The launch of internet-enabled Jio Bharat phones at an "attractive pricing" will enable Jio to gain market share at the lower end segment and signals a reduced probability of tariff hike in the near term, brokerages tracking the sector said. Jio on Monday launched internet-enabled Jio Bharat phones at Rs 999, packing in a cheaper monthly plan of Rs 123 for unlimited voice calls and 14 GB data. The new offering aims to accelerate the '2G Mukt Bharat' vision, as India still has 250 million mobile subscribers trapped in the 2G era with feature phones.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel reported more than 2.5 times jump in its consolidated profit to Rs 4,160 crore in the April-June quarter of 2024-25 compared to the year-ago period driven by an improvement in average revenue per user and an exceptional gain of Rs 735 crore. The company had posted a profit of Rs 1,612.5 crore in the same period a year ago. The consolidated revenue from operations of Bharti Airtel increased by 2.8 per cent to Rs 38,506.4 crore during the reported quarter from Rs 37,440 crore in the June quarter of the last year.
Qualcomm launched its new affordable, India-designed chipset, the Snapdragon 4s Gen 2, on Tuesday. This chipset will enable mobile device makers to sell 5G smartphones operating on a standalone (SA) network for Rs 8,300 or less.
Vodafone 3G plans now start from Rs 25 for 25 MB data usage and go up to Rs 1,599 for 12 GB data usage.
Fixed-line Internet is consistent and translates into a better experience for users.
The pack is available for Rs 1,495 for existing users and Rs 1,494 for new users, and effectively brings down 4G data rates to Rs 50 per GB
Airtel rolls out fourth-generation (4G) data service across 296 cities.
Many people posted screenshots of the alleged MobiKwik user data, which, according to sources, was up for sale for 1.5 bitcoin or about $86,000.
Isha's stab at the bottom of the laptop pyramid shows she is a true Ambani.
All the three companies, which dominate India's mobile services market with about 53 per cent share, have reduced the quantum of Internet download and/or validity periods on various packages they were offering, as per their websites.
A few critical shortcomings and a possible pricing blunder on the 64 GB (Rs 23,999) capacity model might just take the wind out of the sales of Xiaomi's latest offering.
Most telcos say the speed will surpass fixed broadband as the 5G roll out, which is currently on 360,000 towers, crosses 400,000.
Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on Tuesday said suspended police officer Sachin Waze was a prime accused in the Mansukh Hiran murder case, adding it will approach the special National Investigation Agency court in Mumbai to get his custody.
Grocery e-commerce platform BigBasket has faced a potential data breach which could have leaked details of its around two crore users, according to cyber intelligence firm Cyble. The company has filed a police complaint in this regard with the cyber crime cell in Bengaluru and is verifying claims made by cyber experts.
The Rs 51 per GB data versus industry norm of Rs 250-plus comes with the caveat of an upfront payment of Rs 1,498 for a year
From January 1, all these iPhone users will get the Rs 1,499 plan completely free for 1 year, which equals value worth Rs 18,000
Consumers will now have to pay up to 30 per cent extra for data services as leading telecom players Bharti Airtel and Vodafone are hiking tariffs and others may soon follow suit.
The BBC quoted a running friend of Zakrzewski as saying she had felt sick and wanted to drop out after arriving from Australia the night before the race.
Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio has introduced a 20-per cent cashback offer on select prepaid plans, intensifying competition in the Indian telecommunications (telecom) market. Jio is the largest telecom service provider in India, with 443 million subscribers as of July. Jio's cashback offer will drive cross-selling across Reliance's various retail businesses, but the move is also being seen by some analysts as a signal that tariff hikes may not be around the corner just yet.
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.
RCom slashed 3G prices for all kind of connections -- pre-paid, post-paid, new and old -- across 13 circles where its third-generation services are available.
Reliance Industries Ltd on Friday reported a 9 per cent rise in its December quarter net profit as a planned maintenance-induced weakness in oil business earnings was offset by stability in retail and telecom verticals. The oil-to-retail-to-telecom conglomerate's consolidated net profit of Rs 17,265 crore, or Rs 25.52 per share, in October-December - the third quarter of the current 2023-24 fiscal - was 9.3 per cent higher than Rs 15,792 crore, or Rs 23.19 a share, earning a year back, according to a company statement. Quarter-on-quarter, the profit was lower when compared to Rs 17,394 crore earnings in the preceding three months ended September 30.
The market could see a fresh round of tariff war, similar to what happened in the voice market a few years ago.
Bihar Police on Wednesday arrested a person in connection with Indigo station manager Rupesh Kumar Singh's murder, which it claimed to be the outcome of a road rage.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Tuesday posted a 49.2 per cent jump in its consolidated net profit to Rs 3,005.6 crore for the January-March quarter of 2022-23 on the back of new 4G customers and strong growth in average revenue per user (ARPU). The company had recorded a net profit of Rs 2,007.8 crore in the same period a year ago. Bharti Airtel's consolidated revenue from operations grew by 14.31 per cent to Rs 36,009 crore during the reported quarter from Rs 31,500.3 crore in the March 2022 quarter.
There have been several positive signals in Bharti Airtel with revenue market share (RMS) growth, better visibility of profits from Africa, and enough free cash flow to pursue deleveraging. Airtel's 4G and 5G data subscriber net additions were 5.6 million in Q1FY24, and 24.5 million in the last 12 months. Airtel currently has 230 million data subscribers on 4G/5G, which is about 70 per cent penetration of its base of 339 million subscribers.
Bharti Airtel chairman Sunil Mittal on Thursday said tariffs need to go up amid "tremendous stress" in the telecom sector, and Airtel will not hesitate to raise prices, but it will not do so unilaterally. The comments by the telecom czar came at a time when Airtel's rival Vodafone Idea has approached the government for a one-year moratorium on payment of spectrum instalment of over Rs 8,200 crore - due in April 2022. Cash-strapped VIL has told the telecom department that while it is working on raising new funding for the last six months, "investors are not willing to invest in the company because they believe that unless there is a significant improvement in consumer tariffs, the health of the industry will not recover and they will incur a loss on their investment".
The policy change was originally scheduled to come into effect on February 8, the Facebook-owned company said.
The new offer is part of its strategy to turn India to an exclusively 4G market.
The company is offering its own devices under the brand name Lyf along with other brands to employees at a 25 per cent discount.
Airtel on Wednesday said its customers can enjoy free unlimited incoming calls on international roaming while travelling to popular destinations like the US, Canada, the UK and Singapore.
Its plans, to cut tariffs by 40% or offer more data, comes bundled with 1 GB high speed data for 28 days with unlimited voice thrown in.
Devoting an hour of his speech at the RIL's 42th annual general meeting, the billionaire industrialist said Jio was targeting 100 million users in a shortest possible time
Reliance Industries Ltd on Friday reported a 27 per cent jump in its September quarter net profit as earnings from the oil and gas business rebounded, and a pick-up in fashion and grocery helped boost retail revenues. The oil-to-retail-to-telecom conglomerate's consolidated net profit of Rs 17,394 crore, or Rs 25.71 per share, in July-September - the second quarter of the current 2023-24 fiscal - was 27.3 per cent higher than Rs 13,656 crore, or Rs 19.92 a share, earning a year back, the company said in a statement. The net profit was also higher quarter-on-quarter compared to Rs 16,011 crore earnings in the preceding three months ended June 30.
Analysts believe making mobile data more affordable will fuel mass market adoption of data services
Vodafone's focus is to increase consumer data adoption along with Micromax's product expertise, it said in a statement.
Telecom operator Bharti Airtel on Tuesday reported a 91.5 per cent year-on-year rise in consolidated net profit at Rs 1,588 crore for the three months ended December 2022, helped by competitive growth across businesses. Total revenue rose nearly 20 per cent to Rs 35,804 crore in the third quarter of the current financial year "backed by strong and consistent performance delivery across the portfolio", the company said in a statement. Its consolidated net income (after exceptional items) stood at Rs 1,588 crore for the just ended quarter, translating into an increase of 91.5 per cent year-on-year.
Bharti Airtel on Thursday announced new postpaid plans and discontinued some previous ones. "In the post-pandemic world, an abundance of high-speed data is increasingly becoming a key need for customers as work from home and online education is the new normal. "In this context, Airtel has further simplified its postpaid plans to offer industry-leading data benefits backed by a 5G-ready network and superior digital-first customer care. "The plans also come with a range of exclusive benefits such as bundled content and business productivity tools," Airtel said in a press release.
This season, the nature of the advertising game has changed dramatically with TV and digital rights going to different entities.
Apps that offer location-based services, like Foursquare or maps, can be turned off when not required.