Zip Telecom is planning to expand its payphones network five-fold to 100,000. It currently manages 20,000 payphones.

The private sector payphone instruments company is a subsidiary of the Mauritius-based Zip Global Network and works through a franchisee network.

Zip also has strategic alliances with private basic telephony operators like Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) and Bharti Enterprises.

Ravi Kailas, chairman of Zip Global Network and director of Zip Telecom, said: "The environment is conducive for growth. Two things have happened -- there is unfaltered access to basic telephone lines, and the new interconnect user charge has removed the differential between cellular and basic service operators."

Zip Telecom is eyeing the STD payphone market where BSNL is the leader with revenues of over Rs 6,000 crore (Rs 60 billion). "We are planning to increase our presence in 25 key cities," Kailas said.

Zip is well positioned "as we now have access to cellular operators. In key cities, we expect growth in the payphone market to improve," Kailas added.

The company has already introduced V1 and V2 payphones, which are CDMA and GSM technology compatible telephones. It has installed over 3,500 V2 phones with an in-built auto conferencing unit.

Zip Telecom earlier had access to only six basic phone service providers. While Tata Teleservices opted for Schlumberger Measurement & System's smartcard payphones, Reliance Telecom and HFCL Infotel in Punjab did not have a large subscriber base.

"Zip Telecom has about 10,995 lines in Maharashtra. We plan to replicate the rate of growth witnessed in the past two years," Kailas said.

The company also has a presence in Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai and Kolkata.

Payphones account for 25 per cent of the Rs 35,000 crore (Rs 350 billion) telecom services market in the country.