Country's largest telecom service provider Bharti Airtel on Monday revealed its plans to launch iPhone 4, the latest product from Apple Computers's stable, by October.
'How can you explain the necessity of selling an institution that has been delivering regular returns to the government, that has never asked for any capital from the government, that has invested Rs 38 lakh crores in the Indian economy and that owns 4 per cent of the market capitalisation in India?'
Telecom operator Vodafone has been the top gainer of customers through mobile number portability facility while Reliance Communications is the biggest loser.
Though the controversy over the security of BlackBerry services is yet to be resolved, the four operators that offer these services - Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar, BPL Mobile and Reliance Communications - have added over 50,000 customers in the four months since the problems began. Before this, the push-mail service, which was introduced in India in October 2004, had 400,000 subscribers according to industry estimates.
The government is engaged in talks with telecom firms for a launch of commercial 5G services in some cities by Independence Day and has assured them that spectrum auction will take place in April-May, providing them a three to four-month window for the rollout. A top executive of a leading telecom gear company said the deadline was feasible in some cases. "It can be achieved in some cities as it will take us 4-6 weeks to deploy a network, once the equipment or components have reached India.
'We are targeting the 5G tender around January-March 2023.'
India's tax officials, long the scourge of foreign investors, are under government pressure to avoid aggressive claims against overseas funds.
Reports by CAG earlier on the 2008 telecom licence scam had resulted in the cancellation of 122 licences.
The Cupertino, California-based company, according to Apple retail sources, said initially the 8 GB version of the much-hyped touchscreen device -- which combines Wi-Fi capabilities with a powerful email client, TV feeds, online music store and map-based location guide -- will be launched at a price ranging between Rs 27,200 and Rs 28,000.
It reported adding 698,3146 subscribers in September, the lowest since it added 6.1 million in November 2017.
Big ticket investments by Vodafone and Matsushita Electric lifted FDI inflows in the first half of this fiscal to $7.2 billion, a 65 per cent rise from the year-ago period. India retained its position as the second most preferred destination for global investors as measured by the AT Kearney FDI Confidenx Index, 2007.
Vodafone Plc's trusted ally, Analjit Singh of Max India, has been appointed non-executive chairman of its India operations. He talks about the backdrop of the two recent Supreme Court verdicts.
Ahead of his scheduled meeting with Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin, who is bidding for Hutch-Essar, Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran on Wednesday said the government wanted good companies to enter the country.
Amid long-pending dispute between the UK-based telecom giant Vodafone and the tax authorities in India, Finance Minister's advisor Parthasarathi Shome on Wednesday said the government should not use retrospective amendment of tax laws to raise revenues.
BSNL will allow free local and STD calls to other BSNL mobile phone users as well as 100 MB data for seven days for its prepaid users.
A senior official in the central labour commissioner's office said the efforts of the government were to resolve the cases amicably and not to press for legal action against employers. "Everyone is going through tough times. We could initiate legal action if we want but that's not the idea. We want to address the issues amicably," the official said.
The apex court had on December 4 last year, reserved the verdict after hearing counsel for corporate honchos and the Central Bureau of Investigation.
Analysts have pointed out that with the dues arising out of the SC judgment there could soon be only two private telcos in the country, and not three - Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea - as now.
Amid economic uncertainties owing to the pandemic, the government's key revenue agency, the Income Tax Department, has close to 400 vacancies at commissioner level and above, affecting its functioning. Seventy-three of the 91 chief commissioner positions are lying vacant, with some for more than a year. Chief commissioner is the second-highest post in the department, below principal chief commissioner, which is at par with secretary in a ministry.
Three more positive cases of novel coronavirus have been reported in India.
CEOs expect to finish the ongoing March quarter with positive growth as the corporates get back to work in full strength.
A user will need to buy a 4G-enabled handset and then upgrade his or her existing 2G/3G SIM card to a USIM (Universal SIM)/4G SIM.
Ajay Piramal bets highly on infrastructure, realty
Foreign-origin companies may still hold sway over consumer product and electronics companies but, in several areas, be it tractors, liquor or specialised financial products, it is the Indians who are the kings.
From spending a little less than three hours on making voice calls, Indians are spending well over 5 hours. So, while people make more calls, they are spending less than ever, reports Romita Majumdar.
Among other segments, home broadband subscriptions have picked up and the virtual private network service, too, increased by around 15 per cent.
It will be the first ever Pink Ball Test the two sides play against each other.
Bharti Airtel chairman Sunil Mittal on Wednesday said the regulatory regime needs to be simple to avoid fresh litigations in the telecom sector, asserting that collaboration among competing players, lower duties and reduction in spectrum pricing will help unleash the full potential of the industry. The telecom czar noted that the "temperature" of the industry needs to be lowered when it comes to litigations and appealed to the government to look into the matter. The timely reforms that were announced brought in cheer and heightened comfort for all the active players in the sector, Mittal said and urged the industry counterparts to focus on building the next wave of connectivity in the run-up to 5G and beyond.
Airtel, Vodafone, BSNL increase subscriber share while Idea manages to retain
Around 75 per cent, or 372 stocks, that are part of the BSE500 are trading at least 10 per cent below their all-time high levels, despite the index hitting a record high 20,515 points on the BSE in intra-day trade on Wednesday, surpassing its previous high of 20,390 touched in March 12. The index, which accounts for 93 per cent of BSE listed companies' market capitalisation, has gained 8 per cent from its recent low of 18,983, touched on April 19. In comparison, the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex gained 6 per cent over the same period, but is still nearly 4.5 per cent away from its all-time high of 52,517 that it hit on February 16.
Slams Channel 7 for talking game down.
Jio's global partnerships took shape this year when Jio Platforms, a 100 per cent subsidiary of Reliance Jio which has invested in various digital platforms, was able to woo a bevy of marquee investors: Facebook, Google, Qualcomm, Intel, and a numerous PE funds.
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Cairn India said it has always been fully compliant with all Indian income tax laws.
The launch of Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd last September, particularly the tariff war it has unleashed on its competitors, has deepened the crisis facing India's telecom sector. One offshoot of this is the major drop in earnings reported by industry leaders Bharti Airtel and Idea Cellular with each passing quarter. Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com tells the story in numbers.
Has the advent of technology made it easier, or more difficult, for brands to communicate with you and your valentine?
The smartphone is priced at Rs 9,199.
Compared to a 64 per cent penetration in Brazil (130 million users total) and 53 per cent in China (total 733 million users), India has barely 28 per cent penetration. Of the digital reach, almost 80 per cent are from affluent segments in urban areas. How can this change?
'Unless cash has ceased to be king, the issue is the same in the aviation, telecom and ecommerce sectors: Sustainability,' notes T N Ninan.
The board is likely to take up the matter this month.
Attempts are being made to balance the need for health of the sector, consumer interest while complying with the Supreme Court order on statutory dues.
