes in a lean management structure, which helps it offer the best rates in the market and set a benchmark in pricing. The strong team, which includes 40 sales staff (plans to double by 2017), 25 back office staff and customer support roles, are dedicated to taking the company to new heights. The team worked tirelessly for the past couple of years resulting in the company’s revenue quadrupling. “Our team in India and their hard work throughout the years makes us the undisputed SIM of choice for European and U.S. travelers. I’d like to take this opportunity to thank my entire team for their hard work and unquestionable loyalty,” says Chris. For the near future, Lyca Telecom has set its eyes on expansion. If Lycamobile’s MVNO business model launches in India, Lyca Telecom will be ready and able to help with distribution through its already established partnership network in the Indian sub-continent. Over the three years of its operations, Lyca Telecom has grown year-on-year by almost 80-100 percent and the sudden growth of distribution partners in B-cities is helping the company to grow rapidly. Additionally, Lycafly, Lyca Group’s travel and tourism business, aims to provide travelers with flight tickets, hotels and package holidays and the Group is also looking for forex card vendor partnerships. For now, the company is on the right track and it’s an exciting prospect that could soon be traveler’s one-stop shop for all their travel needs. Key Management: Allirajah Subaskaran, Lyca Group Chairman & Founder Allirajah Subaskaran founded Lycamobile in 2006 with a vision of building the global number one mobile international calling brand. A visionary entrepreneur and business magnate, Allirajah has over 18 years of experience in the telecommunications industry, including initially heading the sales division at International Communication Services (ICS). Allirajah’s unique insight into the demands of ethnic and immigrant communities has enabled the expansion of Lyca Group activities into over 21 markets worldwide. In 2011 he was awarded the ‘International Entrepreneur of the Year’ award by Asian Voice Political and Public Life, and in 2012 he received the ‘Business in the Community’ award on behalf of Lycamobile. Premananthan Sivasamy, Lyca Group Deputy Chairman Premananthan Sivasamy (Prem) oversees strategic, commercial and financial matters across the 21 countries in which Lyca Group operates, working closely with the Group Chairman. Prem has over 15 years’ experience in the telecommunications industry. Chris Tooley, Lycamobile CEO Chris Tooley has over 19 years of senior level experience in the prepaid telecom industry. He pioneered many of the technical, commercial and legal industry standards in Europe for prepaid products and has worked extensively with Government Regulators and Tax Authorities. Chris is responsible for business compliance and corporate governance for Lycamobile. Offices: Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Chennai and Bangalore Clients: Qualcomm, Siemens, Verizon, Airbus, Geometric, IBM, Eclerx and many more