The Nasdaq-listed Digital Video Systems Inc will invest $25 million to set up a manufacturing plant for consumer electronics in Bangalore.

"We will repeat the Shanghai manufacturing plant in India and will invest $25 million to set up a manufacturing facility and a campus in Bangalore for DVDs, set-top boxes and mobile DVDs," Pratap Kondamoori, chairman, DVS Inc, told PTI in New Delhi.

The upcoming plant, which will be up and running in the next 18 months, will initially produce 18 million units a year, he said, adding it would be an export hub for global sales.

DVS Inc has plants in Shanghai and South Korea. The China plant produces 20 million units a year, making the Indian plant closer to it in capacity.

DVS, registered in the United States and markets products under the DVS brand, has already soft-launched its products for the Indian market earlier this week in a limited number of cities.

To support the manufacturing, the company has also announced setting up of an R&D and marketing centre in the same premises, Kondamoori said.

DVS India will hire up to 400 engineers for its facility, he said while for R&D, it will needs up to 50 professionals.

Worldwide, it has filed for 150 patents; and in 2002 it had a revenue of $157 million.

DVS India is a 100 per cent arm of DVS Inc.