Hutch launches push-to-talk services in India

Hutchison Essar on Thursday launched push-to-talk (PTT) services in the country, which would be available to both its `Hutch' and `Orange' subscribers. The services, available to both Hutch and Orange users, would be available for Rs 99 per month.

Hutchison Essar on Thursday launched push-to-talk (PTT) services in the country, which would be available to both its `Hutch' and `Orange' subscribers.

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"PTT benefits the value-conscious consumer as much as the enterprise user and is unique since it uses existing infrastructure to deliver a unique, new user experience," Hutchison Essar director Asim Ghosh said in a release in Mumbai.

Hutch has selected Fastmobile Inc of US as technology partners for the PTT services.

The company has been testing the service for the last three months, he said, adding the services would be available for a fee of Rs 99 per month.

The company would also provide unlimited PTT messages to the user, he said.

The service is accessible across a broad base of users, as it works on all GPRS handsets powered by Symbian operating system, like Nokia 3650, 3600, 6600, 7650 and Sony Ericsson P800 and P900, he said.

The PTT service, which was first introduced in US last year by Nextel Communications, combines the benefits of a walkie-talkie and provides instant messaging, Short Messaging Service (SMS), Multi-media Messaging Service (MMS) and Voice Messaging.

Hutchison Essar, with a combined subscriber base of over million users, has licenses for 13 circles in the country.