The Indian prime minister's office has recently sought an update from the Department of Telecom about the steps taken to tackle the security issues arising from the importing of telecom equipment.
Growth in the Indian telecom sector will be driven by value-added services like mobile banking in the next phase, with the market for such offerings set to rise fourfold to $9 billion by 2015, according to a report by KPMG and FICCI.
The number of telecom towers in India is expected to double in the next 4-5 years as a result of growth in mobile data (3G expansion), coverage rollouts, expansion by new operators and new technologies, according to a report by Macquarie Group.
Sequans Communications, a Paris-based 4G chipmaker, introduced three new FDD and TDD LTE baseband chips, a companion RF chip and two new LTE platforms, supporting all global FDD and TDD LTE networks.
Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL) plans to alter the course of data services market by rolling out 4G mobile broadband services by the end of 2012 on tablets priced at $67.
The Telecom Equipment Manufacturers Association today raised the issue of the susceptibility of the Indian telecommunications network to collapse at any juncture due to what the group called a lack of initiative on the part of the current United Progressive Alliance government.
India's total of telephone subscribers (wireless and wireline) increased to 914.6 million at the end of October from 906.9 million the previous month, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India reported. The country's wireless subscriber base grew to 881.4 million from 873.6 million in September, an increase of 0.89%.
Indian Information Technology and Telecommunications Minister Kapil Sibal has said that even with a subscriber base of 899 million and 120 million Internet users, conducive regulatory environment is far from a saturation point.
India's Tata Communications today announced the launch of its IPX+ (IP eXchange) mobile broadband enablement framework. The company said that 70 mobile network operators have signed up for the new framework, which is designed to help capitalize on the latest technology innovations in the mobile broadband space via better interprovider mobile service delivery and management.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh reassured the telecom industry today that his government is fully committed to sustaining growth, creativity and enterprise in a "vitally important" sector of the country's economy.
In case of spectrum allocation beyond 4.4 MHz and up to 6.2 MHz to GSM operators, the service provider should have covered at least 50% of the district headquarters or any other town in lieu thereof, according to Indian telecom regulator's recommendations for assignment of additional spectrum.
The subscriber base of Indian telcos increased by 7.9 million new users in September, an increase of 0.9% from August, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI).
Gigabit Passive Optical Network technology, designed and developed in India by the Centre for Development of Telematics, was transferred to manufacturers today.
India's state-run telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL), which has posted a loss of $1.2 billion in its most recent fiscal year, plans to lease out spare capacity of its network of towers to private players, according to news reports.
Indian telecom operator Idea Cellular has picked up the most subscribers from other companies through the mobile number portability facility launched by the government a few months ago.
The chiefs of leading telecom companies met Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other key policy makers to discuss contentious issues plaguing the telecom sector.
The Indian Home Ministry is examining a report submitted by a high-level panel of experts on a focused and practical approach to the issue of decrypting some of the encrypted communication in a readable format, a task with which India's security agencies have encountered problems.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's recommendation of a 60% market share cap on merger and acquisitions has been turned down by a standing committee of the Department of Telecommunications.
"If there is any responsible player coming into the industry and growing the business especially by data, it is very good news," a top RCom official said.
India's top telecom bureaucrat, R Chandrashekhar, Monday said the Telecom Commission expects to conclude discussions on TRAI's proposal on 2G spectrum pricing and M&As in the telecom sector within a week.
A report by India's telecom regulator states that the combined earned revenue of the country's telecom operators was $9.6 billion at the end of Q2 (September 2011).
The Indian Telecom Equipment Manufacturers Association (TEMA), in a letter to the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday, asked for a level playing field for the home grown telecom equipment manufactures.
The Indian government should consider granting 'critical infrastructure' status to active and passive infrastructure in telecommunications and broadband sector, according to a report prepared by consultancy major KPMG and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), an Indian industry body.
