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• How to Make Airtel VoWiFi Calls
• Google Chrome New Feature Makes it 13% Faster for Android Devices
• Indian Telecom Operators Accelerate Network Deployments Held Up by COVID
• BSNL 4G: Government Disapproves Network Core Equipment from Foreign Vendors
• Apple iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro Production Won’t Happen in India
• Huawei, ZTE Might or Might Not be in ‘Trusted’ List, Clarity Needed
• Netflix Might Bring in New Login Verification System
• 5G Should Not Harm TV and Radio Services in India, Broadcasters Worried
• Google Pay Now Displays User Centric Targeting Ads in India
• Ericsson Achieves 5G Speeds in Excess of 1.5 Gbps on a Single User Device at C Band Frequency
• Vi No Longer Offers ZEE5 Premium Benefit With Postpaid Plans

How to Make Airtel VoWiFi Calls Posted: 12 Mar 2021 06:00 AM PST Bharti Airtel is one of the trusted telecom operators in the Indian telecom space. The telecom giant strives to deliver the best network across India for seamless connectivity. One of the intriguing features which the telco offers is Wi-Fi calling. In case you are not aware, Wi-Fi calling is an advanced technology that allows telecom users to use calling services over a wireless internet connection. Airtel Wi-Fi calling offers crystal clear call without call drops or breaks in conversations. To know how to activate Airtel Wi-Fi calling services on your smartphone, read the article to the end. Steps to Activate Airtel Wi-Fi Calling in Android Smartphones To activate Airtel Wi-Fi calling services in android devices, unlock your smartphone and navigate to the settings option. Under the settings option, open SIM Card & Mobile Networks. Once opened, navigate to SIM card settings and choose your Airtel SIM card. As you click on the Airtel SIM card, you will get the option to turn on Wi-Fi calling on your device. Turn on the Make Calls Using Wi-Fi option and finish the process. Once you finish the process, you will be able to enjoy calling services without any interruptions. Steps to Activate Airtel Wi-Fi Calling in iOS Smartphones Activating Airtel Wi-Fi calling services in iOS smartphones is easy. Unlock your device and navigate to the settings option. Under the settings option, click on mobile data and select your Airtel SIM card. Once you have selected your Airtel SIM card, choose Wi-Fi calling. After you have turned on the feature, you will be able to enjoy seamless calling services without any network interruptions. Airtel Wi-Fi calling services activation is simple and does not require the installation of any new apps or signup. Airtel users also get the option to switch between network calling and Airtel Wi-Fi calling without call interruptions.

Google Chrome New Feature Makes it 13% Faster for Android Devices Posted: 12 Mar 2021 05:18 AM PST One of the most popular and widely used internet browsing applications, Google Chrome has become 13% faster than before for Android smartphones. Google Chrome 89 is the latest version that is available for Android devices at the moment. The browser has become lightning-fast and more responsive with the addition of a new feature. This new feature will keep the 'freeze-dried' tabs or the tabs that you left open on your last browsing session in a lightweight version which will allow the users to interact with the tab while it actually opens in the background — more details on the feature ahead. Google Chrome 89 'Freeze-Dried' Tabs Feature The Chrome will save the tab you left open on your last browsing session in a lightweight version that will only take a size of a screenshot. This lightweight version of the page will be visible to you whenever you reopen it. Users can interact with the lightweight version of the page, meaning they can scroll up and down the page and even tap on any links present. During all this time, the actual heavyweight page will be loading in the background. Further, the latest version of Google Chrome for Android is expected to boot up 7.5% faster on startup, and there should be improvements in the memory usage by the app. Users should also experience less amount of crashes. Google has said that the latest version of Chrome will render 8% better, will have a 3% better GPU, and overall browser process performance should go up by 22%. The search engine giant has also confirmed the 64-bit Google Chrome for Android that will arrive for devices having at least 8GB of RAM and running on Android 10. The 64-bit Google Chrome application for Android should have 28% smoother scrolling and 8.5% fast loading with less input latency. The latest version of Google Chrome for Android can be downloaded from here – Download.

Indian Telecom Operators Accelerate Network Deployments Held Up by COVID Posted: 12 Mar 2021 04:20 AM PST Ciena, a networking systems, services and software company is witnessing "increased activity" in India, its Chief Executive Officer Gary Smith said in the first quarter earnings call on March 4, 2021. Smith said that the company continues to witness "encouraging signs of recovery from India" with the enhanced activity said to be happening on multiple fronts including deployments. In its first quarter results, the company said that it recorded US757.1 million (Rs 5511 crores) in revenues as compared to US$832.9 million (Rs 6063 crores) in the previous year quarter. Telecom Operators Starting to Roll Out Networks Held Up by COVID Smith in a release said that the company "delivered solid revenue and profitability" despite "continued challenging market conditions and dynamic industry environment." In the earnings call, Ciena CEO said that the company is witnessing "encouraging signs or improvements" across the world including India. "In India, we are seeing increased activity both in terms of beginning deployments that were held up because of COVID, that's beginning," Smith said. Ciena in 2019 signed multiple network deals with Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel with the deals said to cover both cellular networks and Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) services. It was highlighted that the partnership with Jio "lays the foundation for an adaptive network that can scale with high efficiency and dynamically adapt to fast-changing capacity requirements." Further, the partnership between Airtel and Ciena is to build "one of the world's largest Photonic Control Plane networks" in the country. It was said that the "new backbone network" will enable Airtel to "serve the exploding demand for high speed data services" in India. The network was set to be built across 130,000 kilometres and connect 4000 towns across the country. Smith in the fourth quarter earnings call in December, 2020, said that the company has been "disproportionately affected" in rolling out the new networks due to multiple reasons including COVID. New Business Opportunities Emerge as Operators Phase Out Huawei Equipment Meanwhile, Smith in the earnings call in March said that the company is also witnessing new business opportunities largely driven by the "desire" of the telecom operators to replace Huawei equipment from their networks. "We are seeing [it] being expedited in India and we won a number of those awards," Smith said. "We are seeing good activity in India. “India, I think, is moving faster in all dimensions of that change out, I think, because of the relationships between the two countries," Smith said. In December, the CEO of Ciena said that one of the three large operators in India is "very dependent on Huawei" but that the operator is "making plans to migrate away" from the Chinese vendor. It has to be noted that Jagbir Singh, chief technology officer at Vodafone Idea told ET on Tuesday that the operator is unlikely to award new orders to Chinese vendors for its core network. However, it was said that the operator will continue its relationship with the Chinese vendors in the areas where they already serve the operator. Smith said that the "major opportunity" for Ciena to bag the Huawei business is in Europe but that the orders "takes time" as the company is in the infrastructure business. "But time for decisions, time to operationalize, and to get all the back-office done and that is a multi-year program," Smith said. "Whilst this has had a lot of focus for all the reasons that we know in the last sort of 18 months to two years, we saw signs of this before and I would describe it more around reducing dependency."

BSNL 4G: Government Disapproves Network Core Equipment from Foreign Vendors Posted: 12 Mar 2021 03:27 AM PST Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has not been able to launch 4G services throughout India because of the restrictions that it had to face last year. The state-run telco had to scrap its 4G tender since objections were raised against the telco getting its core network equipment from foreign vendors. BSNL was then asked to purchase equipment from Indian vendors. Now, the Ministry of Communications (MoC), which was earlier in support of the telco, has turned down its request of sourcing core network equipment from foreign vendors such as Ericsson, Nokia, and Samsung. BSNL 4G Deployment Delay Continues The state-run telco had requested to use foreign vendors’ equipment, citing reliability issues with the products provided by the Indian companies. BSNL wanted network equipment that was already proven, and Nokia, Ericsson, and Samsung can all provide that. But according to an ET Telecom report, a powerful cabinet minister busy with the election work in West Bengal has turned down the suggestion made by the ministry, which was earlier in support of BSNL's decision to add a foreign vendor into the mix who can provide proven technology for the network. BSNL had said that a time period of four months that includes time taken for installation and setup of the equipment as too short for the Indian companies to generate proof of concept (PoC) for its network. Further, the state-run telco had said that the Indian companies aren't ready to provide a complete ecosystem of equipment for the network right away. It might take the Indian companies until the second-half of 2022 to become ready, which would be a huge delay. BSNL has communicated that it wants the PoC to be limited to a single region only against the four operational zones for saving a lot of valuable time. The state-run telco is looking to update 57,000 sites and has asked the Indian companies to submit proposals for the same through an Expression of Interest (EoI) for PoC.

Apple iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro Production Won’t Happen in India Posted: 12 Mar 2021 02:00 AM PST Apple has started the production of vanilla iPhone 12 in India. Foxconn, one of Apple’s manufacturing partners, will be spearheading the task of assembling the latest generation iPhones in India. Foxconn will be assembling the iPhone 12 in its Tamil Nadu facility. The iPhone 12 will be manufactured for both domestic and exports purposes. According to an ET Telecom report, the iPhone 12 mini will not be manufactured in India. A Livemint report further suggests that the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max will also be imported from China for India. iPhone 12 mini Won't be Manufactured in India Earlier, Apple had plans for manufacturing the iPhone 12 mini in India on its Wistron facility based in Karnataka. But that plan has been shelved by the company now. It is worth noting that Wistron just resumed manufacturing older iPhones after a three months halt because of Labour violence at its facility. Apple hasn't removed 'probation' from Wistron and will continue to monitor if the company is working and fulfilling all of its duties. But this is not the reason why the iPhone 12 mini didn't make it to India for manufacturing. The reason is the low demand for the variant. Apple could have gone to Foxconn for the iPhone 12 mini productions, but since the variant doesn't have a good demand, it doesn't make sense for the company to start manufacturing it in India. There is also speculation going on in the market that Apple might discontinue the iPhone 12 mini. But that remains to be seen as no official word from the Cupertino tech giant has arrived yet. Further, Apple is slowing down the production of the iPhone 12 mini globally and has asked some of its manufacturers to totally stop the production for some time and some manufacturers to reduce the number of iPhones being produced by half. It will be worth the wait to see if Apple reduces the price for the iPhone 12s manufactured in India.

Huawei, ZTE Might or Might Not be in ‘Trusted’ List, Clarity Needed Posted: 12 Mar 2021 01:05 AM PST June 15, 2021, has been decided as the date from when the telcos won't be able to procure network gear/equipment from 'non-trusted' companies. The authority for making a list has been given to the National Cyber Security Coordinator (NCSC). Since the list hasn't been finalised yet, the telcos are wondering whether Huawei and ZTE fall in the list of 'trusted' companies to provide network equipment. According to an ET Telecom report, clarity on the matter is required because both ZTE and Huawei have a strong footprint in networks all around the country. NCSC to Oversee Telecom Gear Procurement in India NCSC has been given the authority to oversee all the telecom gear/equipment procurement in India. If the telcos are sourcing their gear from a 'non-trusted' company, they will first have to get the permission of NCSC. If all the Chinese companies, including ZTE and Huawei, are not listed under the 'trusted' list, Indian telcos would either have to procure equipment from other parts of the world or go for homegrown technology, which might be a little expensive. But this will ensure that the complete 5G rollout takes place without any Chinese company in the mix. It will truly become the first step for India towards getting China out of its ecosystem. The telcos will be asking NCSC to define how 'trusted' companies and vendors will be selected so that a roadmap for the future can be created. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) will request an early meeting with the NCSC to bring some clarity on the matter. Earlier, it was being said that the core of a network must not contain gear/equipment from non-trusted companies. But now, it might be for the complete network and clarity on the same would be out soon. In the meantime, Bharti Airtel has awarded a meaningful project to Huawei. It will be interesting to see which course the future of Huawei and ZTE goes in India.

Netflix Might Bring in New Login Verification System Posted: 12 Mar 2021 12:00 AM PST The global over-the-top (OTT) content giant, Netflix, is working on introducing a new login verification system for users worldwide. The new system is under testing at the moment, and a select number of users have been picked for the testing. Many users share their passwords with other people who then share it with more people, sometimes without the knowledge of the account owner. This results in two things, a) Netflix losing out on business, b) some people getting hold of the Netflix account without the authority/wish of the account owner. The new login verification system aims to solve both issues. Netflix Password Verification System Netflix will ask users trying to login into the account for the details sent to the owner's device when the login process was initiated. The details will be sent to the account owner via text or email. Only when the person enters the details required to authenticate the process, he/she will be logged in to the account. This will allow the account owner in keeping track of who is trying to login into his/her Netflix account. Further, it will motivate people who are using the Netflix account of others to get their own one. It is worth noting that Disney+ Hotstar has already implemented an OTP system to do what Netflix is trying to do. The Netflix terms of service say that the account should not be shared with people who are outside the household of the account owner. As mentioned above, the new system is under testing at the moment and when it is rolled out for users globally is unknown. For the unaware, Netflix is also testing its 'Mobile +' plan in India. This is not the first time this plan has come for the users in the country. It will be available for Rs 299 per month and allow users to stream content from Netflix in 'HD' quality on smartphones, tablets, and computers.

5G Should Not Harm TV and Radio Services in India, Broadcasters Worried Posted: 11 Mar 2021 11:20 PM PST The next-generation connectivity technology, 5G will be an essential part of the digital Indian ecosystem. While 5G's use cases suggest that it will add to the country’s growth, broadcasters are worried that it might harm the satellite TV and radio services in India. The broadcasters have said that a buffer zone should be created between the frequencies of the TV and telecom services to ensure that both can operate without any interference from one another. Adequate Separation Required in Bands to Ensure Smooth Operations The government has decided to allocate frequency in the 3.0-3.6 GHz band to the telcos for rolling out 5G services. It is worth noting that all the TV channels in India operate between the frequency of 3.7 GHz to 4.9 GHz. Thus, the broadcasters are a little worried about 5G interrupting the radio and satellite TV services. According to a TOI report, the broadcasters have said that a difference of 100 MHz between the 5G band and the satellite TV band is 'crucial'. It needs to be there for ensuring the smooth functioning of the TV industry in India. CEO and MD of Times Network, M K Anand, has said that while 5G is crucial for India’s growth, it should be rolled out in a manner in which it doesn't affect the broadcasting industry that includes both satellite TV and radio services. Anand said that 'adequate separation' between the bands is necessary so that both the industries can provide their services without any interruptions. The government should hear the worries of the broadcasting industry. But 5G is yet to arrive in India. The next-generation network’s commercial rollout is not expected until the end of this year or early 2022. The 100 MHz difference in the frequency bands of both the telecom services and the satellite TV services will be important for the government.

Google Pay Now Displays User Centric Targeting Ads in India Posted: 11 Mar 2021 09:07 PM PST Google Pay is getting new privacy features in India, which are worth talking about. Google Pay is one of India’s leading payments apps that works on Unified Payments Interface (UPI). Starting next week, the Google Pay app will provide users with more controls on how Google Pay activity will be used to personalise features within the app. However, Google says the users’ personal information is never sold to anyone and the transaction history in Google Pay will not be shared with any other Google product for targeting ads. A new Google Pay app update will be rolling out next week that will allow the users to turn on and off the targeting ads functionality. Google Pay Gets New Privacy Features: Check What It Means to You Google always allowed users to control their data. Touting it as the next big step, Google says the Google Pay app settings will display more controls to decide how a user’s in-app activity will be used to provide personalised features within the app. All users will be asked to choose whether they would like to turn the control on or off as soon as they upgrade to the next version of the Google Pay app, said the search giant in a blog post. If a user turns on the ‘Personalisation within Google Pay’ feature, the app will deliver a more tailored and personalised experience within the app. For example, users will be able to see more relevant offers and rewards based on the activity within Google Pay, including transaction history. That said, even with this setting turned off, Google Pay will continue to work just as well, albeit without personalisation. Users who update Google Pay on Android and iOS can access these controls to modify their personalisation experience on Google Pay based on their preference. Google also says the Google Pay users will also be able to manage how the individual transactions and activity within Google Pay are used for personalisation by visiting account.google.com. On the website, Google Pay users can view and delete individual transactions and activity records.

Ericsson Achieves 5G Speeds in Excess of 1.5 Gbps on a Single User Device at C Band Frequency Posted: 11 Mar 2021 07:48 PM PST Ericsson today said it achieved a new record of over 1.5 Gbps 5G speeds on a single user device at C Band frequency. This is a new record in Ericsson’s C Band product portfolio. The telecom gear maker in a blog post said the milestone leverages the most advanced Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) technology with 5G. Ericsson also confirmed the optimisation of its MIMO algorithm with the help of advanced reciprocity-based beamforming technology. The optimisation forms four separate optimal beams from Ericsson’s base station towards the single user while minimising the beams’ interferences to reach the peak throughput. The live C Band network of Ericsson is present in North America. How Did Ericsson Achieve This Feat? Ericsson Live C Band network at its North American headquarters uses a 64T64R AAS radio that’s located at the rooftop of its office building. The C Band is supported by a 5G core network as part of the 5G Distribution Innovation Network at Ericsson’s facility in Plano, Texas. Furthermore, Ericsson said it is committed to continue bringing the best technology to realise the full potential of 5G early to the market. With this new capability, Ericsson underscores the importance of the mid-band spectrum to the development of 5G. In the past, Ericsson successfully demonstrated a live C Band network and the industry’s first 16-layer Multi-User MIMO 256 QAM with 8 UEs over 100 MHz in the United States. Back then, that test set a new C Band performance benchmark with 5.4 Gbps peak cell capacity, with spectrum being a scarce natural resource, Ericsson full-stack radio platform achieved record-high spectral efficiency (54 bit/Hertz/second). It also says the mid-band spectrum offers a balanced combination of capacity and coverage. The US is prepping for an important C Band auction and the telcos in the country are looking to leverage this spectrum to complement their existing high-band and low-band deployments. The C Band spectrum consists of 500 Mhz between 3.7-4.2 GHz, of which a total of 280 MHz between 3.7 and 3.98 GHz is being cleared for 5G use in tomorrow's auction in the US.

Vi No Longer Offers ZEE5 Premium Benefit With Postpaid Plans Posted: 11 Mar 2021 05:46 PM PST Vodafone Idea Limited (VIL) has stopped offering ZEE5 Premium subscription with its postpaid plans. The telco recently started offering Disney+ Hotstar VIP subscription with select prepaid plans and all the postpaid plans priced above Rs 499. The ZEE5 Premium subscription, which usually costs Rs 999 per year or Rs 99 per month, was offered by Vi for a while with its postpaid plans priced above Rs 499. The basic Vi postpaid plan of Rs 399 never offered any OTT subscription benefit apart from Vi Movies & TV. The Vi postpaid plans for individual users start at Rs 499, and for family users, they start at Rs 598/Rs 649. It looks like Vi has swapped the ZEE5 Premium subscription with Disney+ Hotstar VIP. Vodafone Idea Removes ZEE5 Premium OTT Subscription Benefit As mentioned above, Vodafone Idea’s postpaid plans priced above Rs 499 used to offer free ZEE5 Premium subscription. However, it no longer offers this benefit. Instead, the postpaid plans of the telco come with Disney+ Hotstar VIP subscription worth Rs 399 for one year. Vi RED range of postpaid plans now come with OTT subscriptions of Amazon Prime, Disney+ Hotstar VIP and Vi Movies & TV App. Vodafone Idea has updated the terms and conditions for the ZEE5 Premium subscription on its website. “ZEE5 Premium subscription on above mentioned postpaid plans of rental 499 and above is withdrawn for fresh subscription w.e.f 00:00 10th March 2021.” The term ‘fresh subscription’ is a bit confusing here. It might be possible for Vi to reintroduce the ZEE5 Premium subscription benefit in the coming days after renewing the contract with ZEE Entertainment Limited. Even the Vi REDX postpaid plan of Rs 1,099 is now listed on the official website without the ZEE5 Premium benefit, which is underwhelming. While launching the REDX plan last year, Vi said it would offer the best benefits possible. The Rs 499 individual postpaid plan offers unlimited voice calling benefit, 75GB of data every month with rollover up to 200GB and 100 SMSes per month. The Rs 699 postpaid plan ships with unlimited data (capped at 150GB), 100 SMSes per month and unlimited voice calls. The Family range of postpaid plans priced at Rs 649, Rs 799, Rs 999 and Rs 1,348 (REDX Family) also ship without ZEE5 Premium membership going forward. On the flip side, the telco has five prepaid plans of Rs 355, Rs 405, Rs 595, Rs 795 and Rs 2,595 with ZEE5 Premium subscription.

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