Reliance Jio has sent a second legal opinion to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) on the subject of the potential allocation of satellite spectrum. The letter is written by retired Supreme Court Justice L Nageshwara Rao and argues in favour of auctions, stating that any other method for allocating spectrum apart from auctions could be constitutionally unsound. Business Standard has reviewed the letter.
"The telecom companies under the (proposed)NTP-2011 will have to file an application 30 months prior for the renewal of the telecom licenses and it (the licence) will be renewed for 10 years unlike 20 years as of now," Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal said.
The company said that intense competition following the disruptive entry of a new player, legal and regulatory challenges, high level of unsustainable debt and increased losses had together caused significant "negative business and reputational impact".
Most brokerages are betting that the new government will shift to a policy focussing on boosting rural incomes and consumption since that has clearly been a pain point.
Flag Telecom, a Reliance group company, has awarded a multi-million dollar contract for construction of its Falcon submarine cable to Alcatel, a global networks and application service provider.\n\n
Telecom honchos Sunil Bharti Mittal, Anil Ambani, Kumar Mangalam Birla and Vittorio Colao are expected to meet IT and Communications Minister Kapil Sibal tomorrow to discuss various issues impacting the sector.
In August 2021, Nick Read, chief executive of Vodafone Plc at the time, did not mince his words while speaking about the India business in an earnings call. Replying to an analyst's question on Vodafone Idea, a venture with the Aditya Birla Group that had piled on huge debts and worrisome losses, Read described it as a highly stressed situation that "they (Vodafone Idea) are trying to navigate... "We, as a group, try to provide them as much practical support as we can, but I want to make it very clear, we are not putting any additional equity into India.''
Warid Telecom, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Dhabi Group, offers mobile telecom services with a user base of over 2.9 million in Bangladesh.
The company operates in 21 circles. Mumbai will be in exception, which has a separate licence.
Malaysia's state-controlled top telecom operator Telecom Malaysia is to buy a 49 per cent stake in India's Spice telecom Ltd, both companies said in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.
The Internet is too important to let a few private telecom players decide what the rules will be for consumers, says Rajeev Chandrasekhar, independent member of Parliament who was one of the key petitioners seeking the scrapping of Section 66A of the Information Technology Act.
The operating profit growth rate of mobile service providers is expected to double in next two years buoyed by increase in call rates and clarity in policy, credit rating agency CRISIL has said.
M Corp Global has applied for six new telecom licences to the department of telecom and dispelled rumours that its company Spice Telecom is up for sale.
Internet major Google will make the Pixel series of smartphones in India and they will become available from 2024 onward, a senior company official said on Thursday. Google senior vice president for devices and services, Rick Osterloh, said the company will partner with international contract manufacturers to make the phones in India.
Seeks clarification on a few issues such as enhancement of entry fee and performance bank guarantee from telecom regulator
Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-promoted Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) on Tuesday became the first listed company to hit the Rs 20 lakh crore market valuation mark. The market heavyweight's stock jumped 1.88 per cent to its record high of Rs 2,957.80 apiece on the BSE. It finally settled at Rs 2,928.95 per piece, up 0.90 per cent on the bourse.
Telecom and petchem businesses will drive growth for RIL.
Telecom tariffs are likely to come down further with the Telecom Regulatory Authority saying on Wednesday that it would recommend lower access deficit charge
Telecom Ministry over issues ranging from one-time spectrum charges to 3G roaming and a uniform licence fee.
The number of telecom subscribers in the country grew by 4.12 crore (41.2 million) in 2005-06 to touch 13.96 crore (139.6 million). \n
Despite the economic slowdown, most students consider the telecom sector a 'favourable industry' to work for, according to a study conducted by a Chennai-based Human Resources firm.
The government is likely to offer a slew of tax sops to telecom operators, including asking state governments not to levy sales tax on telecom services, seven years of exemption of revenue sharing on revenues from rural subscribers, etc.
The court said Shroff is a celebrity and this status inherently grants him certain rights over his personality and associated attributes.
This has to be one of the most blatant tricks Raja is pulling off.
If the status is approved for ITI, it will get preference in the supply of technology products required by the defence services.
If accepted, the plan could give the sector Rs 70,000-crore (Rs 700-billion) relief.
The company estimates a Rs 350-400-crore (Rs 3.5-4 billion) revenue potential from the telecom business in the next 4-5 years.
Anil's RCom straddles 2G, 3G; Mukesh has spectrum to operate in 4G.
Mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in India have moved into the slow lane, dropping 43 per cent in terms of deal value to touch $13.37 billion since January this year to date, compared to the same period in the last year. According to data sourced from Bloomberg, Indian companies reported deal value worth $23.5 billion between January and March 22, 2023. Data Infrastructure Trust's acquisition of American Tower Corporation's India telecom towers business for $2.5 billion was the top deal for the ongoing quarter so far, followed by the Highway Infrastructure Trust's acquisition of PNC Infratech's road projects for $1.08 billion.
The Union Budget 2011-12 was a low key affair for the Telecom sector. The Budget did not mention extension of fiscal benefits under the Sec 80IA from 5 years to 10 years.
Responding to queries from the Central Vigilance Commission amid allegations from political parties that Rs 50,000 crore (Rs 500 billion) was squandered in distribution of spectrum, telecom ministry said it had gone by the book and had done nothing wrong.
Just ahead of its mega FPO opening to public investors, Vodafone Idea (VIL) has announced closure of its anchor book allocation, raising about Rs 5,400 crore from marquee global as well as domestic investors, according to a statutory filing by the telco. This could be the third-largest anchor book after One 97 Communications and Life Insurance Corporation (LIC). One 97 Communications and LIC had raised Rs 8,235 crore and Rs 5,627 crore in the anchor round, respectively.
From its lows this month, the stock of Bharti Airtel is up 14 per cent. The gains for the telco have come on the back of expectations that market share consolidation, tariff hike and lower capex should boost margins and profits. While the company is a key player in the Indian market, it also has a leadership position in major markets of Africa.
India's telecom industry grew by an impressive 28.59 per cent last fiscal with the subscriber base nearing the 100 million mark aided by cheaper call tariffs.
AIADMK chief Jayalalithaa on Tuesday demanded that Union Communications and IT Minister A Raja resign and face a probe on the 'spectrum allotment scam'.
TRAI may recommend the DoT to levy one-time non-refundable fee of Rs 50,000 per operator for each service area in which they opt for spectrum sharing.
On Monday, Attorney General R Venkataramani, appearing for the Centre, mentioned an interim application before a bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice J B Pardiwala.
