MUMBAI: Information technology major Wipro Ltd. is giving its consumer electronics business a serious push. The company announced today it would invest Rs 2.15 billion in the first phase to create a new facility at the Infopark in Kakkanad near Kochi to develop `ISDB-T (terrestrial standard), the software required for digital video broadcasting.

Coming up on a 25-acre campus, the consumer electronics Centre of Excellence (CoE) facility will concentrate on manufacturing digital TV middleware components to cater to the Japanese market.

Wipro will also licence the software to customers. The company will conduct field trials for this technology in Japan.

Wipro is erecting a new seven-storey building on a 10-lakh sq ft. area to house the unit. On completion in 2008, the facility will create 8000 employment opportunities. The first phase of the facility will be operational in a year and accommodate 2000 employees.

The company expects that the Kochi unit, once operational, would account for exports worth $500 million to $600 million.

Wipro, which has relocated 35 per cent of its consumer electronics team from Bangalore to Kochi, will also shift its staff from other centres in India. The company will also provide employment opportunities to local people from Kerala.