Page 2 - Telecom Industry

Statsguru: India's telecom industry is lurching towards a duopoly

Vodafone's losses are expected to touch Rs 30,000 crore in the financial year 2022-23

Parl panel pulls up DoT on internet shutdowns; asks to take stock of impact

Expressing concern over frequent internet shutdown without any empirical study, a Parliamentary panel has pulled up the Department of Telecommunications for not maintaining the record of incidents and inaction on several of its recommendations. The Standing Committee on Communications and Information Technology on 'Suspension of Telecom Services and Internet and its impact' tabled in Lok Sabha on Thursday, the panel has asked the Department of Telecom (DoT) to lay down a clear cut principle of proportionality and procedure for lifting of shutdown in coordination with the home ministry to prevent any misuse of the suspension rules. The panel rejected the logic of the DoT and Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for not maintaining the record of the shutdown, saying it cannot simply take the plea that police and public order are essentially state subjects and suspension of the internet does not actually come under the ambit of crimes. "The committee feel that a centralised database of all .

Airtel's Q3 revenue may rise 20% YoY; Vi could face 6 mn subscriber exits

Telecom major Bharti Airtel is likely to report up to 19.7 per cent year-on-year (YoY) growth in revenue to Rs 35,750 crore in the December quarter (Q3FY23), pegged analysts

Delayed decision

Govt should have moved fast in Vodafone Idea matter

Planned FY24 spectrum sale round drives non-tax revenue goal from telecom

Officials said deferred spectrum charges to be paid by telcos also make up a large chunk of the expected revenues

Reliance Jio Q3 net profit jumps 28.29%, revenue from operations rise 18%

On a sequential basis, the net profit was up by 2.65 per cent, from Rs 4,518 crore in September 2022

A curious unwinding

A telecom body, initially conceived to cut bureaucratic red tape, is being disbanded without clear reasons

2023 will be decisive for Vodafone Idea, fundraising critical: CLSA

The brokerage firm CLSA said that with a decline in VI's share, Airtel and Jio together control 77 per cent and should continue to gain share in 2023

Motorola rolls out software update to enable Reliance Jio True 5G on phones

Reliance Jio on Wednesday announced its partnership with Motorola to enable 'True 5G' across Motorola's extensive 5G smartphone portfolio in India

Telecom space set for 5G, to attract Rs 1.5 trillion investments in 2023

From connecting people with 5G services to lowering the cost of operations, the country's revitalised telecom sector is witnessing the bloom of reforms, and is set to attract more than Rs 1.5 lakh crore investments to build up networks in the new year. Once the poster boy of India's growth story, then a debt-laden segment that saw many players withering away and now riding the wave of reforms as well as big-ticket investments, the telecom sector turned a new chapter in 2022. While the Adani group is yet to unveil its full-fledged plan for the telecom business, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani has committed Rs 2 lakh crore investment for rolling out a 5G network across the country by December 2023. "It has been an exciting year because of the launch of 5G, a much-awaited technology for 4-5 years. This is a big step forward. We look forward to a robust rollout of 5G next year because this year is just the beginning. "We are all working on use cases. We are telling state ...

Trai recommends 10-year renewal for multi-system operators' registrations

The authority recommends that all such registrations should be deemed to expire after eight months from the date of implementation

Telecom firms get green signal for towers, services on railway land

The move is likely to give 5G network a boost

Millions of Indians living near airports may not get to enjoy 5G in 2023

The roll-out of 5G in India, which was kicked-off in October 2022, is happening at a much faster scale in India compared to 4G or 3G and millions of people will soon have an agile and faster streaming

DoT forms 4 task forces to boost domestic telecom mfg, remove hurdles

The Department of Telecom (DoT) has formed four task forces to recommend to the government measures that will boost the domestic telecom manufacturing ecosystem and remove the bottlenecks, an official memorandum said The development follows a round table between Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and 42 chiefs of telecom gear makers early this month where he identified the need for creating a task force to resolve issues that the companies raised before him. Under one of the task forces, the DoT has sought recommendation for a phased manufacturing programme for telecom gear manufacturing to boost domestic component supply chain ecosystem as well as attract global players. This task force will be co-chaired by state-run research arm C-DoT CEO RK Upadhyay, the memorandum dated December 20 said. In 2016, the government notified a phased manufacturing programme for developing the mobile phone manufacturing ecosystem in the country. The task force under chairmanship of Tejas Netwo

USOF successor to focus on indigenising tech, hiring global bandwidth

Govt plans to include fund in upcoming telecom Bill despite telcos' opposition, officials said

India telecom industry to grow by $12.5 bn every 3 yrs: Deloitte-CII report

The Indian telecom industry is expected to grow by USD 12.5 billion every three years with the advent of 5G which has the potential to boost innovation across the globe, Deloitte India and CII said in a report on Thursday. According to the report, with ultra-low latency and high data rates, 5G is expected to create avenues of collaboration and alliances as well as drive India to reimagine a whole new way of engaging in the new, faster, agile digital world. "By the end of 2023, it is anticipated that the Indian telecom industry will reach USD 125 billion, with 5G expected to increase revenue by USD 12.5 billion every three years," the report said. Since the rollout of 5G in October 2022, one of India's leading operators has reached the magnanimous 1 million 5G subscriber mark in a month, it added. According to the report, 5G will accelerate economic growth, increasing job opportunities and connecting the urban and rural population. It will drive efficiency in critical sectors such

Certain people used BSNL as 'cash cow' during UPA rule: Ashwini Vaishnaw

The BSNL suffered badly due to certain political parties and it was used as a "cash cow" by some people who are still members of Parliament, Communications Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved a huge project worth Rs 1.64 lakh crore for the revival of BSNL, and this will transform the telecom PSU completely, the minister said in Lok Sabha. "The BSNL went through a very bad phase. Primarily due to certain political parties during UPA time. Lots of funds were diverted away," he said, amid protests by some opposition members. Time has changed, the minister said, and the BSNL will soon launch 4G and 5G networks designed, developed and made in the country as per Modi's 'Make in India' initiative. "Those times have gone when certain (former) ministers, people sitting on the other side of the aisle, used the BSNL as a cash cow," he said, pointing towards the opposition benches. Vaishnaw, however, did not name any person or political party

Top Headlines: Tax levy on SUVs, tighter service norms for telcos, and more

Business Standard brings you the top headlines at this hour

Telcos seek regulatory framework to levy 'fee' on internet messaging apps

Telecom operators industry body COAI has written to the government to set-up a licensing and regulatory framework to charge a 'usage fee' from big internet-based calling and messaging apps like WhatsApp, Signal, Google Duo. In a letter to Telecom Secretary K Rajaraman last week, the Cellular Operators Association of India Director General SP Kochhar said that charges may be limited based on usage of the network without burdening over-the-top (OTT) players in micro, small and medium enterprise segment. The Department of Telecom has proposed to define OTT players providing call and messaging service as telecom service providers (TSPs). COAI said OTT players should pay the TSPs for using the telecom network for providing their OTT services to the customers in a fair and equitable manner by way of an equivalent of 'Usage Charge' on the basis of mutual agreement. "There may be instances wherein the OTT players and the TSPs may not agree mutually on 'Usage Charge'. If a mutual agreement

Need separate pan-India licence for Satellite Earth Station Gateways: TRAI

A satellite gateway (also referred to as a teleport or hub) is a ground station that transmits data to and from the satellite to the local area network