STel to end network operations in India (India)
Telecom operator STel, has been asked to shut down its network in Indian regions – Himachal Pradesh, Orissa and Bihar, by the Department of Telecom (DoT). According to reports, the decision was taken owing to security concerns. P. Swaminathan, Director, STel Pvt Ltd, said that they have received the government notice but details for the same have still not been given.
As per reports, Swaminathan has said that they have got the letter from the DoT, but it does not explain why they are being asked to shut down operations. They would like to ascertain the exact reasons for this decision so that they can help the Government in resolving any issue. Further, they had started offering services only after they received all permissions from various Government authorities; so this comes as a surprise to them.
Recent reports confirm that the operator is planning to shut down its operations in the country and has also helping consumers to switch to other operators by encouraging them to avail of the mobile number portability (MNP) service.
Following the Supreme Court’s decision to cancel 122 licences awarded in 2008, STel’s partner Bahrain Telecom also agreed to sell its stake in STel to Sky City Foundation for USD174.5 million. After considering all factors, the operator believes that shutting down its operations seems to be the best step.
Reliance Communications launches 3G services in Jharkhand (India)
Reliance Communications has launched the first 3G network in Jharkhand. In the first phase, the services will be available in 6 towns of Jharkhand including Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Hazaribagh and Jharia. Recently, Reliance Communications had launched 3G services in Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chandigarh.
The network is capable of offering peak speeds up to 28 Mbps.
Reliance Communications will be launching Reliance 3G services across all 13 telecom circles, where it holds 3G licenses, by end of Fiscal 2010-11. The company is aiming to offer national 3G coverage through associations with other 3G licensees in the balance 9 telecom circles during the course of next year.
Reliance Communications holds 3G licenses in the telecom circles of Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, North East, Jammu & Kashmir, Orissa and Assam.
Telcos collaborate to offer 3G services (India)
Mobile phone companies are confirming 3G alliances as many service providers are lined up to launch these high-end services this quarter. So far, only two of the six private operators that won third generation frequencies, Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices, have launched services on this high-end platform.
According to sources, Aircel and Tata Teleservices are in talks for a pan-India alliance to use each other’s 3G airwaves. Both these companies jointly have 3G frequencies in all circles except the metros of Delhi and Mumbai and Himachal Pradesh. But, they are poised to get 3G spectrum in the lucrative Delhi and Mumbai metros as they are the only bidders for MTNL’s offer to share its 3G network with two firms that pay the highest price.
Sources revealed that the three GSM biggies- Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular are also in the last lap of finalizing their strategic 3G alliance.
According to Reliance Communications executive, the company was in talks with three operators for a 3G roaming alliance, and added an announcement is due soon, but refused to divulge additional details.
With no operator bagging pan-India 3G spectrum, which enable services such as video calling, interactive gaming and high speed internet on phones, all mobile phone companies are sewing up roaming agreements with each other to retain high-end users. The country’s top two mobile firms, Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications (RCOM), each won 13 of the 22 telecom zones on offer while Vodafone Essar, Idea Cellular, Aircel and Tata won a total of 9, 11, 13 and 9 circles, respectively.
Bharti, Vodafone and Idea jointly have 3G spectrum in all circles except Orissa. They also jointly own the world’s largest telecom infrastructure company, Indus Tower, enabling them to share mobile networks for 3G launch.
Batelco’s 3Q net profit drops 24%; mobile users more than doubled
Bahrain Telecommunications Company (Batelco) has recorded a 24% year-on-year plunge in Q3 net profit to lower revenues in its domestic market, while the results also revealed its share of losses from STel, its start-up mobile joint venture in India.
According to Batelco’s chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, net income for the three months ended 30 September 2010 dropped to US$51.1 million, down from US$67.10 million in the corresponding period of 2009.
As per reports, over the first nine months of 2010 Batelco’s total revenues were as US$678.29, with net profit falling 17% year-on-year to US$175.06million. Nine-month operating profit of US$214.31 million represented a 3% decline compared to the same period in 2009.The group’s total number of customers stood at 7.9 million at end-September 2010, including a mobile subscriber base of around 7.5 million, up 53% from 4.9 million a year earlier.
Umniah, Batelco’s 96%-owned subsidiary in Jordan, reached a mobile customer base of 1.8 million, while Sabafon in Yemen, in which the group holds 26.9% equity, reached 3.2 million subscribers.
Saudi venture Etihad Atheeb (15% owned by Batelco, offering services under the GO brand) recorded a total of 92,000 customers, up 5% quarter-on-quarter. Subscriber numbers at STel rose to 1.64 million across its operations in Bihar, Orissa, Himachal Pradesh and the recently launched Assam and North East telecoms circles of India.
Batelco’s mobile customer base in Bahrain down by 4% quarter-on-quarter to 836,000 at the end of September 2010, while broadband users also declined in the quarter to 86,000 customers, representing a 2% drop.
According to the company, loss of profitable market share at home, particularly in the key areas of mobile, broadband and International Direct Dial (IDD), has presented Batelco with tough challenges in the home market … Batelco’s transformation into a lower cost organization is underway.
Videocon faces tough competition: Planning to sell 26% of Videocon Telecommunications
Videocon Industries is busy looking for possible buyers to sell 26% of its telecom arm Videocon Telecommunications that has 1.9 million subscribers and has a market share of 0.31%. The company in the recent past had started discussion with South Korean company SK Telecom, UAE’s Etisalat and Turkey’s Turkcell. By selling 26% of Videocon Telecom, the main company will raise around INR 15,000 crores which will be employed to improve services and expand operations to improve customer base.
According to a source, Videocon is struggling to keep up with the major players like Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications, and Vodafone due to fewer offerings to the customer.
The telecom company currently operations in Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana, Mumbai, Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, UP East, UP West and Himachal Pradesh. Videocon recently announced 1 paise/sec international calling to US and Canada. Such schemes may help the company in fetching new customers, but if the company wants a stand in the market it needs to improve service and infrastructure to handle larger customer base.
Reliance Com expects 25-30 percent increase in subscriber base (India)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: 25-30 per cent jump in the subscriber base has been expected by Reliance Communications on monthly basis in Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Launch of a new scheme offering unlimited calls for CDMA users has been cited as the reason behind the increase in the subscriber base.
According to Reliance Communications CEO (Punjab, Haryana, HP and J&K) Arvind Kumar, the company anticipates that there will be growth of 25-30 per cent per month in its customer base with the introduction of the new offer.
Punjab market generates highest average revenue per user at Rs 325 for Reliance. The average revenue per subscriber of Punjab is still lower than that of metro cities
S-Tel India crosses one-million subscribers.
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: Over one million subscribers have been added by telco S-Tel within 90 days of the launch of its services in India. A joint venture between Chennai-based Siva Group and Bahrain Telecommunications, S-Tel started its services in December 2009 and currently operates in Bihar, Orissa and Himachal Pradesh.
S Tel along with Unitech Wireless, Swan Telecom, (now known as Etisalat DB) and Datacom got the license last year and it has spectrum to offer services in six circles and plans to launch services in Assam, Jammu & Kashmir and North East this year.
According to S Tel Chief Executive officer Shamik Das, the company made a positive start in December 2009 and is delighted to achieve a sizeable base of 1 million S Tel subscribers within just 90 days of service launch.
Last month, the telecom department had directed S Tel to stop mobile services on security concerns but the directive was later withdrawn.
Tata launches GSM service in Himachal Pradesh (India)
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: GSM service of Indian telco Tata Teleservices has been launched by the operator in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh under the Tata Docomo brand. Currently, Airtel, BSNL, Idea-Spice, Aircel, Vodafone and S. Tel are the operators providing network facility to the people of Himachal Pradesh.
According to Rajeev Narayan, the company’s vice-president, corporate affairs, the company is offering per second tariff structure for every service.
286 towns and 4,342 villages in the state have Tata Teleservices connection.
Vivendi eyes stake in Datacom Solutions
www.WirelessFederation.com/news: In a bid to expand its network in India, Idea Cellular launched its commercial in Jammu & Kashmir. Nearly 300 base stations has been added by Idea covering Srinagar City, Badgam, Anantnag, Mattan, Kulgam, Pulwama, Shopian, Ganderbal, Patan and Sumbalin the Valley, along with its recently launched network in Jammu City, Bari Brahmana, Bishnah, Katra, Udhampur and the Jammu-Katra Highway.
Idea’s EDGE-enabled infrastructure covers twelve districts across J&K. According to Anish Roy, Idea’s chief operating officer for Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and J&K, Idea understood the mobile communication needs of the people, and the unique geography of the region and designed a network that covers large population areas, and a product portfolio suiting the needs and affordability of the local populace
