On September 1, 2007, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India reigned in the 'don't call regime' with setting up of the NDNC. Subscribers had to register with the NDNC by calling the respective service provider and the marketing calls were to stop within the next 45 days. However, even after 10 months, unsolicited calls still haunt mobile users.
According to research firm IDC, China shipped 85 million GSM handsets in the last fiscal. And it says China's percentage share is likely to go up since these phones offer swanky features ranging from 3 megapixel camera, terrestrial TV, music and MP3 players.
As all airlines have raised carriage charges, private couriers have increased their tariffs 8-20 per cent. India Post, on the other hand, has not tinkered with its tariffs at all. As a result, India Post's tariff is 70 per cent cheaper for domestic destinations and 30 per cent cheaper for international destinations.
The next time you walk into your trendy branded mobile retail store you might come out buying an MP3 player, a Sony Play Station or even a laptop rather than a mobile phone.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has decided to allocate one block of 3G spectrum in each service area except Delhi and Mumbai to state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) at a price equivalent to the highest bid in the respective service areas.
The Department of Telecommunications has decided to hike four-fold the reserve price for broadband wireless access services in the country.
Idea Cellular, an Aditya Birla group company, is investing around Rs 647 crore (Rs 6.47 billion) for the rollout of operations in the Mumbai circle. The operations are expected to commence in two months time.
Move to skirt public offer for S African telco.
A high-profile team from MTN is also expected to meet Reliance Industries Ltd next week to take stock of the situation. RCom had informed the bourses on May 26 that it has entered into exclusive negotiations with MTN for 45 days soon after the South African giant aborted its talks with the Sunil Mittal-controlled Bharti group. The deadline will end on July 8.
Flush with cash from his wireless telephony company's sale, industrialist B K Modi is negotiating to acquire 39 per cent stake in Indian television company, Multi Screen Media, earlier known as Sony Entertainment Television. Modi, who was earlier eyeing the 32 per cent stake held by Indian shareholders, is now looking at acquiring an additional 7 per cent held by trusts. He is also planning to re-brand the television channel as Sony Spice TV.
Electronics and white goods manufacturers such as Videocon, Spice, Usha and Mirc Electronics have begun engaging the services of Independent design houses to take on the likes of global giants including Nokia, Sony Ericsson and LG in the mobile handset space. An IDH conducts research and development and designs handsets to enable Indian telcos launch their own mobile handset brands. It takes an upfront one-time fee for the purpose.
Telecom to Telekom Malaysia in an attempt to complete the merger, sources involved in the negotiations said, declining to be identified. The group has hired Enam Financial as adviser to the transaction. Investment banking sources said the lawyers from both the parties are now busy structuring the deal so that the acquisition meets all the regulatory norms of the country and the Birlas retain control over Idea Cellular.
A move by Swedish telecom major Ericsson, the main implementation partner for Bharat Sanchar Nigam's (BSNL) disaster recovery (DR) program, to replace Sun Microsystems and EMC Corporation storage solutions with Hewlett-Packard (HP) products has kicked up a controversy.
Idea Cellular, the Aditya Birla group firm that is on the verge of taking over Spice Communications by buying out B K Modi's 41 per cent stake, is sounding out its bankers to raise funds to upgrade in the struggling telecom operator's network and technology.
Sunil Mittal is seeking subsidies from the Indian government to revive the dying fixed-line phones in the country. The chairman of Bharti Airtel, the leading private sector GSM service provider, has sought the removal of licence fee and service tax that are burdening the sector.
Despite the meetings, exchange of letters and reports that made more than 400,000 users of Blackberry services twitch, the Department of Telecommunications has washed its hands clean. Denying reports of a spat between the DoT and Canada-based provider of BlackBerry services, Research in Motion, a senior department official said, "We have always backed our operators, and this is no different."
UAE-based telecommunication services provider Emirates Telecommunications Corporation has pulled out of negotiations to acquire a stake in Indian wireless telephony service provider Spice Communications, citing high valuation. Separately, the promoters were expecting a deal to be signed in the next couple of days.
A Trojan is a programme that appears to be desirable (like a free downloadable game or screen saver), but contains viruses or worms (self-replicating viruses) that can create havoc with the PC and the network.
A team of Telekom Malaysia officials will meet US-based billionaire B K Modi and officials of Idea Cellular in Mumbai on Friday, a top official at Spice Communications said. Another option is to permit Telekom Malaysia raise its stake in Spice Communications to 74 per cent. Even though, Idea Cellular will have no role to play in this deal, the Modi family will sell around 14 per cent stake and retain a 26 per cent stake.
Anil Ambani has won Lebanon-based M1 Chief Executive Officer Azmi Mikati's approval for a possible merger of Reliance Communications and South Africa's MTN Group following a meeting between the two.