Tele Gyaan

MTS slashes STD tariff to 1 paisa/sec

yogen — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:55:06 +0000

We recently saw MTS launching its CDMA services in the capital city of Delhi. Today MTS joined the intensifying tariff war by slashing down its STD rate to 1 paisa/sec across all networks. This new tariff is against the earlier 2 paise/sec tariff and would be implemented with immediate effect in the MTS circles of Delhi, Karnataka, Kerala, Bihar-Jharkhand, Kolkata, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal.

The official company release said that, “STD will now be one paisa per second or 60 paise per minute (for lifetime) with the added benefit of per second billing. While STD calls from MTS will be charged at 1 paisa/sec, MTS to MTS local calls will be charged at 1 paisa/2 secs.”

Other big operators like Reliance, Airtel, Vodafone and Idea were seen slashing their local and STD tariffs earlier this week. With new operators joining the race, telecom operators are looking at wooing customers with lower tariffs and calling rates.

IDEA Cellular’s Super 50 Recharge vouchers in Andhra Pradesh

yogen — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 04:27:04 +0000

To add up to the festivity in Andhra Pradesh, IDEA Cellular has introduced three new recharge vouchers branded as Super 50. These recharge vouchers are targeted towards users with varied usage behaviours. Read on to find out what’s in offering –

Super 50 L:

This recharge voucher is priced at Rs 37 for new IDEA subscribers and Rs 34 for existing customers. This voucher will allow users in Andhra Pradesh to make local calls across all networks for 50 paise/min. Although it sounds good, there is one drawback to this offer, it will make you STD call rate to Re 1/min. If your requirement is restricted to local calls only, go for it. Validity – 12 months

Super 50 SL:

This recharge voucher is priced at Rs 77 for new IDEA subscribers and Rs 69 for existing customers.
It will allow users in Andhra Pradesh to make STD calls across all networks for 50 paise/min. Similar drawback with this plan is that it will not reduce your call charges for local usage. It would be a suitable option for users having high STD and restricted local usage. Validity – 6 months

Super 50 SLS:

This recharge voucher is priced at Rs 105 for new IDEA subscribers and Rs 104 for existing customers.
This recharge is a combination of the above two offers and will allow both local and STD calling at the rate of 50 paise/min. If IDEA users in Andhra Pradesh have equally high local as well as STD usage, this one is the best bet. Validity – 12 months

Tata Comm’s N Srinath ranks ahead of Bharti’s Sunil Mittal

yogen — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:56:02 +0000

Global Telecoms Business magazine has published its annual list of 100 business leaders from telecom industry across the world wherein it has ranked Tata Communications’ Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, N Srinath, at number 8 and its Chief Operating Officer, Vinod Kumar, at 60 in its global telecom power list.

The twist is that the magazine ranks Tata Communications N Srinath ahead of Bharti’s Chairman and group CEO, Sunil Mittal in the global telecom power list. Well this doesn’t really comes as a surprise as N Srinath was the sole Indian in last year’s top 10 list. Sunil Bharti Mittal, who is today considered to be one of the most influential man in the Indian telecom industry ranked at number 18.

The other Indians in the top 25 are Punit Garg, President and CEO, Reliance Globalcom (21), and Rajeev Suri, CEO of Nokia Siemens Networks (25).

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Vodafone offers per second billing in MP-Chhattisgarh circle

yogen — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:44:14 +0000

Vodafone is the newest entrant to offer the per second tariff option, although this option is restricted to the Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh circle only. To adopt to the per second tariff scheme, Existing Vodafone users will have to buy a special recharge voucher priced at Rs 59 which will enable them to make local as well as STD calls across all networks at 1 paisa/sec. This special card is called Bonus Card 59 and comes with an airtime of Rs 40.

People who presently do not use Vodafone can also get this scheme by purchasing a new Vodafone SIM car worth Rs 49 which will be set to this plan by default. The validity of this tariff option will be 365 days post which, users will have to re-purchase the special voucher.

Tata Teleservices crossed the 10 million subscriber mark in Maharashtra

yogen — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 14:24:56 +0000

Tata Group and Tata Teleservices (TTSL) subsidiary, Tata Teleservices Maharashtra Ltd. (TTML) today claimed crossing the 10 million subscriber base mark in the region. The region that comes under TTML comprise of the Mumbai, Maharashtra and Goa circles.

Tata Teleservices which operates under both GSM and CDMA technologies has been lately investing a lot in its infrastructure development and researching and developing new products and services.

Expressing happiness and joy, Dr. Mukund Govind Rajan, Managing Director, TTML, said, “We are humbled by the response and the trust our consumers have reposed in us. We will continue to introduce cutting edge products and services and do our best to live up to the market’s expectations.” Further he added that, “TTML has been rated as the only congestion-free network in its geography, in four consecutive reports, by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.”

IDEA Cellular launches GSM services in J&K

yogen — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:38:50 +0000

Earlier this year, IDEA Cellular had released its plans to launch its GSM service in 5 new circles which included West Bengal, Kolkata, North East, Assam and J&K. Well, a few days back we saw IDEA making a quite entry in Kolkata, now they have even successfully launched their services in the J&K circle.

The bad news is that, IDEA Cellular won’t be available in the whole of J&K circle. To initiate their operations, IDEA Cellular’s network will only be available in Jammu City, Bari Brahmana, Bishnah, Katra, Udhampur and Jammu-Katra Highway regions. Other major towns in J&K like Srinagar, Lakhanpur, Badgam, Anantnag, Mattan, Kulgam, Pulwama, Shopian, Ganderbal, Patan and Sumbal will be covered gradually.

Announcing the launch of operations, Mr. Ambrish Jain, Director – Operations, IDEA Cellular said,

“IDEA’s innovative and customized products and services, and superior network have enabled us to become the fastest growing mobile operator in the country. Our network and offerings in J&K have been designed keeping in mind the mobile communication needs of the people of this state. IDEA subscribers in the state will experience superior connectivity, whisper clear audio quality and zero call congestion on our network. IDEA will aim to drive penetration in the market enabling larger number of people in the state to gain access to mobile telephony services”.

IDEA starter kit:

IDEA Cellular is currently is not offering any postpaid plans in the J&K circle, but we expect the plans to roll out soon. Their offering is presently limited to only one prepaid plan which offers all Local calls and SMSes at just 40 paise\min or SMS and STD calls and SMSes on any network at just 60 paise\min or SMS. The SIM is priced at Rs. 49 and comes with an airtime of Rs 5 and a validity of 3 months.

MTS prepaid recharge now available at post offices in Chennai

yogen — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:15:40 +0000

Indian telecom operators are definitely making full hearted attempts to reach consumers. In today’s times when prepaid recharge vouchers are everywhere, MTS has gone a step further and has partnered with India post to make MTS recharge vouchers available across post offices in Chennai.

To start off with this new attempt to reach consumers, these vouchers will be initially available at 50 selected post offices and subsequently will cover all post offices in the city. MTS is sending SMSes to its customers in Chennai informing about this new tie-up. If wou have further information about this initiative then feel free to comment.

Contributed by: Ajaykumar

HTC and RCom bring Windows Mobile 6.5 powered Touch2

Kunal Gangar — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:30:02 +0000

India’s one of the first Windows Mobile 6.5 equipped phones have arrived, courtesy HTC and RCom. The Touch2 brings the new OS experience laden with an intuitive TouchFLO user interface and internet surfing RCom’s GSM network. Although HTC will sell Touch2 as an unlocked device, users buying from RCom can enjoy free data usage of 200MB per month for the first six months.

If you’re worried about the internal features, the phone is decently spec’d with a 528MHz processor, 2.8-inch touchscreen display, 3.2MP camera, GPS, microSD card slot and more.

HTC has set the price to Rs. 24,490 for MP and Maharashtra whereas the rest of India can buy it for Rs. 22,490.

Full Specifications:

Model : HTC Touch2
Processor Qualcomm MSM7225, 528 MHz
Operating System: Windows Mobile 6.5 Professional
ROM: 512 MB
RAM: 256 MB
Dimensions: (LxWxT) 104 X 55 X 12.9 mm (4.1 X 2.16 X 0.51 inches)
Weight: 110 grams (4 ounces) with battery
Display: 2.8-inch TFT-LCD touch-sensitive screen with QVGA resolution
Network: HSPA/WCDMA – Europe/Asia: 900/2100 MHz Up to 384 kbps up-link and 7.2 Mbps down-link speeds; Quad-band GSM/GPRS/EDGE:
Europe/Asia: 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
Device Control: Zoom bar
GPS: Internal GPS antenna
Connectivity: Bluetooth v2.1 with EDR and A2DP, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g, 3.5 mm audio jack, HTC ExtUSB (11-pin mini-USB 2.0)
Camera: 3.2 megapixel color camera with fixed focus
Audio supported formats: AAC, AAC+, eAAC+, AMR-NB, QCP, MP3, WMA, WAV, MIDI, M4A
Video supported formats: WMV, ASF, MP4, 3GP, 3G2, M4V, AVI
Battery: 1100 mAh Rechargeable Lithium-ion battery
Talk time: Up to 370 minutes for WCDMA; Up to 440 minutes for GSM
Standby time: Up to 500 hours for WCDMA; Up to 370 hours for GSM
Expansion Slot: microSD memory card (SD 2.0 compatible)
AC Adapter: Voltage range/frequency: 100 ~ 240V AC, 50/60 Hz
DC output: 5V and 1A

Aircel and BSNL to share network towers

yogen — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 04:05:08 +0000

This is a first of its kind deal between a public and private telecom company. Aircel is the first telecom operator to sign a passive infrastructure sharing agreement with the publically owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL).

Mr Gurdeep Singh, COO, Aircel, said, “This is a historic moment for the company. Aircel will now have access to strategically located sites across BSNL’s 21 circles (excluding Mumbai & Delhi). Leveraging BSNL’s passive infrastructure will help Aircel meet its aggressive network roll out plans in addition to reducing operational cost.”

Mr Kuldeep Goyal, CMD, BSNL added, “We are happy to partner with Aircel. BSNL has a strong nationwide coverage and offers the best value proposition in the Indian telecom market. Our objective is to provide quality and reliable service and thereby increase our partner’s confidence”.

Aircel currently has approximately 32,000 network base stations across the country and post this partnership, it will also have access to BSNL’s 45,000 network towers across its 21 circles.

India takes on China to become world’s fastest growing telecom market

yogen — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 03:39:50 +0000

Moody’s Corporation, a global rating agency headquartered in New York City has termed India as the “world’s fastest growing telecom market”. As per the official statement released by the company, India’s net additions of 10 million subscribers per month have far outpaced China’s monthly rate of increase which is now below 8 million. About two years ago, China was having the maximum number of new subscribers on a monthly basis.

Moody’s explained that emerging markets with relatively low penetration continue to have above-average rates of increase in new subscribers, but those numbers tend to slow down in a while. However, in India the numbers seem to be growing by the day.

The agency pointed out that Indian telecom players are using innovative means such as outsourcing network management and sharing mobile infrastructure to keep costs low in extending services to under-served rural areas. Which is why the Indian telecom market operates on the lowest cost in the world and also offers the lowest tariffs to consumers averaging to 44 paise/minute. The Indian market has one of the highest number of operators in the world and the number of operators are increasing each year.

We say

This is definitely a laudable milestone and a great achievement. However, we see this as just the beginning as the penetration of mobile services in India is only 39% when compared to 150% in Hong Kong and 54% in China. The Indian telecom operators still have a huge rural population to tap in and for that they would have to continue with their cost control and innovative operational mechanism. Plus if they get the required support and a little sacrifice from the Government of India than no one can stop India from becoming the largest telecom market in the world.

Source: The Economic Times

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