Network services provider GTL has sold its enterprise network services and managed services business to Orange Business Service, an arm of France Telecom, for about Rs 150 crore (Rs 1.5 billion) in cash.
Communication and IT Minister Arun Shourie said on Saturday that the penalty clauses in the telecom licences would be reviewed to make them more stringent and it would be mandatory for companies to comply with them.\n\n\n\n
The government on Thursday sought to erase the impression that the hike in tariffs for telecom services has been made to favour cellular and private WLL operators patronised by business and upper segments of society.
"India is not only buying massive amounts of Russian Oil, they are then, for much of the Oil purchased, selling it on the Open Market for big profits," Trump said in a social media post on Monday.
In a relief for foreign firms giving loans to Indian subsidiaries, tax authorities have said goods and services tax (GST) will not be imposed on them, subject to some caveats. Additional fees, commissions, or related payments - over and above the amount charged as interest - on these loans will attract GST at 18 per cent, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) has said.
US President Donald Trump has announced a 25 per cent plus tariff on India from Aug 1. Trump, describing India as a "friend", said the US has done relatively "little business" with the country because of its high tariffs.
Large enterprises fuelled by the boom in IT and outsourcing services will drive the demand for telecom services in India, but the country must improve the quality of its corporate data services, IT research firm Gartner said.
Companies like Amazon Prime Video are also temporarily lowering bit rates -- a measure of how much data is being transferred -- to ease pressure on telecom network infrastructure.
The exercise is ostensibly for security reasons and to prevent misuse of the freedom of speech in cyberspace.
Investors should tilt their portfolios towards domestic-facing defensive sectors, which should help provide stability and shield them from geopolitical and tariff risks.
Celebrations after India's Oscar moment refuse to die down. Now, it is the telecom services providers who are laughing their way to banks, thanks to the Slumdog Millionaire's Oscar sweep.
The Supreme Court recently quashed a rule that mandated telecom operators to compensate consumers.
Launched in March, it triggers re-verification of suspected fraudulent numbers. Failing re-verification, the number will be disconnected.
Expressing concern over frequent internet shutdown without any empirical study, a Parliamentary panel has pulled up the Department of Telecommunications for not maintaining the record of incidents and inaction on several of its recommendations. The Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology on 'Suspension of Telecom Services and Internet and its impact' tabled in Lok Sabha on Thursday, the panel has asked the Department of Telecom (DoT) to lay down a clear cut principle of proportionality and procedure for lifting of shutdown in coordination with the home ministry to prevent any misuse of the suspension rules. The panel rejected the logic of the DoT and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for not maintaining the record of the shutdown, saying it cannot simply take the plea that police and public order are essentially state subjects and suspension of the internet does not actually come under the ambit of crimes.
Sibal said that Trai had compared India with China.
UAEs Telecommunications Regulatory Authority has announced that the BlackBerry services in the country, which was due to be suspended on October 11, will continue as normal.
The telecom industry topped the list in service tax collected by paying Rs 1,508.68 crore (Rs 15.09) in FY03. The government raised Rs 4,123 crore (Rs 41.23 billion) in the previous fiscal from service tax.
State-run Mahanagar Telephone Nigam, which had acquired the licence to offer telecom services in Mauritius in 2004, has started operations with international long distance services to begin with.
Reliance Jio said certain tariff plans will continue to give subscribers free streaming access to IPL 2025.
Foreign brokerages remain cautious on the road ahead for the Indian equity markets. Though analysts at Nomura have revised their March 2026 Nifty target to 26,140 levels from the earlier 24,970, but the upside from the current levels is a modest 6 per cent. BofA Securities, on the other hand, has not made any change to its year-end Nifty target.
From the Sensex firms, Tata Steel, Eternal, Tech Mahindra, Maruti, Mahindra & Mahindra, Infosys, IndusInd Bank, HCL Tech, Tata Consultancy Services and Bharti Airtel were the major gainers. Telecom operator Bharti Airtel climbed nearly 1 per cent after it posted about a five-fold jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 11,022 crore in the March 2025 quarter, mainly due to the tariff hike impact and one-time gain on tax benefits. However, Asian Paints, Tata Motors, Kotak Mahindra Bank, NTPC and Power Grid were among the laggards.
DoT plans to initiate move that might lower the revenues telcos share with government.
Reliance Industries Ltd, India's most valuable company, is back on a growth path after six months of challenges as it posted better than expected earnings in the December quarter, brokerages said.
In another instance of Indian tax authorities adopting a hard-nosed stance to prevent abuse of tax avoidance treaties, the revenue department recently opposed a proposal of a Cyprus-based company to increase its stake in an Indian telecom services company from 40 per cent to nearly 74 per cent.
Expressing concern over frequent internet shutdown without any empirical study, a parliamentary panel has pulled up the department of telecommunications for not maintaining the record of incidents and inaction on several of its recommendations.
The countrywide expansion of telecom services is impressive, but there is ample scope for improving rural tele-density.
Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani on Monday said his company is open to joining hands with Bharti Airtel for improving telecom network for 4G services in Punjab.
Starlink's application for offering satcom services in India had been held up for the company's inability to comply with mandatory ownership disclosure norms.
The service - Photon TV - is available to the Tata Photon plus users across 22 states, Anil Sardana, Tata Teleservices Managing Director, told reporters here.
'With a very stable technology with limited functionalities, a large network has spanned out.'
Bharti Airtel was the biggest gainer in the Sensex pack, rising 2.37 per cent, followed by Mahindra & Mahindra, HCL Tech, Tata Motors, Tech Mahindra, HDFC Bank, Wipro, Tata Consultancy Services, Axis Bank and Nestle. Asian Paints, Hindustan Unilever, Bajaj Finserv and NTPC were among the laggards.
Excise duties on mobile phones to be 1% without CENVAT credit or 6% with CENVAT credit. This provision will have marginal impact on telcos.
This new service will compete with several other providers, including Reliance Communications. But VSNL officials were upbeat about their offering.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated the 6th India Mobile Congress at Pragati Maidan in Delhi and launched 5G services. The 5G telecom services seek to provide seamless coverage, high data rate, low latency and highly reliable communications system. The three major telecom operators of the country demonstrated one use case each in front of the prime minister to show the potential of 5G technology in India.
'There is definitely a skill war, or a talent war going on.'
Tech billionaire Elon Musk thanked Telecom Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia for not agreeing with Indian tycoons Mukesh Ambani and Sunil Bharti Mittal on auctioning spectrum for satellite services, saying he is looking forward to serving Indians. Reacting to Scindia's statement that satellite spectrum will not be auctioned, Musk, in a post on X, said, "much appreciated! We will do our best to serve the people of India with Starlink".
More than one million cybersecurity incidents were flagged within 10 days.
Adani Data Networks said it plans to create a private 5G network for its operations. However, it acquired the spectrum in the last 5G auction alongside three telecom companies. Subsequently, it was granted a unified licence for access services, which enables it to provide telecom services in the country.
