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• Jio, Airtel, Vi Asked DoT More Time for 5G Trials, But Why
• Redmi K50 Series to Feature Qualcomm and MediaTek Chipsets on its Four Smartphones
• Reliance Denies the Reports That Suggest Its Bidding for BT
• Oppo Reno 7 Series Leaked Prices for India and Other Details
• 5G to Become the Dominant Mobile Access Technology by 2027: Ericsson
• ACT Launches New High Speed Broadband Plans
• Apple Gift Cards Available for Sale on Amazon India
• Redmi Note 11T 5G With Dimensity 810 SoC Launched in India
• WhatsApp Might Soon Give Strong Competition to Rival UPI Apps
• Vi WiFi Calling Now Available in a New State
• Saankhya Labs Working on Next Gen 5G Products, to Launch in 2022
• Telecom Stocks See a Strong Opening on Tuesday Morning
• Starlink India Applies for Experimental License
• Bharti Airtel Prepaid Plans Under Rs 300 After Tariff Hikes
• BSNL Withdraws 100GB at Rs 499 Plan, Introduces New Quarterly Payment Scheme
• Galaxy S22 Series Camera Specifications Revealed
• Reliance Jio Might be Working on Two New Products for 2022
• MediaTek Dimensity 9000 Will Be First to Use Cortex-X2 Core in a Smartphone
• BSNL 4G Roll Out Seems Like a Distant Reality
• Airtel, Jio to Benefit a Lot Out of Tariff Hikes

Jio, Airtel, Vi Asked DoT More Time for 5G Trials, But Why Posted: 30 Nov 2021 11:00 AM PST Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea have asked for more time from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) for conducting 5G trials. While this is not a new development, there might be many who will be wondering why did the DoT allow a time extension. If delays in trials amount to delay in 5G roll out, wouldn't it be bad for India? There are a lot of factors at play here. One of the major ones is that the telcos are still developing use cases. From finding use cases, the telcos want to be ready to unearth all the commercial opportunities they can get as soon as they launch 5G networks. Government Would Have Wanted Telcos to Take More Time Anyway The DoT doesn't have a fresh 5G spectrum price recommendation from the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) yet. The National Frequency Allocation Policy (NFAP) is yet to be updated, and thus if the telcos had completed the trials, they would have to wait for a long-time just for the spectrum auctions to take place. It was better only that the telcos asked for more time to conduct 5G trials so that they could utilise the time in their favour and be more ready for 5G. Additionally, there's no clarity in terms of 5Gi being a part of India's future network ecosystem. There are a lot of people against and a lot of people with 5Gi. This is also something that network operators, as well as the government, needs to figure out together. All the telecom operators are already working on finding and developing multiple use-cases of 5G. The more time they get, the better it is for them. As time passes by, even more, 5G smartphone users will be added in India. It will also be good for Indian enterprises that the telcos have prepared themselves for 5G services which will ensure seamless working of the networks as nothing is happening in a rush.

Redmi K50 Series to Feature Qualcomm and MediaTek Chipsets on its Four Smartphones Posted: 30 Nov 2021 07:26 AM PST Redmi K50 series of smartphones have been in production for quite some time now, and it is one of the much-awaited handsets. Now in the recent development of events, it has been informed by a tipster that the Redmi K50 series will use two different chipsets for its smartphones. If the rumours are to be believed, two devices will use processors from MediaTek, and two devices will use Qualcomm processors. It has also been revealed that all four devices in the Redmi K50 series will come with the latest MIUI 13 pre-installed. The two processors from MediaTek that will be used in the devices of the K50 series are Dimensity 7000 and Dimensity 9000. The Dimensity 7000 launch is still awaited. The Current Speculations on Chipsets and MIUI 13 A recent report from a tipster has given the information on the processors that will be used in the four devices of the upcoming Redmi K50 series. It is being speculated that the devices will feature a Snapdragon 870 SoC, soon-to-be-launched Snapdragon 8 Gen1 SoC, along with the recently launched MediaTek Dimensity 9000 and yet to be launched Dimensity 7000 SoC. The reports also suggest that smartphones with Qualcomm processors will be faster and better than those with MediaTek chipsets. As of now, it is expected that Redmi K50 Gaming Standard Edition will be the device with MediaTek Dimensity 7000 chipset, while the Redmi K50 Pro could be powered by MediaTek Dimensity 9000 SoC. Moreover, it is possible that the Redmi K50 smartphones might be sold under the Poco brand as Poco F4 GT or Poco F3 GT. Moreover, it is also anticipated that the devices in the K50 series will come with factory-installed MIUI 13; however, it is not known that whether MIUI 13 will be based on Android 11 or Android 12. The head of Xiaomi had earlier ensured that the MIUI 13, which will bring about a lot of changes such as a performance boost and probably a redesigned user interface, will be available before the end of 2021. Some of the features that will come with MIUI 13 can include redesigned fonts and animations along with a change in the design of the icons and the addition of new wallpapers.

Reliance Denies the Reports That Suggest Its Bidding for BT Posted: 30 Nov 2021 06:18 AM PST Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries denied any participation in the bidding for the UK telecom group British Telecom, popularly known as BT. Calling the report entirely speculative and baseless, the telecom major requested the media to conduct due diligence and verification before publishing such articles. The mentioned news report was published by The Economic Times on November 29, 2021. The report cited that Reliance might make an unsolicited offer to purchase BT or may obtain a controlling share in the firm. It also said that the company might make partnerships with BT's networks arm Openreach and fund its fibre expansion plan. British Telecom is already under many speculations, primarily a takeover by Franco-Israeli billionaire Patrick Drahi who bought a 12.1% stake in the company this year. The shares of BT has leapt as much as 9%, valuing the company at 16.5 billion pounds ($22 billion) with the news. Reliance Jio hikes prepaid tariff by 20% from December 1 Following Airtel and Vodafone Idea's footsteps, Reliance Jio increased its prepaid tariff by 20% from December 1. The entry-level plan of Rs 75 for JioPhone subscribers will now cost Rs 91 with the new price hike. The Rs 129 base plan with unlimited calling and data will be increased to Rs 155. The Rs 149 prepaid plan has increased to Rs 179, and the Rs 199 prepaid plan costs Rs 239. The Rs 249 prepaid plan price has also increased, and it now costs Rs 299. There are also changes in the validity plans. The Rs 399 plan will cost Rs 479 from December 1. The Rs 444 plan offering 2GB per day would cost Rs 533. The 84-day validity plans that cost Rs 329, Rs 555 and Rs 599 now cost Rs 395, Rs 666 and Rs 719, respectively. The telecom service provider lost 11 million subscribers in the July-September quarter and ended with 429.5 million users. When the quarter ended, Jio's ARPU stood at Rs 143.6. The market leader targets to hit 500 million subscribers this quarter. Today is the last day for the subscribers to recharge with the old prices still in effect.

Oppo Reno 7 Series Leaked Prices for India and Other Details Posted: 30 Nov 2021 05:42 AM PST The upcoming flagship from Oppo – Oppo Reno 7 series was launched in China recently after a long span of rumours and speculations. Oppo Reno 7 series includes three devices –Reno 7, Reno 7 Pro and for the first time replacing Reno 7 Pro+, Oppo Reno 7 SE. The launch of the devices in China has provided an idea for the price range when the series is launched in India. It has been recently revealed by a report that Oppo Reno 7 and Reno 7 Pro will launch in India in the month of January and for unknown reasons Oppo Reno 7 SE might not launch in India. Price and Other Devices to be Launched The recent rumours have not only given the idea about the launch of the devices but also its price range. It is being anticipated that Oppo Reno 7 is going to be priced between Rs 28,000 to Rs 31,000 depending on the different variants of the devices. On the other hand, Oppo Reno 7 Pro is expected to cost between Rs 41,000 to Rs 43,000. Moreover, the rumours have also suggested that along with Reno 7 series, the company is also going to launch a brand-new pair of truly wireless earbuds in the country which will be priced at a similar range as Enco X currently priced at Rs 9,999. In addition to this, it is being speculated that along with the earbuds and two models of the Reno 7 series, the makers could also launch the Watch Free in India. Recalling the Specifications The specification details of the device were reported earlier as well as the devices are all set to come with much powerful MediaTek and Qualcomm processors. The Oppo Reno 7 will feature a 6.43 inch Full-HD+ AMOLED display with up to a 90Hz refresh rate and a maximum touch sampling rate of 180Hz. On the other hand, Oppo Reno 7 Pro has a 6.55-inch Full-HD+ Super AMOLED display with up to 90Hz refresh rate and 180Hz touch sampling rate. It also includes a Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection. The Reno 7 Pro uses the latest chipset from MediaTek – MediaTek Dimensity 1200 MAX while with Oppo Reno 7 model, makers have gone for Qualcomm's Snapdragon 778G chipset. Both the devices will operate on Android 11 ColorOS 12 and are backed by a 4500mAh battery; however, Reno 7 uses a 60W fast charging technology whereas Reno 7 Pro comes with a 65W fast charge technology. The camera module for Reno 7 includes a triple rear camera setup which features a 64MP main camera, an 8MP wide-angle camera, and a 2MP macro camera and the selfie snapper is a 32MP camera. The top model Reno 7 Pro, however, has a 50MP Sony IMX766 sensor, also used on Find X3 Pro, a wide-angle camera, and a 2MP macro camera. It also has a 32MP selfie camera.

5G to Become the Dominant Mobile Access Technology by 2027: Ericsson Posted: 30 Nov 2021 04:39 AM PST The mobile data traffic has increased 300 times since 2011, reveals the tenth edition of the Ericsson Mobility Report. Due to the demand in China and North America and the decreasing price of 5G devices, the report anticipates 600 million 5G subscriptions by the end of this year. While the world added 48 million new 4G subscriptions since 2011, there is a net addition of 98 million 5G subscriptions. The 5G subscription is expected to cover more than two billion people. 5G will soon become the dominant mobile access technology by 2027, covering 75% of the global population and 62% of the worldwide smartphone traffic. It will account for 50% of all mobile subscriptions worldwide. The deployment of 4G LTE networks since 2011 has resulted in generating 5.5 billion new smartphone connections. 5G handsets today account for 23% of global volume. Mobile network traffic has increased 42% year-on-year in Q3 2021, accounting for 78 exabytes (EB), including traffic generated by Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services. The total mobile network data traffic is likely to reach 370EB by the end of 2027. Broadband IoT has surpassed 2G/3G, and it connects the largest share of IoT applications worldwide. It is expected to account for 47% of all cellular IoT connections by the end of 2021. There will be massive deployments of broadband IoT in the coming years, especially in the areas of e-health, wearables, logistical asset tracking, environmental monitoring and smart meters, and smart manufacturing tracking and monitoring devices. IoT deployments are expected to account for 51% of all cellular IoT connections by 2027. 5G Trends in India 5G will represent 39% of mobile subscriptions in India at the end of 2027. The country will witness around 500 million subscriptions. The number of smartphone subscriptions is expected to be 810 million at the end of 2021. Smartphone subscriptions are likely to increase at a CAGR of 7$, reaching over 1.2 billion by 2027. Smartphone subscriptions accounted for 70% of total mobile subscriptions in 2021, which may increase to 94% in 2027. 4G will remain the dominant technology in India in 2027, dropping from 790 million in 2021 to 710 million in 2027. As more subscribers migrate to 5G, 4G subscriptions are expected to reduce from 68% of mobile subscriptions in 2021 to 55% in 2027. The pandemic-induced work from home has contributed to the average traffic per smartphone increasing to 18.4GB per month in 2021, up from 16.1GB per month in 2020. The average traffic per smartphone in the India region is the second-highest globally. Total mobile data traffic in India has increased from 9.4EB per month in 2020 to 12EB per month in 2021. This will further increase by 4X times to reach 49EB per month in 2027.

ACT Launches New High Speed Broadband Plans Posted: 30 Nov 2021 03:29 AM PST India's largest fiber broadband Internet Service Provider (ISP) ACT Fibernet which is based in Bengaluru has initiated ACT GIGA for the residents of the national capital of India. The new GIGA plan from ACT is sure to provide its users a constant 24 hours 1 Gbps of internet speed and unlimited data at the cost of Rs 1,999. Moreover, the ISP has also launched a new ACT WELCOME plan which will come at a price mark of Rs 549 and will provide the subscribers unlimited data at 50 Mbps of internet speed. Both these plans have come into effect from November 30 and users can opt for the plan from the official website of ACT. The Technological Advancement by ACT ACT Fibernet has been making its mark in the industry when it comes to providing high-speed broadband connections. In 2017, ACT became the first ISP to bring GIGA in India in the city of Hyderabad and since then GIGA has been made available in multiple cities across India by ACT Fibernet. The demand for data has been increasing constantly especially since the past couple of years as the home usage of the internet has considerably increased. Users are using it for various purposes such as streaming, gaming, working from home, learn from home which sometimes requires quite a few devices to connect simultaneously. Thus, it becomes important to have a high-speed broadband connection that can provide users with seamless connectivity across multiple devices as per their requirements. What makes ACT Fibernet stand apart is its revolutionary new Smartfiber® technology which constructs a virtual dedicated speed lane ensuring that customers get constant internet speed throughout the day. In simpler words, instead of getting "up to speeds" users get a "full speed" which would mean that users get equal download and upload speed at any time, and in this case with ACT GIGA users will get 1 Gbps of download as well as upload data. Moreover, analysis from Ookla® Speedtest Intelligence® has revealed that ACT Fibernet has become the faster wireless broadband service provider in terms of download and upload speeds in the city of Delhi. The Chief Operating Officer for Atria Convergence Technologies Limited (ACT) has said in an interview that reliable and high-speed internet connectivity is very crucial with the rising demand for home usage of data. He added that the new GIGA plan will help a lot of home users, small and large offices which require high-speed data connectivity, and will provide the users in Delhi with a flat-out and seamless broadband connection. Furthermore, he added that to make ACT suitable for a larger user base, the ISP is also launching an affordable ACT WELCOME plan and he said that the company is confident of transforming how the internet is used in the country with the introduction of these plans.

Apple Gift Cards Available for Sale on Amazon India Posted: 30 Nov 2021 02:24 AM PST Those who are eyeing Apple Store gift cards can now grab them from Amazon India. The gift cards are sold in various denominations starting from Rs 200 and extending up to Rs 5000. The users can use Apple gift cards to purchase digital content, including apps from Apple Store, subscribe to music, TV programs on Apple TV, games on Apple Arcade, ebooks and audiobooks from Apple Books. Besides the digital content, the users can also use it to purchase services and goods from Apple Store or for the iCloud subscription. Apple gift cards come in the denominations of Rs 200, Rs 500, Rs 1000, Rs 2000 and Rs 5000. Amazon has a dedicated page for Apple gift cards. According to Apple, the cards bought from Amazon India will be deemed valid only for the purchases made in India. The users cannot redeem the same for cash, resale or shipments outside India. Apple has also released a scam warning for the users concerning the Apple gift cards. If someone approaches the user to use the codes for any payment other than the purchase of Apple goods and services, it is likely a scam, and the user must report such incidents to the local authorities. Apple Self-service Repair Program In another development, Apple recently announced a Self-service repair program allowing users to complete their repairs via a new online store dedicated to parts and tools. The company will open the provision initially for iPhone 12 and iPhone 13, and Mac computers will be next on the line. Apple Self-service repair program will open in the US in 2022 and will be expanded to other countries throughout the year. The initial phase of the program will focus on modules like battery, display and camera. The customers have to depend on the repair manual provided to perform the repair. For Apple parts and tools, they can place orders online. In addition, the users can also return the used parts for recycling, against which the users will receive credits.

Redmi Note 11T 5G With Dimensity 810 SoC Launched in India Posted: 30 Nov 2021 12:22 AM PST Redmi Note 11T 5G has just launched in India. The device comes powered by the 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC coupled with a massive 5,000mAh battery. It is a smartphone geared to deliver a strong 5G smartphone experience to users but is also very affordable at the same time. The Redmi Note 11T 5G comes with support for fast charging as well, which ensures that users can get moving fast. Here are the complete specifications of the Redmi Note 11T 5G. Redmi Note 11T 5G Specifications in India The Redmi Note 11T 5G comes with a 6.6-inch FHD+ display with 90Hz refresh rate and 240Hz touch sampling rate. It also has a 3.5mm audio jack along with an IP53 rating which will ensure a delightful experience for the users. As mentioned above, the smartphone is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 810 SoC coupled with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. Users can also expand the RAM by up to 3GB for an even smoother experience. The 5G bands supported by the device are SA: n1/ n3/ n5/n8/ n28/ n40/ n78 and NSA: n1/n3/n40/n78. It has a 5,000mAh battery with support for 33W fast charging. In the camera department, there's a dual-camera setup at the rear with a 50MP primary sensor and an 8MP ultra-wide-angle-sensor. For selfies, there's a 16MP sensor at the front. The Redmi Note 11T 5G will run on MIUI 12.5 based on Android 11 out of the box. Redmi Note 11T 5G Price in India The Redmi Note 11T 5G comes in three different variants in India — 6GB+64GB, 6GB+128GB, and 8GB+128GB for Rs 16999, Rs 17999, and Rs 19999, respectively. It will be available from December 7, 2021, with an introductory discount coupon of Rs 1,000. Users can further get a discount of Rs 1,000 with the ICICI Bank offer. The smartphone will come in three colours – Stardust White, Aquamarine Blue, and Matte Black.

WhatsApp Might Soon Give Strong Competition to Rival UPI Apps Posted: 29 Nov 2021 11:44 PM PST WhatsApp, one of the leading texting and social media applications in the world, is gaining market in the online payments space as well. The Meta owned messaging platform can now add up to 40 million users for its payments service. The development was first reported by PTI, which said the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has allowed WhatsApp to double its user base for online payments service to 40 million from 20 million. This will help the company in competing with other leading online payment applications, including Google Pay and PhonePe. WhatsApp Can't Move too Aggressively Because of Regulations To keep the competition fair in the Indian market, the government ensures that there are regulations in place. The NPCI looks over delivering a fair playground to applications and companies in the online payments space. According to Statista, WhatsApp had over 487.5 million users in India in June 2021, making the country the biggest marketplace for social media applications. If WhatsApp had permission to allow all of its users to make online payments in India, it might have crushed Google Pay, PhonePe, Amazon Pay, and other applications in the market. To ensure that there is always fair play and no monopoly in the online payments space, NPCI only allows companies a certain percentage of the market share to play with. WhatsApp had earlier announced that it was offering cashbacks of Rs 51 on the first five transactions to the users. This would have meant a cashback of up to Rs 255, which is not a bad incentive to give users the taste of convenience that they can get using WhatsApp for making online payments. WhatsApp Payments is still an alien feature to many people in the country. There are users who are worried about using the application for making payments because of privacy concerns that WhatsApp has. It will still take time for WhatsApp to strengthen its position as a leading online payments platform in India.

Vi WiFi Calling Now Available in a New State Posted: 29 Nov 2021 10:43 PM PST In a phased manner, Vodafone Idea (Vi) is extending the facility of VoWi-Fi or Voice Over Wi-Fi calling. The telco had last month added support for VoWi-Fi calling in the Rest of Bengal. Now, Vi has added yet another state/region to its list for Wi-Fi calling. Users in Punjab can now leverage Vodafone Idea's VoWi-Fi calling to make crystal clear calls even if they have weak network coverage inside their homes. Punjab is the latest telecom circle that has been added to the telco's list of support for VoWi-Fi calling. Places/Regions/States Where Vi WiFi Calling Is Now Available Vi WiFi calling facility is now available in the following states/regions/places – Punjab, Kolkata, Maharashtra & Goa, Rest of Bengal, UP East, UP West, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Mumbai, and Delhi. The company is moving slowly with adding support for VoWi-Fi calling service across India as it is being done in a phased manner. Features of Vi WiFi Calling Vodafone Idea's VoWi-Fi calling feature support will ensure that users are always able to make crystal clear calls even when they are in poor network zones. If the Wi-Fi network is strong, there will be no call drops either. The calls are always made from the Vi number itself. The best thing is that it doesn't carry any extra charges. But to use Vi VoWi-Fi calling service, users will have to use a device that is compatible with the same. Vodafone Idea VoWi-Fi Calling Service Are Compatible on These Smartphones Apple smartphones – OnePlus smartphones – Oppo – Realme – Samsung – Xiaomi – More smartphones will be added to this list in the near future. All the devices mentioned in the list above are compatible to make Wi-Fi calling with Vodafone Idea's network. Ensure that your compatible device is running on the latest version of the operating system. Vodafone Idea should soon roll out Wi-Fi calling support for other states as well.

Saankhya Labs Working on Next Gen 5G Products, to Launch in 2022 Posted: 29 Nov 2021 10:01 PM PST India should focus not only on the manufacturing of chips but also on the development of intellectual property that goes into these chips says Hemant Mallapur, Co-Founder & EVP Engineering, Saankhya Labs. Q1. How Has the Global Shortage of Semiconductors Impacted the Industry? Answer – Semiconductors are critical for every market ranging from consumer electronics, manufacturing industries, automotive industry, agriculture, healthcare, infrastructure, entertainment, telecommunications, transportation, energy management, military systems and space, to name just a few. The global chip shortage has had a very big impact on all these industries. With semiconductors being an important component of the products, the shortage of chips has led to a slowdown in production. This has led to massive delays in the delivery of goods. For example, there are reports of delays of 10-12 months for some automobile models. Companies like Apple have also slowed down the production of their iPhones. Q2. What Are Your Expectations From the Government That Is Reportedly Working on a Package to Push Semiconductor Production in India? Answer – The global chip shortage and the current geo-political scenario has prompted the government to work on a package for encouraging semiconductor fabrication. However, setting up of fabrication units is highly capital intensive with the requirement of billions of dollars for a single fab. The return on investment will happen only if an end to end ecosystem is developed. The government should also aim at promoting fabless semiconductor companies. We have a great talent pool as well as the presence of fabless MNCs in India. The R&D and output from the fabless companies will ultimately help in generating good ROI in the manufacturing of semiconductors. Q3. How Significant Is It for India to Have a Fabless Semiconductors Ecosystem? Answer – Fabless semiconductor companies are an integral part of the semiconductor ecosystem. They design the chipsets and own the Intellectual Property of each specific chip. Pureplay fabs do not design but only manufacture chips designed by their customers – the fabless companies. India should focus not only on the manufacturing of chips but also on the development of intellectual property that goes into these chips. This will enable the Indian ecosystem to capture a higher share of the semiconductor value chain. Q4. Why Should the Government Prioritize PLIs for Fabless Semiconductor Design Firms? Answer – As discussed, fabless companies form a crucial part in the semiconductor ecosystem. India already has a major presence of fabless semiconductor companies. Most of these are MNCs who have their development teams in India, and while the design happens in India, IPR is owned by the parent company outside India. The Indian government should prioritize the PLI scheme for fabless semiconductor companies with a focus on homegrown entities that develop IP owned in India. India has a great semiconductor design talent pool, and a PLI scheme will help Indian startups' chances of delivering to a global competitive market. Priority of the PLI scheme should be on domestic R&D with special emphasis that incentivises investments in R&D. Growth of semiconductor design IPR in India will be a boost to #AtmanirbharBharat for the semiconductor sector. Q5. Are You in Talks With the Government for Designing Semiconductor Chipsets? Answer – We interact with government departments to share our inputs on policies to boost semiconductor development in India. As a privately held product company, we assess market opportunities and decide our business roadmap on our own. So far, we have not come across any opportunity to engage with the government in the development of specific products. We do have one of our chip development projects being supported by an accelerator called SFAL (Semiconductor Fabless Accelerator Lab), which is funded by the IT Ministry, Government of Karnataka and managed under the aegis of industry association IESA (India Electronics and Semiconductor Association). Q6. Tell Us About Your Partnership With ISRO. Answer – We are the strategic MSS (Mobile Satellite Service) technology partner for ISRO. We have developed a number of Satcom and Sat-IoT solutions in association with ISRO. These include locomotive tracking terminals installed in Indian Railways, vessel tracking solutions for fishermen going in the deep sea, S-Band handheld satellite phones, hubside equipment, satellite receive-only terminals etc. Our solutions work with ISRO's satellites. Q7. From Space Towers to Home Appliances, Semiconductors Are Needed for Manufacturing of Almost Every Electronic Systems. What Is Your Take on the Market Potential? Answer – Semiconductors is a mature industry globally with three decades of track record. The size and growth trends of the industry are well-understood. India's consumption of semiconductors is now estimated to be around $50 Billion per year and growing at 26% YoY. The global market is $550 Billion in size with a similar growth rate. Newer markets emerge continually. As the demand for electronic devices rises, so does the demand for semiconductors. The pandemic has brought in the concept of working from home and online education that has led to an exponential increase in demand for devices like smartphones, laptops and tablets. This has led to a big boost in demand for semiconductors. The rollout of newer technologies such as 5G networks, Cloudification, Artificial Intelligence, Smart cars and Blockchain across the globe will ensure that the semiconductor industry continues to grow at these rates. 8. What Are Your Future Plans in the Semiconductor Space? Answer – Saankhya Labs is now a Telecom and Broadcast equipment OEM apart from being a Fabless semiconductor company. We continue to develop our semiconductor chipsets based on Software Defined Radio (SDR) technology. We are presently developing our next generation products for 5G Telecom infrastructure, and they will be introduced in the market starting early next year.

Telecom Stocks See a Strong Opening on Tuesday Morning Posted: 29 Nov 2021 08:34 PM PST Telecom stocks, including Vodafone Idea (Vi), Bharti Airtel, and Reliance Industries Limited (owns Reliance Jio), saw a strong opening on Tuesday morning. All the telecom operators were trading in the green shorts after the market opened. At the time of writing, Vodafone Idea (listed as Idea) is trading at Rs 11.55, which is 3.13% in the green. Vi's stock had previously closed at Rs 11.20 and opened at the same price mark as well. The telco's stock has already touched a high of Rs 11.60 as of now. Bharti Airtel is trading at Rs 747.50, which is 1.10% in the green. Airtel's stock had previously closed at Rs 739.35, and it opened at Rs 740. Airtel has touched a high point of Rs 747.90 until now. Lastly, RIL is trading at Rs 2457, which is 0.63% in the green. RIL had previously closed at Rs 2441.50 and today opened at Rs 2468, touching a high of Rs 2475.90. Why Are Telecom Stocks Rising? Telecom stocks are rising because of the recently announced tariff hikes from all the operators. Reliance Jio, Vodafone Idea, and Bharti Airtel all have announced prepaid tariff hikes, and Vi and Airtel have already implemented it. This is going to give a boost to the average revenue per user (ARPU) figures of the telcos, which in turn is also going to be increasing their overall revenues. Further, the tariff hikes ensured that Vodafone Idea was in a position that would allow the telco to get the attention of outside investors. Both Jio and Airtel's cash flow is expected to be positively impacted by over $1 billion. This is going to allow the telcos to invest more freely in the 5G spectrum auctions scheduled for 2022. Even Vodafone Idea will be in a better position to pay the upcoming debt. Vi would also be able to invest in its 4G networks aggressively with the money it is able to raise.

Starlink India Applies for Experimental License Posted: 29 Nov 2021 07:49 PM PST SpaceX owned Starlink has applied for a license in India to begin pilot services. To recall, the satellite communications company had been asked by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to stop selling pre-bookings in India as it didn't have any regulatory approvals to do so. Thus, Starlink has applied for a license now to fall in line with the local laws. According to a TNN report, Starlink has applied for an experimental license. This will allow the company to conduct a pilot test of its services with a limited set of users. With an experimental license, Starlink still doesn't have the authority to start selling commercial services or on-board paid customers. Starlink India Filing Formal Applications for Necessary Licenses Starlink is also filing and submitting formal applications for the necessary licenses to provide full-fledged services. It will take a few months for the process to be completed, that too if all the conditions are met. To launch commercial service in India, Starlink would require a Global Mobile Personal Communication by Satellite (GMPCS) license. On top of that, the company will have to get clearances from the Department of Space (DoS) and the telecom ministry. The license the company has currently filed for is meant to get allowance for testing services with a limited set of users to collect data and proof. Starlink is already hiring in India. The company is hiring for two posts in India for which the complete details are present in the website of SpaceX. Sanjay Bhargava, Starlink India Head, said in a LinkedIn post that the company has seen a strong response and a lot of people have already applied for the job. If all things fall in line for Starlink, it is expected that the company will start offering services from 2022 in India. The company's competitors including OneWeb and more are also looking to start providing services in India in 2022.

Bharti Airtel Prepaid Plans Under Rs 300 After Tariff Hikes Posted: 29 Nov 2021 05:52 PM PST The recent price hikes by the telcos of the country have been the talk of the town. The major telecom companies have increased the tariff for their prepaid plans. The telco giant Airtel has also surged tariffs for its prepaid plans by around 25%. Reports suggest that the changes in these tariffs will pave way for telecom companies to invest in 5G mobile services over the medium term. In this article, we are going to look at the updated prepaid plans provided by Airtel after the price hike under Rs 300. The New Prepaid Plans The first and foremost plan under Rs 300 provided by Airtel is the truly unlimited calling plan which comes at a cost of Rs 155. The validity period of this pack is for 24 days. Along with the unlimited calls, users also get a total of 1GB of internet data with this plan. Users can send a total of 300 SMS with this plan and also receive a free trial of the mobile edition Amazon Prime Video. The next plan from Airtel comes at a price tag of Rs 179 and also provides the unlimited calling option for a validity period of 28 days. Users get a total of 2GB of internet data along with the subscription to a free trial of mobile edition Amazon Prime Video. Users also get 300 SMS with this plan. It is to be noted that post 300 SMS for both the above plans, Airtel charges Rs 1 for every SMS sent. The next plan on the list is Rs 239 prepaid plan. This plan provides unlimited calling and 100 SMS per day. Moreover, users also get 1GB of internet data per day and the validity period of the plan is 24 days. Additional benefits include a free trial of mobile edition Amazon Prime Video and access to Wynk Music. The fourth plan in the list is quite similar to the above. This plan comes at a cost of Rs 265 and provides unlimited calling and 100 SMS per day as well. Subscribers also get 1GB of internet data per day just as above, however, the validity period of this plan is for 28 days. The additional benefit includes the same free trial of mobile edition Amazon Prime Video and access to Wynk Music. Lastly is the plan that comes just under Rs 300. This plan which comes at a price mark of Rs 299 provides unlimited calling and 100 SMS per day. Users get 1.5GB of data per day and the validity period of this plan is 28 days. Along with Amazon Prime Video and Wynk Music, this plan offers some additional benefits like access to Shaw Academy and free hellotunes.

BSNL Withdraws 100GB at Rs 499 Plan, Introduces New Quarterly Payment Scheme Posted: 29 Nov 2021 11:28 AM PST The state-run telecom service provider Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) discontinued its Rs 499 broadband plan that offered 100GB of data. Although the existing customers of the plan will continue, the telecom operator will make efforts to migrate them to other regular BSNL fibre broadband plans. This pan-India plan was first introduced in early May 2021 and offered 10 Mbps download speed up to 40GB with a post-FUP download speed of 512 Kbps. BSNL 200GB CUL Fibre Plan BSNL is also giving a circle-specific FTTH plan in Kerala. Dubbed as 200GB CUL Bharat Fibre CS358, the plan offers 50 Mbps download speed till 200GB and a 2 Mbps post- FUP limit of 200GB. The fixed monthly rental for this plan is Rs 499. BSNL Quarterly Payment Scheme In other developments, BSNL introduced a new quarterly payment scheme for its fibre plans of Rs 599, Rs 799 and Rs 999. The new scheme will allow customers to avail extra validity for 15 days for the plans without any additional cost. The users can pay for one of these fibre plans for three months to get 15 days of extra validity. The payment scheme is valid until January 23, 2022. BSNL Fibre Basic Plus, charged Rs 599, gives the users 3300GB of data with 60 Mbps speed and unlimited domestic calls. On exhausting the data limit, the speed will get reduced to 2 Mbps. BSNL Fibre Value pack of Rs 799 broadband plan offers 100 Mbps speed till 3300GB data. Post-FUP limit, the speed will get reduced to 2 Mbps. BSNL Fibre Premium Plan of Rs 999 broadband plan offers 200 Mbps speed for 3300GB, after which the speed will be reduced to 2 Mbps. The customers of this plan also get a free membership to Disney+ Hotstar. The subscription will be cancelled if the user opts out of this fiber plan. In addition, the user will get an unlimited voice calling facility with this plan. The plans are announced on a promotional basis for 90 days, after which the plan will either be extended or discarded.

Galaxy S22 Series Camera Specifications Revealed Posted: 29 Nov 2021 07:47 AM PST The Galaxy S22 series by Samsung is expected to be launched in February of next year. As reported earlier, the series will include three new smartphones Samsung Galaxy S22, Samsung Galaxy S22+, and Samsung Galaxy S22 ultra. It was revealed previously that the Galaxy S22 ultra would pack a 108MP camera on the rear, but now the new information has been unveiled regarding the camera specifications of Galaxy S22 and S22+ models. The Camera Specs and Other Details Just like the Galaxy S21 series launched this year, the S22 and S22+ models of the series will have an identical camera setup both on the front and back of the device. It is speculated that both the device will feature a triple rear camera setup and a selfie shooter as a part of the camera module. The cameras on the back will include a 50MP primary camera sensor with an f/1.8 aperture. The devices will also feature a 10MP telephoto lens with f/2.4 aperture and a 12MP ultra-wide-angle camera with f/2.2 aperture. The selfie shooter on the devices will have a 10MP camera with an f/2.2 aperture. The newly revealed information has also provided the details on the screen size of the devices. The Samsung Galaxy S22 is set to feature 6.06 inches screen, whereas Galaxy S22+ will have a larger 6.55-inch screen. Earlier, leaked images of the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra model have already surfaced. The images suggest that the device will have a curved edge, hole punched display. A quad rear camera setup can also be seen in the image of the device, and it is also rumoured that the device will have a devoted space for an S Pen. Moreover, as reported earlier, leaks have suggested that the Samsung Galaxy S22 series will be equipped with Qualcomm's upcoming Snapdragon 898 processor for the countries of the US, Africa, and Asia. However, the device will operate on Exynos 2200 chipset in South Korea and other parts of the globe. Both the chipmakers haven't launched their upcoming flagship processors yet. Exynos 2200 is expected to arrive next year, whereas Qualcomm is expected to unveil its Snapdragon 898 by the end of November.

Reliance Jio Might be Working on Two New Products for 2022 Posted: 29 Nov 2021 07:03 AM PST The month of October witnessed the launch of the JioPhone Next smartphone by Reliance Jio in India. Now, as the reports come in, it is speculated that the company is working on two new devices to launch in the foreseeable future. These two devices will be consumer electronics products and, to be precise, a Smart TV and a new tablet. Both these products are expected to be launched next year. What Could The Two Jio Devices Offer? The reports from 91mobiles suggest that Reliance Jio is working on launching a brand new Jio Tablet and Jio TV in India in 2022. The rumours also suggest that the telecom giant is also working on laptops along with these two products. The tipster only revealed the information about the expected production of the new tablet and Smart TV and unfortunately, no specification details about these devices were provided. However, it is anticipated that the new tablet from Jio could run on PragatiOS out of the box. PragatiOS is the operating system that was built in partnership with Google for the JioPhone Next by the company. This operating system is also powered by Android. Moreover, the tablet can be expected to have a larger screen size, and the processor for the device could include an entry-level chipset from Qualcomm as Jio is already in partnership with the American chipmaker giant. Just like other products, the new tablet could also be expected to have a hard-hitting price range. Coming to the Jio Tv, it can be speculated that the company will be designing a device that could support multiple OTT platforms. It is to be noted that Jio already provides subscriptions to various OTT platforms via its JioFiber broadband services. It won't come as a surprise if the telco decides to bundle the new Smart TV with JioFiber to provide users with a large variety of entertainment options. Other than it is expected that the Smart TV from Jio could come in various size options designed according to the needs of the consumers. Both of these products will aid Jio to take a step ahead in the direction of diversifying its products catalogue.

MediaTek Dimensity 9000 Will Be First to Use Cortex-X2 Core in a Smartphone Posted: 29 Nov 2021 06:36 AM PST The recent reports suggest that the latest processor from MediaTek – The MediaTek Dimensity 9000 chipset will cost twice as much as its predecessor, the MediaTek Dimensity 1200. This would mean that the devices equipped with MediaTek Dimensity 9000 SoC will also cost more than usual. Qualcomm is also expected to launch its Snapdragon 8 Gen1 processor this week at the tech summit, and MediaTek Dimensity 9000 will still be cheaper than the former. The Details About the Chipset The rumours have suggested that the new MediaTek Dimensity 9000 SoC will start shipping around March of next year, and the makers will also launch MediaTek Dimensity 7000 chipset following the release of the former, which has been designed to compete with the Snapdragon 870 chipset from Qualcomm. MediaTek Dimensity 9000 is expected to become the flagship chipset for MediaTek and will take over its predecessor MediaTek Dimensity 1200 from this year. Talking about the specifications of the chipset, it is expected to be built on a 4nm fabrication process which will not only enhance the performance of the device but will also be very power efficient. The flagship from MediaTek will be the sub-6 GHz 5G chipset and is expected to be the first processor to feature Cortex-X2 core in a smartphone, which will be clocked at 3.05 GHz. The upcoming chipset from MediaTek will also become the first chipset to feature Bluetooth 5.3. The cores of the chipset will include a single Cortex-X2 ultra core running at 3.05 GHz, which will be complemented by a cluster of three Cortex-A710 "super cores" clocked at up to 2.85 Ghz. These cores will be joined by a cluster of another four efficiency Cortex A510 cores clocked at 1.8 Ghz. Additional details on the chipset suggest that it will feature LPDDR5x RAM with a speed of up to 7500 Mbps and has 14MB of cache. As of now, it is anticipated that the device will be launched in February of the next year, and speculations suggest that Redmi K50 could become the first smartphone to feature the upcoming flagship chipset from MediaTek. The makers have claimed that the chipset could provide as much as four times the performance and power efficiency as compared to its predecessors.

BSNL 4G Roll Out Seems Like a Distant Reality Posted: 29 Nov 2021 05:02 AM PST One of the saddest stories in the telecom industry of India will remain of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL). The state-run telco, despite having a PAN-India presence couldn't make a strong impact in the telecom sector. BSNL has been running dry for years now, surviving on relief packages. The telco has been unable to roll out 4G networks and 2021 is at the curb of ending. Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which is a partner of BSNL and is helping the telco with indigenous 4G roll out has failed to meet the conditions of the Expression of Interest (EoI). BSNL Not Happy With TCS BSNL has expressed its unhappiness with TCS on not meeting the EoI conditions. The state-run telco had asked TCS to use 40W radios instead of the 20W radios it was using primarily. 20W radios increase the need of more tower sites which also drives up the cost for diesel, maintenance, and more. Due to this, BSNL has to extend its estimated time for 4G network roll out. The state run telco was earlier denied to upgrade 13,533 sites to 4G in western and southern India by the government nominees on the board. Despite getting the nod from the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS) for going ahead with the 4G upgradation plans, BSNL had to cancel it because the government nominees on the board felt that it was unsafe to go with Nokia equipment. The government nominees wanted the telco to go with 4G network completely built in India, regardless of whether it hurt the company or not. Nokia is already working with private operators in India in the 5G trials. There was no real security threats in using Nokia's equipment, but the government nominees saw it in a different manner. The telco's 4G networks might not come to life by the end of 2022. This is also if there are no delays. In case there are more delays, it is hard to say how BSNL will keep working with losses the way it is right now.

Airtel, Jio to Benefit a Lot Out of Tariff Hikes Posted: 29 Nov 2021 04:10 AM PST The recent hike in prices of the prepaid plans by the telecom companies has been the highlight for more than a week. Now, as events unfold, it is being reported that Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio are expected to witness an additional $1 billion increase (around Rs 7,500 crores) in each of their Free Cash Flow (FCF) annually. According to an ET Telecom report citing Goldman Sachs, this rise in FCF is expected because of the growing market share at the expense of Vodafone Idea's share in addition to the price hike. Consequents of the Price Hike It was also reported earlier that the Indian telecom companies have the world's lowest Average Revenue Per User (ARPU) even after having the world's second-highest data traffic. However, the recent price hikes are going to raise the ARPU of Jio and Airtel by Rs 20 and Rs 25 respectively by the end of March 2022. Vi on the other hand is in a struggling scenario as the cash-strapped telecom company hasn't been able to improve its networks and neither has it been able to turn its low revenue-generating feature phone users to 4G services. Vi's ARPU is expected to only rise to Rs 5 to Rs 114 by the end of March 2022. On the other hand, it is also anticipated that there won't be an effective increment in shares of Vi and Airtel after Reliance Jio announced the price hike in its prepaid plans on late Sunday evening. The shares of Vi rose about 4.3% whereas Airtel saw a 0.3% increment in its shares following the price hike by Jio. Reliance Jio witnessed a rise of 1.4% in its shares to rise up to Rs 2,447. The uniformity in price hike all over the telecom industry would mean that Airtel or Vi will not be able to increase the number of subscribers significantly. The price hike on the other hand is very crucial for the future of Vi. It is speculated that these recent tariff hikes will help Vi to raise capital and pay off its pending fundraise which would finally help the telco to focus on ramping up its 4G networks. However, Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel will be looking forward to gaining Vi's share which will increase the FCF of the two telecom giants. As per the reports, Vi is required to raise $600-$800 million in the next six months to pay its obligations on non-spectrum debt.

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