Tag: idea

Vodafone India And Idea Merger: New Leadership Team Announced

Vodafone India Plc and Idea Cellular India have announced the completion of the merger. Post the merger, the top-level management will see a shakeup and the two telcos will join hands to take on the rising popularity of Reliance Jio. Mr Kumar Mangalam Birla will be the Non-Executive Chairman of the merged Company. The new CEO will be Balesh Sharma, the current Vodafone COO.

Vodafone Group Chief Executive, Vittorio Colao, and Aditya Birla Group Chairman, Kumar Mangalam Birla have said:

We are pleased to announce the proposed management team for the new company to be created through the merger of Vodafone India and Idea. The team has extensive operational experience and is an excellent blend of expertise from both companies.

We look forward to the completion of the merger and competing as one company in the marketplace.

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According to a report, Vodafone and Idea will together invest about Rs. 60,000 crore in the next three years to upgrade its infrastructure. Both the companies will invest up to Rs 14,000 crore on capital expenditure. Bharti Airtel is miles ahead of the two companies when it comes to investment this year. Bharti Airtel is already spending around Rs 22,000 crore on capex for its India wireless business. Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd’s spend on infrastructure has been higher this year.

A recent relief for the Indian telecom industry announced by the Government will also help this merger. The two companies will be able to retain spectrum in key markets and then significantly boost cashflows. More details about the merger will follow.

March 22, 2018
Reliance Jio, Airtel, Idea And Vodafone Working On Making Networks 5G Ready

Major telcos in India are future proofing their networks by working on the next big thing in the telecom industry, 5G. We had earlier reported that the government of India wants to be a big player in the 5G industry and take adequate steps earlier on in order to not fall behind in the 5G race. Now, major telcos like Airtel, Relieance Jio and more are preparing to introduce massive MIMO technology into their respective networks. The 5G technology is expected to be rolled out by 2020 and the massive MIMO technology is considered to be a key component in enabling 5G.

Massive MIMO, or massive multiple input multiple output, increases capacity of a base station by five to seven times and reduces interference substantially, in turn boosting the transmission signal to the devices. This means that a consumer using voice and data, will get data speed which can be between 30 MBPS and 35 MBPS on average. These speeds can go up to 50MBPS during peak time. Comparatively, depending on one’s 4G data provider and plan, the mobile internet speed varies from 4 MBPS to 16 MBPS on paper.

It is fair to say that 5G data is still a few years away as India has barely adopted 4G in its full capacity. Director of Technology at Vodafone India says:

While 5G is still may be a few years away, we are bringing some of 5G technologies like massive MIMO into 4G and applying them. We are conducting trials of this technology. It is very futuristic in 5G, but we are using it in 4G.

Airtel has already begun the first round of deployment of the technology in Bangalore and Kolkata and will expand to other cities like Pune, Hyderabad and Chandigarh. Reliance Jio on the other hand, is currently running trials of massive MIMO technology with Chinese gear maker ZTE. Idea as well, which now has a pan India 4G network is working on bring massive MIMO technology on 4G in India.

The Indian government has also acknowledged that bringing 5G to India is a priority. For this objective, the ministries of telecom, information and technology, and science and technology have been included in the forum. A budget of Rs 500 crore is set aside for research and development of 5G technology by the government.

October 9, 2017
How To Port Your Number Using Mobile Number Portability
On the 3rd of July, telecom companies around India launched the National Mobile Number Portability (NMNP). This means that you can now move from one city to another and still retain your mobile number. While many may be aware of this already, we decided to provide a step-by-step guide for those who may not know the proper procedure to port their number and a few things to keep in mind before doing so.

Step 1 : Generate An Eight-Digit Unique Porting Code

The first thing you have to do is generate an eight-digit Unique Porting Code by sending “PORT <10-digit mobile number>” to 1900. You will then receive an SMS of the UPC code and the UPC expiration date.

Step 2 : Get The Required Documents

Before you head to your mobile operating store, you’ll need to carry along a few documents. You will need an ID proof, address proof, a passport size photograph, and a copy of your last paid bill (in case of post-paid customers). Airtel customers can carry forward the existing talk-time or outstanding/pending bills to the new telecom service.

Step 3 : Visit The New Mobile Operator Store

Once you have your UPC code and required documents ready, you can visit the mobile operator store you wish to switch to and fill out the number porting form. You will also buy a new sim card. The whole porting process costs Rs. 19.

STEP 4 : Choose Your Plan

Both pre-paid and post-paid customers will have the option to either retain their original plan or to choose a different one based on their needs. Every operator has its own range of plans and you can pick yours at the store.

Step 5 : Processing Time

Some operators like Airtel promise that all NMNP requests will be processed within 24 hours. You will receive an SMS regarding the deactivation of your old sim card. Once deactivated, you can insert your new sim. Generally, most operators complete the porting process within 7 days.

Note : Some Important Points
- Post-paid customers must make sure any unpaid bills are paid before porting as this can hold up the porting process
- Make sure your active connection is at least 90 days old
- Some operators like Airtel and Idea require you to call 59059 for tele-verification once the new sim is activated.
September 21, 2015
Idea Cellular Announces a 550 Crore Rupee Investment in UP

Idea Cellular has announced an investment of Rs. 550 crores in Uttar Pradesh over the next two years. Hoping for support from Chief Minister, Akhilesh Yadav, the third biggest telecom company has decided to increase its investment from the current Rs.4,400 rupees.

Idea Cellular’s Managing Director Himanshu Kapania says, “Out of the total investment of Rs. 42,000 crores that Idea has made across the country, 11 percent of the investment has come to UP”. Stats further show that the telecom operator is present in about 82% cities of the state. It now plans to increase its consumers to 95%.

Kapania further comments, “”If you want to reach Internet to every nook and corner of UP, we have to put up fibre and we are requesting the UP government to issue a forward-looking RoW policy, which is currently pending across most states. We are hoping this state would be on the forefront in supporting us”.

Image Source: [tw-button size=”medium” background=”#07ABE2″ color=”” target=”_blank” link=”http://gadgets.ndtv.com/telecom/news/idea-cellular-to-invest-rs-550-crores-in-up-over-next-2-years-738607″]NDTV Gadgets[/tw-button]

September 11, 2015
All Major Indian Telecom Players Slash Down Roaming Rates by Up to 75%

After Vodafone slashed down their roaming rates, leading telecom operators followed suit, including Airtel, Idea Cellular and Reliance Communication. All of the operators lowered their roaming rates up to 75% after TRAI cut off the maximum ceiling tariff. Roaming call rates will be cheaper by 40% and SMS by 75%. The above is effective immediately.

For Airtel, incoming rates have been reduced by 40% and outgoing inter-circle calls will be lowered by 23%. Outgoing local call rates will be decreased by 20%, and it reduced local SMS rate by 75%. Outgoing inter-circle SMS rate has been cut by up to 74%.

As for Idea Cellular and Reliance, similarly, these two companies have slashed their roaming call rates by 40%. Idea will now charge incoming calls at 45paise/minute and outgoing is reduced by 20%. Local SMS on Idea will cost 25% lesser, and STD will be charged 38 paise while on roaming.

In the words of Morgan Stanley, American multinational financial service:

Reduction in national roaming ceiling tariff would imply a 2% revenue impact and 4% Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation) impact for operators, which could be partly offset by an increase in roaming minutes and any positive differential gains.

Earlier this month, TRAI had cut the maximum rate for STD calls on roaming to Rs 1.15 from Rs 1.50. To read about Vodafone’s new tariff plans, click here.

May 1, 2015
Spectrum Delay to Disrupt Telephony Services in Three Megacities

If you are living in Delhi, Mumbai or Kolkata and are a subscriber of either of the two largest mobile service providers, Vodafone and Airtel, there might be trouble brewing ahead for you. Mobile telephony may get disrupted the coming month in these cities because of the delay in spectrum allocation.

In February this year, the spectrum allocation bid took place. All major service providers got their share. But the government allotted the airwaves just this month. This might cause a lot of trouble especially for the subscribers of Vodafone and Airtel, whose spectrum expires in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata by the end of next month. The companies have to vacate the 900 MHz spectrum and shift to 1800 MHz.

The delay in Spectrum allocation can result in disruption of Vodafone, Airtel and Idea services

As the Department of Telecom (DoT) allocated the spectrum to the companies this month, they are asking for a six-month extension. This request was made by GSM industry body Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI). According to them, shifting of frequencies and bands require at least six months to make a smooth transition. They said that a lot of groundwork needs to be carried out, which includes new tower locations, antenna tuning, network configuration, etc. And hence, they require a minimum extension of six-month for a seamless transfer.

The decision will affect a giant section of mobile users in those cities. It is estimated that combined user share of Vodafone, Airtel and Idea in Delhi accounts for 26 million, which is almost 79% of the GSM mobile users. In Mumbai, the trio provides GSM services to 72% of mobile users.

DoT, however, hasn’t given any assurance to the companies. The representatives of the industry will be meeting with the officials at the DoT on Friday. The result of the meet will decide the fate of millions of mobile connections. If talks fail, it will not just create a connectivity issue but will create an economical issue as well, considering that a good number of businessmen are now dependent on their phones for their livelihood. We’ll get to know how things work out for everyone this Friday.

October 29, 2014
TRAI says that the current tariff is fine

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), in a move to calm worried telecom firms reeling under huge losses, has said on Monday that the current tariffs are not objectionably high and are good for competitive environment.

The major issue on the mind of the TRAi being the deactivation of inactive mobile connections, TRAI said that the recommendations for the same should be finalized by March.

[quote]The mobile tariffs are competitive. We could not find that tariffs have been in any objectionable territory, In normal course, it (the recommendations) should take one-and-a-half-month more from now,”Rajeev Agarwal, secretary,TRAI [/quote]

Recently again many firms have hiked data tariffs by 25-30% to improve margins. TRAI sought views of stakeholders on the need to review the existing regime of tariff forbearance. Views were also sought on a suitable tariff framework for data services.

While deactivation of a SIM without prior intimation and on arbitrary grounds has become an issue of debate as it deprives a subscriber of his mobile number which might have been an identity for him for a long time.

According to a consultation paper floated by TRAI, consumers can also suffer from a potential loss of activity in both personal and professional set-ups causing an adverse impact on livelihood.

Last year the telecom tribunal had also rejected the telecom operators’ petition against TRAI’s guidelines on VAS which asked operators to take prior confirmation before activating and charging subscribers for such services and asked them to comply with the directive by February 2.

In 2011, TRAI’s directives said that an operator was required to obtain confirmation from their subscribers through SMS, e-mail, fax or in writing within 24 hours of activation of VAS.

January 15, 2013
India’s GSM subscriber base drops by 7.1 million in August says COAI

According to the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), India’s GSM subscriber base is now at 671.95 million, after major players like Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, and Idea Cellular, lost roughly 5.1 million subscribers in the month of August, 2012. It is estimated that the total GSM subscriber base in India declined by 7.1 million in the same period.

Bharti Airtel, which currently holds a 27.82 percent market share, lost 1.90 million subscribers in August, bringing its total subscriber base to 186.9 million. Idea Cellular lost 1.64 million subscribers in the same period, placing its subscriber base at 115.97 million. Vodafone on the other hand, lost 1.55 million subscribers in the same period, giving it a total subscriber base of 153.35 million.

The other GSM operator to lose subscribers in the month of August was Uninor, which lost a significant 2.38 million subscribers. This brings its total subscriber base to 42.11 million. Airceland Loop Mobile were the only two GSM operators to have added subscribers in the same period, with Aircel adding 793,717 subscribers, and Loop Mobile adding 79,842 subscribers.

The COAI report does not include detailed data for BSNL and MTNL, but stated that the former held a subscriber base of 94.67 million subscribers in August, while MTNL held a 5.12 million subscriber base.

September 17, 2012
Lenovo unveils ultraslim IdeaCentre A720 PC for INR 89,990

PC vendor Lenovo has announced the launchof IdeaCentre A720, billed the world’s slimmest all-in-one at a price of Rs 89,000. The USP of this PC, which is powered by a 3rd generation Intel Core i7 processor, is its thin, frameless display.

The Lenovo IdeaCentre A720 boats of a 10-finger multi-touch screen that folds down for interactive tabletop games.
It is packed with entertainment features—like Lenovo High-Sense (720p HD) webcam and Lenovo IdeaTouch, a suite of touch-optimised applications and games.

The Lenovo IdeaCentre A720 is powered by NVIDIA® GeForce® graphic engine and apart from coming alongwith Windows 7 Home Premium, it is also Windows 8-ready.

It sports a 27-inch full HD (1920×1080) frameless 10-point multi-touch display, has Bluetooth, Wi-Fi (802.11b/g/n), USB2.0, and USB3.0 connectivity. It has an in-built 6-in-1 card-reader, HDMI in/out and integrated stereo speakers that support Dolby Home Theatre.

It also boasts of 40% faster boot time than standard Windows 7 computers.

July 25, 2012
New Idea 3G dual-sim phone launched at Rs 5994

The device will come with data plan benefits

After selling over 1 lakh units of its previous models of 3G phones, from the “What an idea sirji” campaign, Aditya Birla group led Idea launched a new dual-sim (GSM+GSM) 3G device, the ID-918 made by Alcatel in China priced at Rs 5,994.

It runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread and features include FM Radio, 150 MB internal memory, expandable memory up to 32GB with microSD (2GB card included), 512 MB RAM, 256 MB ROM and a 1300 mAh battery.

Along with the handset, Idea is also offering benefits worth Rs 2,340 apart from a 2 GB data per month for three months after 48-72 hours of recharge.

June 16, 2012
HTC receives Eight Design Awards (PR)

HTC has been awarded eight design awards for its creations including the IDEA Gold Award .

The HTC Droid Incredible was given a Gold award, the HTC EVO 4G was recognized with a Silver award, and the HTC Legend garnered a Bronze award. The HTC Aria was also named a finalist in the communications tool category. Amongst others.

Read the full PR below for the total information.

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HTC Recognized for Global Design Leadership

Honored with Eight Awards, Including the Prestigious IDEA Gold Award

New Delhi, India – July 6, 2011 – HTC Corporation, a global designer of mobile phones, has been honored by three separate international organizations for excellence in product design, reflecting the company’s commitment to creating perfect experiences for everyday life that make consumers’ lives a little better.

HTC’s philosophy of designing mobile phones for the individual passions and pursuits of consumers is reflected in each winning product line, resulting in recent awards from IDEA, and earlier in the year from red dot and IDA.

“Countless HTC employees came together to earn the recognition we received at IDEA 2011, red dot 2011 and IDA 2010,” said Scott Croyle, Vice President of design at HTC. “Our award-winning designs span multiple disciplines and regions around the world. Our teams listened to and observed customers, recognized their differing needs, and partnered to design products that have these customers’ desires at heart.”

HTC garnered four top awards at the 2011 International Design Excellence Awards (IDEA), known as the “Oscars of Design,” and sponsored by Fast Company magazine and the Industrial Designers Society of America, for devices in the communications tools category. The HTC Droid Incredible was given a Gold award, HTC EVO 4G recognized with a Silver award, and the HTC Legend garnered a Bronze award. Additionally, the HTC Aria was a finalist in the communications tool category.

“The rigor of selecting the best of over 2,000 entries culminated in three days of intense dialogue and debate that was stimulating and rewarding for the 20 expert jurors—we are proud of the work we have chosen to represent the best from our profession,” said IDEA’s Jury Chair Davin Stowell, founder and CEO of Smart Design.

Started in 1980 by the Industrial Designers Society of America (IDSA), the International Design Excellence Awards Program (IDEA®) fosters business and public understanding about the impact of design excellence on the quality of life and the economy.

HTC Receives “red dot” of Approval from Global Jury

In March 2011, HTC won three awards from red dot. The EVO 4G won the highest product design award: the “red dot: best of the best” award, recognizing trailblazing design. In addition, the HTC Legend and HTC Aria won a red dot, a quality seal awarded to devices with high design quality, that stand apart from comparable products.

Red dot was judged by a jury from across the globe, whose background gives them unique insight to assess the special intercultural aspects of design. The red dot awards are sponsored by the Red Dot Museum in Germany and Singapore. The competition is aimed at all those who would like to distinguish their business activities through design.

“HTC’s drive to connect with consumers through design was apparent in the winning selections,” said Professor Dr. Peter Zec, president of the competition. “Each year we seek out brands that successfully harness the power of design to the masses.”

International Design Awards (IDA) Gives HTC Gold

In May 2011, the IDA, a four-year-old awards program honoring smart and sustainable design, recognized HTC’s pioneering design by awarding the HTC Legend a Gold at the 2010 IDA Awards.

“This competition year has been our largest to date, with entries from over 65 countries,” said Jade Tran, competition director. “We were very excited to see design that was so committed to design theory and creating a strong connection between consumer and product. HTC certainly exemplified this in the Phone and Communications Technology category.”

A handful of designers, thinkers and entrepreneurs created the International Design Awards in 2007 as a response to the lack of recognition and celebration for smart and sustainable multidisciplinary design.

About HTC

HTC Corporation (HTC) is one of the fastest growing companies in the mobile phone industry. By putting people at the center of everything it does, HTC creates innovative devices that better serve the lives and needs of individuals. The company is listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange under ticker 2498. For more information about HTC, please visit www.htc.com.

Follow HTC India on:

Twitter: http://twitter.com/HTC_in

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/HTCIndia

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July 7, 2011