Tycoon Branson launches Virgin Mobile in India

British billionaire Sir Richard Branson launched Virgin Mobile in India on Sunday aiming to tap the huge number of young people in the world's fastest-growing cellular market.

The flamboyant tycoon was lowered by wires down the face of a 35-storey hotel in Mumbai, unveiling the Virgin logo in mid-air, to herald the firm's entry in a tie-up with India's sprawling tea-to-steel Tata Group.

"India looks very, very promising," said Branson, who is tying up with Tata Teleservices.

The service will be marketed under the Virgin Mobile brand name in India, whose cellular market is expanding by eight million subscribers per month.

Virgin sought to deliver a "more tailored, more relevant offering" aimed at India's young population, he said. Some 51 percent of India's population of 1.1 billion people is under 25 and two-thirds under 35.

The venture will offer music, entertainment and news on India's film industry, sports and stock market.

Virgin needs to grab "only a small percentage of the market to do well," the tycoon told reporters in Mumbai on the weekend, adding that "the vibrancy of its youth and culture truly makes it Virgin territory."

To start, Virgin will launch its service in 50 cities, expanding to more than 1,000 cities by December.

Virgin is seeking to tap India after Britain-based Vodafone, the world's largest mobile company, made its entry last year by buying Indian cell phone operator Hutchison Essar for 11.1 billion dollars.

Virgin Mobile "can capture more than 10 per cent" of the growing youth market within three years and generate more than 350 billion dollars in annual revenues, Jamie Heywood, deputy chief executive of Virgin Mobile India, said.

It can do that by focusing on a single segment and by delivering innovative services, he said.

Branson said he expected the Indian operation would be profitable within three years. It will sell Virgin mobile branded handsets at prices ranging from 50 to 125 dollars.