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• RailWire High-Speed Wi-Fi Facility Now Available at 6100 Railway Stations in India
• Motorola Frontier Could Be Launched With Brand’s Latest 125W Fast Charge Tech
• Samsung Might Benefit from Airtel Eyeing to Avoid Ericsson, Nokia Duopoly for 4G/5G Gear
• Asteria Aerospace, Jio Subsidiary Launches SkyDeck DaaS Platform
• Oppo K10 Launched in India for Rs 14990 Only
• TRAI Conducts Pilot Test at Delhi GMR Airport for Deploying Street Furniture
• Apple Leads in India and Global Premium Smartphone Market Sales in 2021
• 4G Has Lot of Room to Grow in India, 5G a Distant Future
• TCS Can Rollout 5G for Telcos Across Globe, Currently Working on India Specific Stack
• Airtel vs Jio vs Vi: Who Offers Better Long-Term 1.5GB/Day Prepaid Plans
• Vi, Airtel, Jio and BSNL Top-End Family Postpaid Plans
• Vodafone Idea Promoters Have Yet Another Request from the Government

RailWire High-Speed Wi-Fi Facility Now Available at 6100 Railway Stations in India Posted: 23 Mar 2022 05:14 AM PDT RailTel owned by Indian Railways has announced that the high-speed free Wi-Fi internet facility has now been made available at 6100 railway stations across India. A statement from the RailTel informs that it has already commissioned a Wi-Fi facility at Ubarni Railway Station in Rae Bareli district of Uttar Pradesh over Lucknow Division of Northern Railway. With this, the corporation has come very close to providing a Wi-Fi facility in all the stations except for the halt stations. The Need for High-Speed Connectivity According to a report from ANI, Chairman and MD of the RailTel, Mr Puneet Chawla in a statement said that the responsibility to implement this remarkable Digital India initiative has been entrusted to Railway Mini Ratna PSU “RAILTEL”. He further added that RailTel has overcome the challenges posed by the pandemic and is providing state-of-the-art public Wi-Fi under the brand name of ‘RailWire‘. For those unaware, RailWire is a community-based retail broadband service provided by RailTel. What makes it more remarkable is the fact that out of the 6100 stations to receive the facility, more than 5000 of those are in rural areas. This has made Wi-Fi accessible to places that are usually out of the reach such as several stations of the North Eastern Region and all the 15 stations of Kashmir Valley. The digital divide in India between the rural and urban areas is quite significant and RailWire Wi-Fi at stations is playing a major role in connecting the unconnected. A majority of stations of this public Wi-Fi network are located in rural India where connectivity is very poor. Thus, access to a Wi-Fi network will not only expand connectivity but will also increase the chances of growth and innovation in the country. Chawla further added that Wi-Fi facility at stations and particularly in rural areas has become very popular. He added that this project is a very important step in Prime Minister's Digital India Mission. For those who don't know, The Wi-fi is free for the first 30 minutes of usage every day at 1 Mbps speed. Users who want access to high-speed internet after the first 30 minutes can opt from a variety of plans which can be purchased online through net banking, wallet, credit card and more.

Motorola Frontier Could Be Launched With Brand’s Latest 125W Fast Charge Tech Posted: 23 Mar 2022 03:57 AM PDT The Lenovo-backed smartphone manufacturer Motorola is reportedly working on a new device called Motorola Frontier which has been in rumours for a while now. Now, renders of the said smartphone has surfaced over the web. Motorola Frontier is expected to be a premium smartphone and come with features and specs like a 144Hz refresh rate, flagship Qualcomm processor and more. However, the brand is yet to officially announce any details regarding the handset. Although a company official recently shared an image of a new 125W fast charge tech which could possibly be a hint towards the Motorola Frontier. Lenovo’s General Manager for Mobile Phone Business on Wednesday via his Weibo account shared an image of a new 125W charger. His post stated that the charger has a 125W charging tech and is highly compatible. It's a small-sized charger and weighs 130 grams. It is highly possible that the brand's Motorola frontier will be launched with a 125W fast charging technology. Motorola Frontier Specs It is expected that Motorola Frontier will come with a display featuring a 6.67-inch full-HD+ OLED display with a 144Hz refresh rate along with HDR10 support. According to some reports the smartphone is expected to be powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon SM8475 chipset which is being speculated as an upgraded version of the company's Snapdragon 8 Gen1. The processor on the device could be paired with up to 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM and up to 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage. On the camera front, Motorola Frontier is expected to have a triple rear camera setup which renders suggest will be headlined by a 194MP primary lens. The other cameras will include a 50MP wide-angle lens and a 12MP telephoto shooter. The front of the device will have a 60MP selfie snapper. Motorola Frontier is tipped to pack a 4,500mAh battery that supports 125W wired charging, and 50W wireless charging. The smartphone will also come with Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth v5.2, NFC, GPS support, and a USB Type-C port.

Samsung Might Benefit from Airtel Eyeing to Avoid Ericsson, Nokia Duopoly for 4G/5G Gear Posted: 23 Mar 2022 03:07 AM PDT Samsung has conveyed to the Indian government that it is interested in participating in the second phase of the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for the telecom sector. The South-Korean tech giant wants to set up telecom equipment manufacturing facilities in India. It is worth noting that Samsung had earlier avoided participating in the telecom PLI scheme because it didn't want to invest a large amount of money just to serve one client – Reliance Jio. According to an ET Telecom report, Samsung has been in talks with Bharti Airtel as well as Reliance Jio for supplying 4G and 5G gear. Airtel doesn't want to rely on only Ericsson and Nokia for everything it is doing. Thus, the telecom operator might form a gear supply contract with Samsung. Note that Samsung has already been working with Jio in its 5G trials. Jio had taken Samsung's help earlier for rolling out 4G across the nation. Thus, there might be a possibility that Jio might award Samsung a contract for supplying 5G gear too. Samsung Had Earlier Said It Doesn't Want to Come to India As mentioned above, Samsung had earlier said that it doesn't want to come to India and invest a huge sum of money just for one client when it can easily fulfil the global demand for telecom gear via its manufacturing facilities in South Korea, China, and Vietnam. But now, with Airtel becoming a possible client, Samsung might be looking to pump money into manufacturing within India. The South-Korean tech giant might also work on exporting gear from India to customers globally. Samsung can benefit greatly from the PLI scheme for the telecom sector while India will see more employment opportunities and a boost in its economy. Samsung already has made huge commitments in India, such as the humongous factory in Uttar Pradesh which was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018. Further, the company promised a Rs 4,915 crore investment for the factory.

Asteria Aerospace, Jio Subsidiary Launches SkyDeck DaaS Platform Posted: 23 Mar 2022 02:17 AM PDT Reliance Jio's subsidiary, Asteria Aerospace, a drone manufacturer and solution provider in India, has announced the launch of SkyDeck, a new Drone-as-as-Service (DaaS) platform. It is a cloud-based software platform built for delivering a DaaS solution to several industry verticals such as surveillance, security, agriculture, industrial inspections, and more. What Does SkyDeck Provide to Clients? SkyDeck offers a unified dashboard to the clients and services for drone fleet management. Customers can schedule and execute drone flights easily via SkyDeck. Further, things such as data processing, visualisation, and AI-based analysis of aerial data captured using drones is possible through SkyDeck. The company, in a release, said that SkyDeck takes care of operational transparency and it improves collaboration between stakeholders along with providing secure and centralised management for scaling drone programs across the nation. For the agriculture sector, SkyDeck offers data and insights which can help the farmers in accurately measuring crop traits, assessing the health of the crop, and optimising agri inputs. For construction and mining, SkyDeck helps with creating accurate site surveys for monitoring progress and maintaining accurate inventory records using drone-based aerial data. This platform can be used by different companies in different industries. Telecom companies can use SkyDeck and drones together to digitise and inspect assets for preventive maintenance, recording changes, and identifying threats. Neel Mehta, Co-Founder and Director of Asteria Aerospace, said the demand for drones has increased across sectors because of the recent liberalisation of regulations related to drone operations and the promotion of DaaS by the government. Mehta added that Asteria is already among the leading drone manufacturers in the country, and with the launch of SkyDeck, the company is addressing the need of the hour with an integrated drone software, hardware, and operations solution. SkyDeck is a solution built for companies or corporates who are looking to scale their drone operations. With the government green lighting the growth of the drone sector, more such solutions should arrive in the following months.

Oppo K10 Launched in India for Rs 14990 Only Posted: 23 Mar 2022 12:49 AM PDT Oppo has just unveiled the Oppo K10, another affordable 4G smartphone for the Indian market. It comes with a 50MP AI triple-camera setup at the rear. The device is powered by a powerful 4G chipset for budget devices and will run on ColorOS 11.1 based on Android 11 out of the box. It has a big battery with support for 33W SUPERVOOC charging. Let's take a look at the complete specifications and price of the smartphone. Oppo K10 Specifications in India The Oppo K10 comes with a 6.59-inch punch-hole display with support for 90Hz refresh rate and will run on ColorOS 11.1, which can support over 11 Indian languages. The smartphone packs the Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 SoC coupled with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage. Oppo also allows up to additional 5GB of virtual RAM expansion. Internal memory can also be expanded up to 1TB via a microSD card slot. There's a 50MP AI triple-camera setup at the rear with a 2MP Bokeh camera and a 2MP macro camera. For selfies, users get a 16MP camera sensor at the front. There's a 5000mAh battery inside with support of 33W fast charging. It also supports features such as optimised night charging and night-time standby. There's a 3.5mm audio jack, too, with a Type-C port for fast charging and data transfer. Oppo K10 Price in India The Oppo K10 has been launched in India in two variants. These two variants come with 6GB+128GB for Rs 14,990 and 8GB+128GB for Rs 16,990. Users can get this device at a flat discount of Rs 2,000 if they use SBI credit or debit cards. There's a Rs 1,000 cashback on the use of Bank of Baroda and Standard Chartered credit cards. It will be available in two colour variants — Blue Flame and Black Carbon. The device will be available starting March 29, 2022, at 12:30 PM via Flipkart and Oppo Online Store. Customers will also get a free Disney+ Hotstar subscription on the purchase of this smartphone.

TRAI Conducts Pilot Test at Delhi GMR Airport for Deploying Street Furniture Posted: 23 Mar 2022 12:19 AM PDT The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has kicked off a pilot study at the GMR international airport in Delhi for the use of street furniture in enhancing connectivity. The regulatory body has made a working group for the study, which will have representatives from the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), GMR, Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Ministry of Civil Aviation, and major telecom service providers. This study will help with gaining knowledge about how small cell deployment at the Indian airports using lamp posts, lit signage, traffic signals, and more. Why Is TRAI Conducting a Study on Small Cell Deployment? Small cell deployment on existing infrastructure can reduce the cost of network rollout and ownership of the network by a huge margin for the telcos. It will further enable better coverage for the consumers and help the telecom service providers in coming out with new technologies and services faster. The benefit of this won't just be limited to the passengers inside the airport but will also help the respective controlling airport authorities in launching new business cases for providing more efficient passenger and cargo handling services. The use of small cells will be of grave importance when it comes to 5G. With 5G, higher-frequency bands will come into play which in turn would mean that their coverage range will be very low. Thus, with the help of these small cells, the telecom operators can extend and improve coverage at a very efficient cost and in very less time. But there are a few challenges that need to be addressed around the deployment of small cells. Issues such as RoW (right of way) access, procedural simplification, and more need to be addressed first if India wants to go ahead with the mass deployment of small cells around the country. Similar pilot tests are being conducted in Bangalore's metro rail, Bhopal Smart City, and more. These pilot tests will give TRAI and the industry data about how small cell deployment should be done.

Apple Leads in India and Global Premium Smartphone Market Sales in 2021 Posted: 22 Mar 2022 11:17 PM PDT In 2021, the global premium smartphone market sales grew 24% YoY to reach its highest level ever. Premium smartphones contributed 27% out of the total global smartphone sales. Amongst all the brands, Apple had the biggest market share in global premium smartphone sales. According to Counterpoint Research's Market Pulse Service, Apple reached a 60% sales share mark in the global premium smartphone sales segment for the first time since 2017. This was driven by the 5G capabilities of the iPhone 13 and the iPhone 12 series. Apple Beat Samsung in all Major Regions Be it North America, Latin America, India, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, China, or the Middle East and Africa, Apple was ahead of Samsung in each region. In India, interestingly, OnePlus was ahead of Samsung when it came to premium smartphone sales in 2021. Compared to 2020, Samsung's market share in total premium smartphone sales globally fell from 20% to 17% while Apple's share grew from 55% to 60%. Tarun Pathak, Research Director, said OEMs such as Apple, Xiaomi, Vivo, and Oppo were aggressive in capitalising on the premium market gap left by Huawei, especially in Western Europe and China. Apple had a solid Q4 2021 in China where the Cupertino tech giant reached its highest ever market share. Samsung's market share in the premium smartphone sales globally fell in 2021 because the company didn't launch any new FE device or a Note device. In 2022, with the S22 Ultra donning the S Pen stylus, the figure might change a little. However, the demand for the iPhone 12 series is still strong because of the minor differences from the iPhone 13 series. In addition to that, the iPhone 12 series has become very affordable compared to its launch price. According to the data shared by Counterpoint Research, Asus and Oppo have more than doubled their sales in the premium segment in 2021.

4G Has Lot of Room to Grow in India, 5G a Distant Future Posted: 22 Mar 2022 10:11 PM PDT 4G networks are almost everywhere in India, but there are still many rural towns that don't have access to 4G services. This is because they are not the target market for the telcos. Laying fiber, setting up related infrastructure, and more things involved in rolling out 4G networks make it an expensive affair for the telcos. Getting a return on their investment in these rural areas can be a hard thing. Right now, millions of Indians are still using legacy mobile networks. They are doing so because they don't feel like they have any need for 4G. Further, most of them don't even own a 4G smartphone to start with. In terms of consumer revenues, telcos will benefit the most from 4G services. 5G networks are still a distant future for India. It will take at least three years or more before 5G can be a normal thing in the country. 4G Speeds Can be Improved It is time for India to jump to 4.5G and 4.9G, which is very close to what 5G offers. In terms of the developed use cases of 5G, consumers won't have much need for it. But with better 4G, people might be ready to pay even higher tariffs but get a better internet experience. Further, the competition in the 4G market of India is only going to grow from here as the state-owned telecom operator, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), launches its 4G later in the year. BSNL's 4G prepaid plans are expected to be cheaper than what users get with the private telcos. Consumers will keep their focus on 4G only for years to come. Even Ericsson had said in its mobility report for India 2021 that 4G will be the dominant network for consumers in India till 2027 at least. With 4G tariffs going up, the telcos are also benefitting from the higher ARPU (average revenue per user). Thus, there's no reason why telcos won't focus on growing 4G further. They have invested lakhs of crores for building 4G networks PAN-India, and they will want a good return out of it.

TCS Can Rollout 5G for Telcos Across Globe, Currently Working on India Specific Stack Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:16 PM PDT Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) said that it can roll out 5G for telcos across the globe any day. But right now, it is working on India specific stack for 5G. Kamal Bhadada, head for Communications and Information Services, TCS, told PTI that the company is already helping telecom operators across the globe in rolling out 5G networks. BSNL Working With TCS for 5G NSA It is worth noting that Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) is working with TCS and C-DoT for rolling out an indigenous 5G enabled 4G network. The state-run telco has finished its trials for 4G with TCS and is expected to roll it out by August 15, 2022. Bhadada said that TCS works as a system integrator and the networks that TCS builds are according to the specifics mentioned by the operators. While there is work going on 5G networks, Bhadada believes that it is still two to three years left before the cycle of 5G starts heavily. The Indian government will hold the first 5G spectrum auctions for the telecom operators in a few months. Speaking on 6G, Bhadada said 6G is at least four years away from any commercial right in the international market. TCS is the only private company in India that could help out BSNL with the radio stack for indigenous 4G and 5G. It will be interesting to see how power efficient the 4G networks built by TCS will be. Nonetheless, it is a step in the right direction. All the telcos are working towards rolling out 5G as soon as they get the spectrum. The Prime Minister's Office wants the telcos in the country to come out with 5G networks by August 15, 2022. Whether it will happen or not depends on how fast the telecom regulator can submit the spectrum recommendations to the telecom department. Even satcom players will be waiting for the regulator to come out with the recommendations to see what will happen to their future in India.

Airtel vs Jio vs Vi: Who Offers Better Long-Term 1.5GB/Day Prepaid Plans Posted: 22 Mar 2022 07:46 PM PDT The telcos of the country offer multiple daily data prepaid plans for their subscribers. With a majority of the population looking for economically suitable plans as well as plans that offer adequate data 1.5GB daily data plans from the operators are just apt. Mentioned below is a comparison between the 1.5GB long-term daily data plans offered by the private telcos of the country – Jio, Airtel and Vi along with the pack details. Vodafone Idea Prepaid Plans Talking about long-term plans, Vi has multiple prepaid plans to offer. The telco offers a daily data prepaid plan that provides 1.5GB/day for a validity period of 77 days at a price tag of Rs 666. Vi also provides another prepaid plan that provides 1.5GB/day for a validity period of 84 days at a cost of Rs 799. In addition to this, the telco offers two yearlong prepaid plans as well. Rs 2,899 and Rs 3,099 prepaid plans from Vi provide 1.5GB data for a validity period of 365 days. Rs 3,099 plan also comes with access to the Disney+ Hotstar subscription. All these plans from VI offer unlimited voice calls and 100SMS/day along with added benefits such as "Binge All Night", Vi Movies and TV and Data Roll Over. Jio Prepaid Plans Talking about a long-term prepaid plan that offers 1.5GB of data per day, Jio offers a daily data prepaid plan that provides 1.5GB/day for a validity period of 84 days at a price tag of Rs 666. The plan also comes with unlimited voice calls and 100 SMS/day. Moreover, the telco also offers a yearlong prepaid plan that provides 1.5GB/day for a validity period of 365 days at a cost of Rs 2,545. The year-long plan as well offers unlimited voice calls and 100 SMS/day. Airtel Prepaid Plans Interestingly enough, Airtel offers two long-term plans with the same data benefits but doesn't offer any yearlong plans. The telco offers a daily data prepaid plan that provides 1.5GB/day for a validity period of 77 days at a price tag of Rs 666. Airtel also provides another prepaid plan that provides 1.5GB/day for a validity period of 84 days at a cost of Rs 799. Both these plans as well offer unlimited voice calls and 100 SMS/day along with access to mobile edition Amazon Prime Video free trial and a few other benefits.

Vi, Airtel, Jio and BSNL Top-End Family Postpaid Plans Posted: 22 Mar 2022 06:37 PM PDT If you are looking for one bill payment for the whole family, the telecom companies offer family postpaid plans that might suit your needs. Postpaid plans offered by telcos in India offer different benefits at different price ranges. Understandably, the high-end packs offer the real deal – from a higher number of connections to access to OTT platforms. Mentioned below are the top-end family postpaid plans offered by Vi, Airtel, Jio and BSNL along with the pack details. Vodafone Idea's RedX Plan Vodafone Idea or Vi offers postpaid plans for individual users and families separately. The most high-end plan from Vi for family users comes at a price tag of Rs 2,299 and is a RedX plan. RedX plans by Vi come bundled up with multiple OTT subscriptions and more. The plan offers connectivity for 5 family members and provides truly unlimited data along with unlimited voice calls as well as 3000 SMS per month to both primary and secondary connections of the plan. As far as the RedX plan benefits are considered, users can get access to a yearlong subscription to Netflix on TV and Mobile at no additional cost. The plan also offers a subscription to one year of Amazon Prime worth Rs 1,499 as well as a Disney+ Hotstar mobile subscription for one-year worth Rs 499. In addition to this, the RedX plans also offer Access to International & Domestic airport lounges at no extra cost. Airtel's Premium Family Postpaid Plan Airtel offers a couple of family postpaid plans as well and the most high-end plan from the telco is the Family Infinity Plan 1599. Airtel offers a postpaid plan at a price tag of Rs 1,599 which provides 500 GB monthly data with rollover up to 200 GB along with unlimited calls and 100 SMS per day. The plan also offers 200 ISD minutes and a 10% discount on IR packs. Upon subscribing users receive 1 free Add-on regular voice connection for family members along with 1 regular SIM. Moreover, users get access to Airtel Thanks Platinum rewards which includes Amazon Prime membership for 1 year at no extra cost as well as Disney+ Hotstar VIP membership for 1 year at no extra cost. The other benefits include Airtel X-stream App premium, Wynk premium and more. Reliance Jio's High-End Family Postpaid Plan Jio offers a number of postpaid plans for both individual and family users. The most expensive family postpaid plan from the telco comes at a price tag of Rs 999. Jio offers up to three additional SIM cards with its Rs 999 plan. The plan offers a total of 200GB of data and allows data rollover of 500GB. After the completion of 200GB data, users are charged Rs 10/GB. The plan offers unlimited voice calls and 100 SMS per day. Additionally, Rs 999 plan from Jio comes with access to multiple OTT platforms including Netflix, one-year Amazon Prime Video and Disney+ Hotstar. BSNL Premium Family Postpaid Plan The top-end family postpaid plan from the state-owned BSNL provides three family connections along with the primary. For a price tag of Rs 999, BSNL offers a postpaid plan that offers unlimited voice calls along with 100 SMS per day. Primary users get 75GB of free data with data rollover of up to 225GB allowed. As mentioned, the plan also provides 3 family connections with unlimited voice facility, 75GB data and 100SMS/day for each family connection separately. For the activation of the above plan, users have to pay a one-time fee of Rs 100 and GST charges are not included in the above-mentioned price.

Vodafone Idea Promoters Have Yet Another Request from the Government Posted: 22 Mar 2022 09:14 AM PDT The telecom giant Vodafone Idea and its promoters have urged the government to fasten the conversion process of interest on deferred adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues into government equity. It is very necessary for the financially struggling Vodafone Idea so that it can raise funds from external investors. An anonymous senior official has informed that the executives of the telco have talked with the government about conversion increasing the chances of having more external investors. Vi Needs to Raise Funds For those unaware, Vodafone Idea has been raising funds from external sources as well as promoters to compete with its industry rivals Jio and Airtel. The cash-strapped telco has set the end of March as the deadline for raising new funds. The board of Vodafone Idea earlier this month approved raising Rs 14,500 crore from its primary promoters – UK's Vodafone Group as well as Aditya Birla Group (ABG) along with other external investors. The telecom operator is all set to raise Rs 4,500 crore which is approximately $600 million through preferential shares issued at Rs 13.30 per share to its promoters as well as related companies. Moreover, the telco has announced raising another Rs 10,000 crore via equity and debt instruments. As far as the government officials are considered, they say that the process of conversion of accrued interest on deferred AGR requires some time as it needs various clearances. The government official said that the normal procedure of conversion includes clearance from Dipam (Department of Investment and Public Asset Management) which could be time-consuming. For those unaware, Vodafone Idea had decided to convert the interest accruing on the deferred AGR payment into government equity earlier this year. The calculations from the company suggest that this would result in being the largest shareholder in the company with a 35.8% stake. Moreover, the government is also considering the option to return bank guarantees withheld by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) as security against the AGR payments. If this gets approved, Vi is potentially going to receive Rs 15,000 crore in funding reducing its burden down to raising only 20% of this amount a year before it is due to clear the principal AGR dues.

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