Technology
The company has tied up with local, state-owned, telecom operators to provide infrastructure for their services.
Updated : Mar 12, 2018, 03:27 AM IST
China's leading smartphone maker is now looking to enter the country's carrier space. Xiaomi, during the launch event for their all new Mi 4c in Beijing on September 22, also announced the rollout of Mi Mobile.
Mi mobile is a Mobile Virtual Network Operator, meaning it will not seek to construct cell towers or physical infrastructure of its own, but will instead buy network from existing carriers to provide their own services. Xiaomi has tied up with state-owned telecom operators China Unicom and China Telecom to provide the service.
At the moment, Mi Mobile is offering one pre-paid and one post-paid plan for voice and data. A 3GB data bundle costs RMB 59 a month (US $9.25) with voice calls working out to 2 cents a minute, and a "Pay-as-you-go" plan at 2 cents per call minute or 1MB of data. Both options support 4G services in the country, and the SIM cards are sold with three breakaway components, so you buy the same card whether you need a Nano SIM, Micro SIM, or a standard SIM card. Customers in China can buy the SIM and services through the Mi online store.