Telecom operators say the reason for the low increase in ARPU in the two metros could be linked to the massive reverse migration of labour.
Bidding for the sixth round of spectrum auction for radiowaves worth Rs 3.92 lakh crore will start from March 1, according to a notice issued by the Department of Telecom on Wednesday. The long-awaited spectrum auction is being held after a gap of four years and over two years after the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) calculated and recommended base price for the radiowaves. The DoT has fixed January 12 for the pre-bid conference and January 28 as the last date for seeking clarification to the notice.
Tata has 6.13 million followers on Twitter and has tweeted only 119 times since he joined the microblogging platform in April 2011
Telecom complaints against other players were below 500 in the first half of 2016.
The incumbents Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea recorded adjusted gross revenue of Rs 10,701.5 crore and Rs 9,808.92 crore, respectively, during the quarter.
Delhi High Court says it can do so under the TRAI Act, rejects petitions filed by telecom associations.
Telecom regulator TRAI on Tuesday released a detailed consultation paper to discuss threadbare the modalities for auction of spectrum across multiple bands, including pricing, quantum and other conditions -- preparing the groundwork for 5G auctions slated for next year. Trai's comprehensive consultation paper runs into 207 pages and throws up 74 questions for industry-wide discussion, touching on crucial aspects like valuation and reserve price of spectrum, including 5G, quantum of spectrum, block size, eligibility conditions for participation in auction, roll-out obligations, spectrum cap, and surrender of spectrum. Norms will also be worked out for new frequencies such as 526-698 MHz and millimetre band, that is 24.25 - 28.5 GHz, in addition to bands such as 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300-3670 MHz.
Discussing the prospect of more reform earlier this month, telecom minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced a delay in the 5G spectrum auction. India's telecom sector regulation has to be benchmarked with the global best, he said. It's another matter that many countries have either introduced or are about to roll out 5G services that will enable cutting-edge tech in diverse areas. For India, too, it will mean a lot for healthcare, robotics and unleashing a new chapter in Digital India perhaps.
Issuing its recommendations on Net neutrality, Trai has also suggested a multi-stakeholder body comprising telecom and Internet service providers, content providers, civil society organisation and consumer representatives for monitoring and investigation of violations.
The authority has received over 10 lakh (1 million) petitions.
The representative body said there is regulatory imbalance.
Trai asks telcos to add towers to address call drops.
Ignoring objections by political parties, the government on Friday introduced a bill in Lok Sabha to clear legal hurdles in appointment of former Telephone Regulatory Authority of India Chairman Nripendra Misra who joined as principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi more than a month back.
Mobile Number Portability (MNP) has crossed a landmark figure of 100 million with 11 per cent of the total mobile subscribers exercising this facility till date.
Sibal said that Trai had compared India with China.
Telecom operators are not opposed to over-the-top service providers like Skype, Viber, WhatsApp but looking to work in synergy with them, Bharti Enterprises Vice Chairman Akhil Gupta said on Wednesday.
The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved revision in guidelines for providing direct to home (DTH) services in the country under which licenses would be issued for 20 years, Union minister Prakash Javadekar said. The Union Cabinet has also approved 100 per cent FDI in the DTH broadcasting services sector, Javadekar said, adding that while the commerce ministry had spoken of 100 per cent FDI in the DTH sector, the guidelines of the information and broadcasting ministry needed to be changed.
The tribunal accepted the government's argument that licence or spectrum is a state asset over which Aircel had no right of ownership.
As the TRAI imposed deadline ends on April 24, Rediff Chat will host a series of net activists and experts to explain the issues involved, what is at stake here, and why net neutrality needs to be an article of faith if the dream of Digital India is to be realised.
VIL has countered Trai's contention that the RedX plan, which commits higher speeds, should have been informed separately so different aspects could have been examined before such service was launched.
Govt says there is enough spectrum, telcos differ
In its consultation paper Trai addressed three key points including the bundling of channels under bouquets, rampant discounting within bouquets, and the lack of consumer choice.
India has now around one billion mobile subscribers, he added.
Out of the total volume of wireless data usage in 2018, 4G technology contributed the major part of 86.85 per cent with volume of 40,304 million GB while share of 2G, 3G and CDMA data usage is 0.95 per cent, 12.18 per cent and 0.01 per cent respectively in the total volume of wireless data usage.
The govt is expected to achieve the revenue target of Rs 40,000 crore from spectrum sale this fiscal, Telecom Secretary M F Farooqui said.
All existing emergency numbers will be phased out within a year of rolling out 112, depending upon the awareness about this new facility.
Used smartphones are gaining popularity in the hinterland, the main market for JioPhone. Share of JioPhone in the feature phone market had shrunk from 47% in Q2 of 2018 to 28% a year after.
Biju Janata Dal member of Parliament Baijayant 'Jay' Panda on Monday supported the Bill to amend Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, which seeks to remove a legal hurdle in the appointment of former chairman of telecom regulatory body Nripendra Misra RPT Misra as principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
In the second major change in a year, Trai had capped individual channel subscription at Rs 12 per month, down from the earlier Rs 19, and capped channel bundle discount to 33 per cent, among other moves.
Mittal said he discussed a plethora of issues with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and sought the government's support for faster clearances to streamline the group's investment plans.
According to telcos and analysts, this is due to SIM consolidation happening after the minimum recharge plans were implemented by incumbents.
Trai said, the operators should ensure that payout per month of the 'best fit plan' generally does not exceed the payout per month of existing tariff plan of the subscriber.
In Bangladesh, a call drop has more to do with network quality, while in India it is linked to spectrum shortage.
Call drop problem to improve in 12-16 weeks in Delhi: Vodafone
Telecom operator Vodafone has been the top gainer of customers through mobile number portability facility while Reliance Communications is the biggest loser.
Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) and Association of Unified Telcom Service Providers of India (AUSPI) have opposed the proposal to compensate consumers.
The Army has asked telecom companies to realise the security implications of such malpractices.
Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh told reporters that a national TV news channel, facing flak over its attack on Mumbai police and Maharashtra government in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case, was also involved in the TRP racket.
Active subscriber base declined by 2.2 million on a month-on-month (MoM) basis to 970.2 million in August 2019, on the back of Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea losing customers. Jio was the only operator to add 7.2 million active subscribers in the same month.
Bharti may look at gaining market share pre-merger and benefit from a lower capex intensity
