A day before the deadline of exclusive takeover talks between Anil Ambani's Reliance Communications and South African company MTN expires, Reliance Industries has invoked the dispute resolution clause of the non-competition agreement against RCom. However, RCom plans to go ahead with its proposed merger with MTN without taking RIL's claim into account.
In fact, both the Classmate PC projects (from Intel) and OLPC pilots (with Reliance Communications) besides low-cost initiatives from players like Novatium, Encore, Xenitis and Allied Computers are gathering momentum independent of each other in the country.
Buoyed by the entry of new telecom players and entry of Reliance Communications in the GSM space, the Indian telecom industry clocked the highest subscriber-addition in a month, by adding 15.87 million subscribers in March 2009.
Reliance Communications (RCom) has served legal notice to the government on allocation of additional spectrum to existing GSM operators.
Among the sectoral indices, realty and metal indices lead the rally.
The slowdown in capital expansion is clearly seen in the current financial year. Large sectors such as cement, metal, oil and gas, power and telecom have provided negligible funds in the first quarter for their capex plans.
Like Bharti, India 's largest mobile operator, Reliance has global aspirations. After losing last year's keenly-contested $11bn takeover of Hutchison Essar, India 's fourth-largest mobile operator, to Vodafone of the UK, Reliance needs to raise its game or risk becoming an also-ran.
Noting that Indian firms face a high risk of mark-to-market losses due to a volatile forex market, a brokerage firm has named telecom major Reliance Communications and auto giant Tata Motors among five blue-chip companies estimated to have suffered the most during 2008-09.
This effectively means MTN will not talk to other potential bidders while discussions are on with the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group company. MTN had not agreed to a similar exclusivity agreement with Bharti Airtel, with which talks broke down following differences over control of the combined entity.
RCom's stock opened the day on a positive note and further gained 3.74 per cent to Rs 143.90 on the BSE.
Anil Ambani group company Reliance Communications on Monday announced entering into an exclusive negotiations with South Africa's telecom giant MTN to discuss potential combination of their businesses.
After seeking the surrender of spectrum, Reliance Communications (RCom) chairman Anil Ambani is seeking installation of frequency-efficient technologies such as synchronised network and FemtoCells that can be used at no additional cost. Ambani listed seven technologies to improve mobile network efficiency in the country.
The debt resolution involves RCom exiting the SDR framework with no conversion of debt into equity and zero write-off by lenders, Anil Ambani said, adding that he expects full closure by March 2018.
Reliance Communications chairman Anil Ambani has proposed that the government should make it mandatory for telecom service providers to surrender additional spectrum that they are not utilising. Putting his proposal into practice, Ambani has also conveyed his willingness to surrender the extra 1.8 MHz spectrum that his group has in the Bihar circle.
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.
Ambani termed COAI's appeal to the telecom tribunal against the government granting RCom dual-use technology (CDMA and GSM) as "unnecessary and unwarranted". RCom, the country's largest provider of CDMA mobile services, recently received permission to start GSM services under its existing licence for which it paid a fee of Rs 1,651 crore (Rs 16.51 billion).
The company recently received permission to launch GSM services within its existing license and is awaiting allocation of spectrum, the radio frequency that enables wireless communications, from the government. CDMA and GSM services cannot be operated on the same spectrum.
Reliance Communications (RCom), the country's second biggest mobile operator promoted by Anil Ambani, has earmarked Rs 30,000 crore for capital expansion this financial year with an aim to take its subscription to 100 million by 2010 from the current 60 million.
The Anil Ambani group company has soft-launched the service in Mumbai, Delhi, Gujarat, Punjab Bangalore and Chennai. The company has provided GSM phones to its employees for testing the service, according to sources.
RCom proposed to raise Rs 10,000 crore through a long-term fund-based facility and the remaining Rs 3,000 crore through a non-convertible debenture issue. The firm is raising the debt to meet the capex requirements of various projects, including expansion of GSM network, and repayment of debts. The capex for the next financial year (Rs 150 billion) also includes expansion plans of its telecom infrastructure subsidiary, Reliance Infratel.
Reliance HR Services (RHRS), a human resources company formed by the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG), will recruit half a million people for the group in the next four years.
Riding on a strong stock market rally, Anil Ambani-led diversified business conglomerate Reliance Group has crossed Rs one lakh crore market valuation.
Telecom firms like Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications and MTNL have shown interest to start IPTV services, where television signal is carried to homes through telecom lines and broadband.
Reliance Communications hopes roping in Hrithik Roshan will help separate them from the clutter. However, brand consultants and advertising veterans are sceptical.
Reliance Communications' third entry into the telecom business, starting with the time it was run under a different name when the Ambanis were an undivided group, has predictably got the mobile industry in a tizzy.
Reliance Communications has received approvals from Maharashtra and MIDC for its proposed 45-acre special economic zone.
Reliance Infratel, the tower business arm of the group's telecom entity Reliance Communications, has allowed the regulatory approval to lapse without coming out with an IPO and is unlikely to revive the process soon. A company spokesperson did not take queries on lapse of the approval period and on whether the company was looking to revive the process by filing a fresh draft IPO prospectus with market regulator Sebi.
Firming up its plans to rollout 3G services in the country, Anil Ambani-controlled Reliance Communications (RCom) is planning to overlay a 3G infrastructure on its nationwide GSM network.
ADAG company offers one-time subscription charge of Rs 25. To capture its share in the fast-growing GSM subscriber base, RCom has focused on the segment that provides less than Rs 300 as average revenue per user and launched its services at competitive prices.
Anil Ambani Group firm Reliance Communications said it has bought back foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs) worth Rs 121.22 crore (Rs 1.21 billion).
Reliance Communications is investing Rs 800 crore ($200 million) to enhance its managed global ethernet services
This new service will compete with several other providers, including Reliance Communications. But VSNL officials were upbeat about their offering.
On 60th Independence Day, it is bonanza time for telecom subscribers with operators rolling out a range of services.
RCom, which, sources say had offered to pick up a 51 per cent stake in MTN through a complicated share-swap deal through which shareholders of the African company would pick up stake in RCom, had asked for an extension of the exclusivity talks for another three to four weeks.
RCom had recently received spectrum in 13 circles under the new cross over technology policy, in which a code division multiple access operator can also operate GSM services with the same licence. IT operates GSM in the remaining circles.
The companies are looking at tapping solar power, wind energy and bio-fuels, including fish and vegetable oil, to run base transceiver systems in areas with poor power supply.
This will be the country's largest order for telecom equipment and one of the world's biggest. The installed production capacity of GSM electronics worldwide is 250 to 300 million lines annually, suggesting that the order could account for more than 10 per cent of global production over the next three years.
Rival operators' lobby to approach Delhi High Court.
RComm will get GSM spectrum along with other players like Vodafone, Airtel and Idea. This move will bring RComm actively in the GSM field.
As Reliance Communications (RCom) is struggling to sew up a deal with South African telecom major MTN, another Indian telecom service provider Tata Communications is all set to get a majority stake in South African telecom firm Neotel.
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