We asked colleagues, present and past, to reflect on a man who has made such a difference to their lives and careers. Here it is then, a rich collection of memories that offer enchanting glimpses of the enigmatic Ajit Balakrishnan.
Just to promote govt's policy of Make in India, BSNL said, it cannot afford to procure sub-standard equipment from inexperienced companies, not having proven technology. BSNL complained that when competitors were procuring world-class 4G equipment from experienced vendors, why should BSNL be compelled to procure locally.
The long-overdue consolidation makes indebted RCom an even more attractive partner for a soon-to-launch upstart led by older brother Mukesh.
Jiophone Next will be available from Diwali for Rs 6,499 per unit for customers wanting to buy the smartphone without financing option, Jio and Google said in a joint statement on Friday. Jio is also giving a finance option for the Jiophone Next where users can make an upfront payment of Rs 1,999 and pay the rest in easy monthly instalments spread across 18-24 months, the company said in a statement. "This is the first time that a phone in the entry-level category is getting a financing option.
Feedback from telecom members indicated a 10 per cent increase in traffic, but no fears of choked networks. Telcos currently use 65-70 per cent of the network capacity. In other words, they have enough additional capacity to handle the new pressure without clogging the system.
Bulk of these customers use 2G phones and are still focused on voice services and might prove useful for both Bharti Airtel and the Idea-Vodafone combine.
Hails country's recent digital highways and predicted India to become digital content capital of world.
Given the escalating cost of doing business, the revenue opportunity is decreasing and consolidation is an inevitable part of the industry.
Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) and Association of Unified Telcom Service Providers of India (AUSPI) have opposed the proposal to compensate consumers.
Revenue decline has left the operators with little money to service their mostly 3G and partly 4G infrastructure leading to poor data and voice quality.
Equity benchmark index Sensex buckled under selling pressure for the second straight session to close below the 65k mark on Friday, as investors offloaded IT, teck and metal stocks amid a bearish global trend. Besides, fresh foreign fund outflows also hit investor sentiments, traders said. In a volatile trade, the 30-share BSE Sensex declined 202.36 points or 0.31 per cent to settle at 64,948.66.
Tim Cook, CEO of Apple, recently stated that he sees India in the same position that China was seven to ten years ago
Airtel reported a 19 per cent rise in its ARPU in the March quarter, as it removed the non-paying users from its network.
The Indian Navy has expressed reservations in vacating 100 Mhz of the spectrum, proposed to be sold in the tender expected next year, sources said. This could delay the Centre's plans to proceed with the 5G auctions in 2022. A department of telecom (DoT) official said, "The Indian Navy is showing reluctance in vacating the spectrum from the 3.3 GHz-3.4 GHz band that it is using. "Unless there is some traction with them on this issue, we can't seek consultation from TRAI." The 3300 MHz-3600 MHz (or 3.3GHz-3.6GHz) will be auctioned for the first time in the proposed 5G auctions, likely next year.
Bankers said as part of its debt reduction plan, Canada's Brookfield-sponsored India Infrastructure Trust acquired a pipeline for Rs 13,000 crore from East West Pipeline Ltd, an arm of Reliance Industries Holding Private Ltd, and all the liabilities are now off the subsidiary's books.
Jio's disruptive strategy, including free voice services and data at throwaway rates, apart from offering all services free for six months, triggered a consolidation in the telecom sector.
The revival of feature phones in India is driven by low-cost access to the internet, but the 'dumb phones' are learning to get smart and create a niche, says Veer Arjun Singh.
The price of diesel sold to bulk users has been hiked by about Rs 25 per litre in line with a near 40 per cent rise in international oil prices, but retail rates at petrol pumps remain unchanged, sources said. Petrol pump sales have jumped by a fifth this month after bulk users like bus fleet operators and malls queued up at petrol bunks to buy fuel rather than the usual practice of ordering directly from oil companies, widening the losses of retailers. Worst hit are private retailers like Nayara Energy, Jio-bp and Shell, who have so far refused to curtail any volume despite a surge in sales.
Credit Suisse said if the deal fructifies, then this will bring together the largest offline and online retailers in India.
The IPL broadcast rights -- internet, TV and mobile -- are expected to fetch the BCCI a massive sum of around Rs. 20,000 crore-plus.
Public-interest litigators Arundhati Katju and Menaka Guruswamy, who spearheaded a historic legal battle for LGBTQ rights in India, along with Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani are among the Indians who have been named by TIME magazine in its prestigious list of the 100 most influential people in the world. The list also includes Indian-American comedian and TV host Hasan Minhaj.
Data is the new oil, and intelligent data is the new petrol, said Mukesh Ambani
The ministry of education is yet to take call on the recommendations by the empowered expert committee and the University Grants Commission.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 is more than just an entertainment device. It can double up as your work device on the go, says Abhik Sen.
Everyday consumerables, such as grocery and order-in food items are the key buyout sector, analysts say, and a major reason for kirana stores' digitisation push.
Reliance Communications could become a much more formidable opponent.
The sharing agreement will provide more bandwidth for RJIL to provide its high-speed 4G services.
Vodafone-Idea (Vi) has said the key hurdle it faces in raising fresh funding, despite interest from investors, is the 'pricing situation' which is also the reason why it has asked the Department of Telecommunica-tions (DoT) for another extension of the moratorium on payment of spectrum instalment by one more year. Responding to a question during an analysts' call on Friday after its quarterly results on the reason for the delay in fund-raising nine months after it was announced, CEO & MD Ravinder Takkar said: "We are in discussions with investors. There is continued interest in investing in the telecom sector in the country. "The biggest hurdle is that the overall industry is under stress because of the pricing situation." He said that once tariffs go up, it will create a significant amount of confidence.
Move comes in view of big debt overhang in two sectors; companies unwilling.
Move comes in view of big debt overhang in two sectors; companies unwilling.
She's living her best days as the newest Ambani bride-to-be.
The merged entity would lead with a revenue market share of about 37 per cent against Airtel's 31.2 per cent and Jio's 14.5 per cent
Bharti's ratings headroom is likely to improve with an equity infusion, planned asset sales and growing EBITDA from Africa.
Fierce competition and rising capex will put pressure on most operators in 2017.
'The recent incident in the US has no bearing in India.' 'We are not aware of any request from the US to India about 5G.'
This is the last lot of payments that telcos will make towards deferred spectrum liabilities, as the Union Cabinet had late last year approved a two-year moratorium on such spectrum payment dues.
Netflix and Amazon Prime gain market share at the cost of Indian platforms Hotstar, VOOT, Jio Cinema.
Apex telecom industry body COAI has asserted that spectrum pricing should be kept conducive to market conditions as 5G entails upfront capital investments with monetisation spread over a long-haul, and pricing radiowaves high will only push the players up against the wall. The stage is set for Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to come out with its recommendations on 5G spectrum pricing and other modalities for upcoming auctions, and the announcement from the sector watchdog is expected anytime now. Norms will also be worked out for new frequencies such as 526-698 MHz and millimetre band, that is 24.25 - 28.5 GHz, in addition to bands such as 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300-3670 MHz.
To make the scheme attractive, the government has announced a rate structure wherein the operators may take the optical fibre on lease and provide broadband connectivity to customers.
'Spectrum payment to push up telcos' debt to Rs 3.5 lakh cr'
