Action is hotting up in the telecom space, with Russian giant Sistema in preliminary discussions with Aircel to pick up an equity stake.
Toughens stand days before cooling-off period ends
Bharti's ratings headroom is likely to improve with an equity infusion, planned asset sales and growing EBITDA from Africa.
Decisions of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) have been under scrutiny for a while.
The pricing of 2G and 3G spectrum continues to haunt telecom companies.
China on Thursday amended a law on guarding state secrets that makes it mandatory on Internet and telecommunications companies to inform on customers who discuss state secrets.
Likely to seek FIPB approval to raise holding; deal could bring FDI of about $696 mn.
The finance ministry is likely to favour an approach that would take into account the payment capabilities of telecom companies while deciding the price and process for spectrum auction this year.
Buoyant stock markets and booming telecom sector appear to have generated some interest among global equity players with Blackstone and Texas Pacific approaching Hutchison to buy stake in its India venture but the move could face hurdles.
Many say Tata Motors has perhaps paid the price for being too ambitious.
The recent Indian telecom spectrum auction will hasten industry consolidation, strengthen tariffs and reduce regulatory risks.
Deconstructing the numbers shows companies have bid smartly to get the best deals.
Taking a tough stand on the failure by mobile operators to verify subscriber documents, the government on Monday issued them directives to carry out special authenticity checks for bulk connections.
Already with a presence in Kenya's telecom sector through a brand called 'Yu', Essar is looking to strengthening its foothold in the rapidly growing African market.
Telenor of Norway and Sistema of Russia - on Friday asserted that they would take legal measures.
A telcom operator said since there is a CBI investigation over alleged irregularties in the license and spectrum allotment going on, the minister may try to win over the industry by asking them not to be perturbed over the development and focus on operations and customers.
Filing an affidavit before the TDSAT, the department of telecommunication has requested the tribunal to dismiss the petition of telecom operators challenging the government directive to stop 3G roaming immediately.
Number of 3G subscribers in India is more than 12.2 million.
The income tax department has moved the Supreme Court stating that private telecom service providers are liable to deduct tax at source for the payments made to state-owned BSNL and MTNL for inter-connectivity.
In April, DoT introduced a graded penalty system under which operators pay Rs 50,000 per subscriber if more than 20 per cent of their user base is without valid identity documents.
The telecom regulator on Friday released a list of 40 "defaulter" principal entities, including large banks like HDFC Bank, SBI and ICICI Bank, that are not fulfilling the regulatory norms on bulk commercial messages despite repeated reminders. Hardening its stance on the issue, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) warned that defaulting entities should comply with the stipulated requirements by March 31, 2021 "to avoid any disruption in the communication with customers" from April 1, 2021. "As sufficient opportunity has been given to principal entities/ telemarketers to comply with the regulatory requirements and that the consumers cannot be deprived of the benefits of the regulatory provisions any further, therefore it has been decided that from April 1, 2021, any message failing in the scrubbing process due to non-compliance of regulatory requirements will be rejected" by the system, TRAI said in a statement.
Chiefs of leading telecom firms, including Sunil Mittal of Bharti Airtel, Anil Ambani of RCom and Vittorio Colao of Vodafone, met Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal on Wednesday and placed their views.
While everybody is talking about the vast potential of 5G, the uptake of such services in India depends on operators getting around 100 Mhz 5G spectrum. At the reserve price proposed by Trai, getting this spectrum will cost a telco around Rs 490 billion. Which amount could be difficult for operators to mop up, given the financial stress they are undergoing, says Kiran Rathee.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on Thursday came out with a notification under which a UASL (Universal Access Service Licence) holder will have a lock-in period of three years or till the fulfilment of rollout obligations, whichever is earlier, before promoters can sell their equity stake.
While the company insisted it had enough spectrum across circles, analysts said the company might soon need to acquire some spectrum to ensure uninterrupted service.
In percentage terms, IndusInd Bank, SBI, HDFC, ICICI Bank and L&T were among the top losers. On the contrary, Bharti Airtel, Reliance, Sun Pharma, HCL Tech and Maruti Suzuki emerged as major gainers.
Rs 3,050-crore penalty on Airtel, Voda Idea gets nod. Final decision will be taken by DoT.
The 3G and broadband wireless access spectrum auction is running into further controversies with a section of telecom firms opposing the timing of the auction and internet companies planning to move the Prime Minister's Office.Even though Reliance Communications is ready with $1-billion investment for 3G rollout, it intends to focus on GSM rollout at the moment. The company is "receptive to the opinion that the 3G auctions should be held at a later date," a source said.
A total of 10.42 million wireless (GSM, CDMA and WLL) subscribers have been added during October 2008 against 10.07 million wireless subscribers added in September 2008, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India said. The total wireless subscribers stood at 325.73 million at the end of October 2008.
DoCoMo's exit from Tata Teleservices highlights the struggle of smaller operators even as the outlook improves for bigger players.
Firms to pay Rs 24,700 cr if spectrum formula is accepted.
Home Ministry sources said all telecom operators in the country had been asked not to issue SIM cards without verification or in bulk.
Weak balance sheets due to hefty outgo of funds for new licences will reflect negatively on the 2013 outlook for the sector.
The central government, which is also party to the case, informed a bench of justices G S Singhvi and A K Ganguly that it is in favour of setting up a special court to try the accused in the 2G case and the law minister has written a letter to the Delhi high court chief justice asking him to constitute a court and identify a judge for this purpose.
Bharti recorded $5 billion liability for past-due AGR fees, but is still completing its self-assessment to determine the final amount.
RJio will further add bottomline pressures on the already struggling telcos that will ultimately be forced to consolidate
Globally, the focus has moved back to India, especially in terms of telecom assets. Vodafone Idea, with some 300 million customers, continues to be attractive with shares available at a low price.
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