Honest

Bharti Telesoft plans high-end services for operators 10 Aug, 2008, 1303 hrs IST, PTI MUMBAI: With the kicking-off of the 3G spectrum, Value Added Service (VAS) players are gearing up to effectively leverage the technology. Global VAS solution provider, Bharti Telesoft, considers 3G an opportunity that would allow players to introduce high-end services not available earlier. "With third-generation guidelines in place in the telecom sector, the business metrics of telecom players in India is all set to undergo a change," Bharti Telesoft Chairman Manoranjan Mohapatara told PTI. The launch of 3G services in India is expected to create a shift from volume-based to high-end markets, he said. Mohapatra described 3G as an opportunity to port rich media on the mobile with operators being able to provide innovative and enhanced services due to greater availability of bandwidth. "It would also act as a revenue-generating tool for operators. Besides, there would be increased services of Internet on mobile phones," Mohapatra said. Once the auction procedure is over, operators would partner with VAS players to offer high-end services to their subscribers. Scenting a huge opportunity in 3G spectrum, Bharti Telesoft is already in talks with a few leading operators, Mohapatara said. Content would be a bigger driver for 3G than handsets, he said.

No mobile signal in border areas: Govt to telcos 10 Aug 2008, 1806 hrs IST,PTI NEW DELHI: Stepping up security across the border, the government has asked mobile companies to install equipment to neutralise radio signals emanating from mobile phones in these areas. Earlier, the 'No Service Zone' was 500 metres along the border where there would be no wireless service. Now, DoT has asked operators to install suitable technical infrastructure so that radio signals emanating from base stations or cell sites fade out while nearing or about to cross international border. Government sources said with increasing number of signal breach incidences being reported by the VTM unit, the government has now asked the telcos to ensure that mobile phone services "should be as far from the border as feasible". The spillover of signals from Indian mobile phones across the international border is facilitating communication between the terrorists. The service providers have failed to ensure that the signal is rendered unusable within 500 metres of the border, feel security agencies. With this, the situation has gone back to the earlier period when the government had for the first time relaxed security norms to allow provision of mobile phone services on national boundaries. DoT has also asked for installation of base station, cell sites or radio transmitters in or near the buffer zone of 10 km along the trouble-prone areas, line of control (LOC), line of actual control (LAC), Akhnoor and Pathankot areas in Jammu & Kashmir to be taken up only after prior approval of the local army authorities and intimation to the licensor.

Haier Mobiles to re-enter GSM handset business in India 10 Aug, 2008, 1316 hrs IST, PTI NEW DELHI: Sensing strong revenue from GSM based mobile handset business, Chinese major Haier is planning to refocus on the same and is working with software companies and US based Qualcomm to add more applications for better functionality in its cellphones. "We are more focused this time and are looking at GSM business more aggressively," Haier Mobiles India Marcom director Avijit Dutt told PTI. He added that, however, the company would not exit its CDMA business. "Though the company has done pretty well in the CDMA business and among the top three handset players in this category, it is seeing a better revenue inflow than the other business. But, there is a limit as the operators are more attracted towards the other technology, and the real money and business is in GSM," he said. The company which exited selling of GSM handsets two years back, has made a comeback into the segment as it feels the future growth is going to come from GSM. In India, out of the 290 million mobile subscribers over 220 million users are GSM-based mobile users and with the entry of leading CDMA players Reliance Communications and Tata Tele, the market in India is heading towards a GSM market, said analysts. Haier has launched three new models in this segment in the price range of Rs 1,999 to Rs 11,999. The company is also closely working with a leading Indian software firm and Qualcomm to develop some applications that can be built into its handsets to give some 'unique' advantage to the customers, he said. These applications, the company said, which targets niche customer segments like farmers, students and others, would be a first of its kind service in the world.

Tatas to invest Rs 8,000 cr in GSM; stake sale in tower co on track 9 Aug, 2008, 1236 hrs IST, PTI AGRA: Tata Teleservices on Saturday said it would invest $2 billion (over Rs 8,000 crore) in rolling out GSM-based mobile services in the country. The company, which currently offers mobile services on CDMA platform, is planning to launch the service by the end of the year, but is concerned about the slow pace of spectrum allocation by the government. Speaking to the media, Tata Teleservices Managing Director Anil Sardana said, "Over the next two years, the company will be putting in $2 billion for setting up nationwide GSM network. We are rolling out the network very quickly wherever we have been given spectrum so far." The company has received spectrum in five circles even though it had applied for a pan-India allocation. He said the delay in allocation in other circles was putting the company at "competitive disadvantage" as its arch- rival Reliance Communications has already done a soft launch of GSM services last week. "We do understand that there are security concerns in some of the states/circles where spectrum cannot be allocated. But wherever it is available there should not be any delay as the government had earlier announced in January this year that enough spectrum is available in most of the circles to accommodate all the new players as well to meet the needs of the existing operators," he added. On the recently announced 3G policy, he said there was no clear roadmap for the CDMA operators and the matter has been taken up with the government, which has assured the players of looking into their case.

Tatas to invest Rs 6,000 cr in GSM 10 Aug, 2008, 0257 hrs IST, ET Bureau AGRA: Tata Teleservices has said it will invest Rs 8,000 crore over the next 24 months to expand its telecom networks. Of this, about Rs 6,000 crore would go in building a pan-India GSM network, while the remaining Rs 2,000 crore would be used to strengthen its existing CDMA networks. Tata Teleservices managing director Anil Sardana told ET that the company would launch GSM services across India by March ’09. Tata Teleservices will also launch BlackBerry handsets for its customers by September. “The platforms are ready and the soft launch has already taken place. We are sorting out some minor issues in logistics before we launch it finally,” Mr Sardana said. The development assumes importance as the company’s plans to launch BlackBerry services have been held up since last year. The department of telecom has not cleared the proposal citing security fears. But the Tatas are launching Blackberry services as all major operators, including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications, Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular, are already offering it. Tata Teleservices has a subscriber base of 27 million on the CDMA platform and the company is betting big on bagging a significant chunk of the new additions over the next four years. “We are targeting a customer base of 35 million plus by March ’09 and 100 million by 2011. By then, we expect to have 55 million new users on our upcoming GSM platform,” Mr Sardana said. He did not rule out the possibility of taking the acquisition route to meet the 100-million target. On the CDMA platform, the company offers services in 19 of India’s 22 telecom circles. It will launch CDMA-based mobile services in the remaining three circles — Assam, North East and Jammu & Kashmir — within the next couple of months. Tatas’ GSM foray may, however, be delayed as the DoT is likely to take time to provide the company with radio frequencies. “We are concerned about the delay as this will impact our rollout plans. We have paid for the GSM frequencies but the allocation has not happened yet,” he added. The Tatas also plan to leverage their ‘superior network quality’ and customer services in a bid to get customers from other operators when number portability kicks off in India. On the company’s plans to offload 49% stake in the hived off passive infrastructure and tower arm, Mr Sardana said the process was on. “We are looking at different business models and are yet to finalise a partner who will get a 49% stake in the company,” he added. Asked if Tata Teleservices planned to bid or acquire mobile licenses abroad, he said the company would continue to focus on the Indian market. “Expansion in the global markets will be through Tata Communications (VSNL). They already have mobile operations in Nepal, Sri Lanka and South Africa and will continue to evaluate other options,” he said.

^^^ Thats really sad my dear friends. Super Stars like him are the backbone of film industry and they deserve respect. Regards.

^^^ Hmmm, no java in C810 too. Oh my god.

Hmmm, No Java. It seems to be ugly. My dear Tushar Spice d88n is a good handset and C810 too is also good. You can opt for C810. Regards.

BlackBerry makers launch new smart model to take on iPhone 9 Aug, 2008, 1414 hrs IST, ET Global telecom major Research in Motion (RIM), makers of mobile handset BlackBerry, has finally unveiled its much touted BlackBerry Bold smartphone. The new device, which comes within weeks of the global launch of Apple's iPhone, was launched in Austria Thursday. Like the iPhone, the BlackBerry Bold will also operate on the much faster, next-generation 3G network and has a built-in GPS. Rich in features, including a half-VGA LCD display with 480x320 resolution, powerful 624 MHz processor and one GB internal storage memory, the BlackBerry Bold is being described as a premier smartphone for business and enterprise users by its makers, the Waterloo-based Canadian company. With a 2 megapixel camera with video recording capability, built-in flash and digital zoom, the new device also boasts an advanced media player that displays pictures and slideshows quickly, plays movies smoothly in full screen mode and manages an entire music collection. A RIM statement said its audio can be played over the handset's dual speakers in rich, stereo sound, and when using headphones or external speakers, the media player gives the user an equalizer with 11 preset filters - like "Lounge", "Jazz" and "Hip Hop" - that boost or soften audio ranges to create the perfect ambience. Though the Bold version has been designed to meet increasing requirements of business professionals during the day, the company said the new smartphone also 'indulges the consumer experience during lunchtime, evenings and weekends.' "The BlackBerry Bold is a breakthrough smartphone for both professional and personal use. We are very pleased to be working with A1 to provide Austrian customers with a superior mobile experience that further enhances the renowned functionality and usability of the industry leading BlackBerry solution," said RIM chief operating officer Don Morrison on the launch of the smartphone in Austria.

SE Launches Ultra-slim T700 Mobile Phone Sony Ericsson has unveiled an ultra-slim phone, the T700. The T700 is just 10mm thin and comes equipped with a 3.2megapixel camera, self-portrait mirror, stereo speakers, Bluetooth, and 2" TFT display. The phone comes bundled with a matching headset and a 512MB memory card. "Become a real head turner with the T700", said Sven Totté, Head of Marketing for the design category at Sony Ericsson. "Sleek and shiny, the slim elegance of the T700 gives users a premium experience at a mid-range price point - perfect for the design conscious. Everyone who bought and adored the iconic T610 will be keen to get their hands on the new T700." The T700 is a GSM/GPRS/EDGE 850/900/1800/1900 UMTS/HSDPA 2100 phone that will be available in selected markets in the colors Black on Silver, Black on Red and Shining Silver from early Q4 of 2008. No price has been attached to the T700 as yet. T700 Specifications: Screen 240x320 pixel 2-inch, 262.144 color TFT Networks GSM 850/900/1800/1900 EDGE UMTS 2100 HSDPA Radio FM radio with RDS Memory Phone memory 25MB Memory Stick Micro (M2) support 512MB included in the box Battery Stand-by up to 370 h Talk time of up to 9h 30 min Courtesy : Tech2 & Techtree

^^^ Yes my dear friends, it is a lesson for everybody in the film industry. But at the same time all prominent news channels too should be slapped by our honourable court, because nearly all news channels has repeatedly shown those clips repeatedly thousand times for which the matter was already in the court. They should not have shown those clips at TV atleast. Regards.

Expect 3G services and some mischief 9 Aug, 2008, 0725 hrs IST, ET Following the guidelines for 3G issued by the department of telecommunications (DoT) on August 1, consumers can expect a new breed of services in the coming months. 3G services will make it faster and easier to access internet, download music or videos, mobile TV among other things. Although two years overdue, the guidelines are a good indicator of how far India has moved towards creating a coherent regulatory environment and the considerable distance still left. The guidelines spell out how the government will allocate and price 3G spectrum or, more accurately, the radio frequencies required for such communication. Now, a company will have to procure 3G spectrum in an open auction. Unlike the case for 2G — where companies receive fixed amount of spectrum with the licence — 3G spectrum will need to be paid for explicitly. All 2G licensees — whether or not they have started operations — can bid. Prospective new entrants without 2G licences can also bid, provided they have 3G experience and pay an additional 2G entry fee of Rs 1,651 crore(US $400 million) for a nation-wide licence. The guidelines explicitly separate entry fees for 3G licence from the amount bid in the spectrum auction. While we will return to the indefensibly huge amount proposed for entry fees, the conceptual separation between the two fees meets an important demand from experts for a change in India’s current rules, which include the price for spectrum in the licence fee. This has created several well-known distortions that prevent efficient use of a strategic scarce resource. This will be the first time the price of spectrum is sought to be explicitly discovered through an auction. While the DoT bureaucrats have failed to say this unambiguously and some future mischief cannot be ruled out, it would be difficult to argue again that the price of spectrum allocated for commercial use can be determined administratively without a market-based process. Especially, since Trai too has recommended auction for all spectrum other than that for 2G operations. Current rules, where acquiring a set number of subscribers automatically entitles a licensed operator to additional spectrum, have drawn much deserved criticism for encouraging inefficiency. Acknowledging explicitly that the price of spectrum should be discovered in the market makes the current practice, which is economically indefensible, untenable. This is a plus. But, the guidelines are also problematic. For a start, the claim that they promote competition is bogus. In a business where extensive infrastructure, large customer base, better market intelligence, etc., give incumbents massive advantages, it is absurd that new entrants will have to pay a whopping $400 million in addition to the bids for spectrum, expected to be in billions of dollars. New players need 3G experience to apply, not 2G players. This, when most regulators facilitate new entry by imposing additional restrictions on incumbents to prevent market abuse. New comers rarely pay any fees and are seldom regulated at all. To levy a large entry fee is then not to facilitate competition but to thwart it. Indeed, the practice in most mature regulatory regimes — the European Union, US, Canada and Australia,for instance — is to have no licence (entry) fees at all. A prospective entrant to the market, typically, requires little beyond a virtually free ‘authorisation’. It must, however, pay for spectrum at market prices. The nine companies — largely telecom novices — who are currently trying to sell at a premium the over 100 telecom licences they recently got at bargain prices will surely welcome the ’tax’ on new players. As newspapers confirmed, 3G guidelines have driven up the value of these licences, more so since they now have some spectrum. This will be far more attractive to the new 3G players who will still need a 2G licence even if they win in the spectrum auctions than spending $400 million for licence that is veritably a piece of paper with few rights. So, high entry fees mean that private speculators, not the exchequer, get the money. Moreover, recent norms for mergers and acquisition of telecom licences made it easier for new players to acquire existing players and difficult for existing ones to merge. So, the new players will need to pay up before they bid for 3G and seek a UASL (Unified Access Licence Seekers) licence when mergers would be almost impossible. So, both cost and regulation are pitted squarely against new players. The DoT has resurrected the old ghost of subscriber-base linked allocation of spectrum by proposing that for spectrum for CDMA services in 800 MHz band “the seniority for allotment shall be the subscriber base in telecom service area.” It says elsewhere that in case of a tie between two existing players, “preference will be given to the bidder with the larger subscriber base”. The guidelines have no explanation why, when it has been decided to conduct an auction, the final winner in each such a case should simply not be the company that bids the highest. This has dented the credibility of the government’s landmark decision to price spectrum along global best practices. The provision to disallow companies from lowering their bids in subsequent rounds of auctions and to insist that the highest bids in the first auction will become reserve price for subsequent auctions, is equally questionable and will prevent a genuine correction if speculators play havoc in the early phases. The priority for government should be to discover a fair market price of spectrum and not to artificially raise its pickings. It has a duty to deter speculators in a strategic sector and create conditions conducive for serious players willing to compete fairly. The bureaucratic flaws in the guidelines notwithstanding, at least some of the existing 2G players seem poised to offer 3G services in the near future. The proposed auction of 3G spectrum will deter — if not prevent — bureaucrats’ current practice of giving away valuable spectrum at arbitrary prices. But, to expect them to embrace time honoured regulatory principles and forgo an opportunity for discretion is perhaps too much to ask. (The author is director, Com First, India)

^^^ @Amrita My dear friend, you are right that some of the reviews about Nokia 6275 are not in favour of its battery backup. But at the same time, if we need a full multimedia phone which support MP3, Camera, Bluetooth, Wap, etc. then the battery backup will depend on our usage only. It all depends how much did a customer used the different functions of the phone and also sometimes the battery backup depends on the network. Means if a user is using the phone in a low network area then their could be network fluctuations which indeed consumes a lot of battery backup of handsets. Regards.

Vodafone launches Bonus Card 39 in Punjab 8 Aug, 2008, 2247 hrs IST, ET CHANDIGARH: Vodafone Essar, one of country's cellular service providers, on Friday launched Bonus Card 39 for it's customers in Punjab. The new bonus card will allow customers to make all locals calls at 50p/min. The new bonus card is priced at Rs. 39 and comes with a validity of 30 days from the day of activation. Rajiv Kohli, Chief Executive Officer, Vodafone Essar, Punjab said, today that "Vodafone has always endeavoured to bring innovative service offerings to its varied customer base. This new Vodafone Bonus Card 39 will make staying connected more easy and affordable for our mobile customers in Punjab."

Telcos to cash in on Beijing Olympics Rediff, August 08, 2008 02:32 IST With the Beijing Olympics 2008 starting from Friday, three of the major Indian telecom service providers Reliance Communications, BPL Mobile and Tata Communications are launching services aimed at tapping the communication potential of the event. This will, perhaps, be the first time that Indian telecom companies are offering services for a global event and that too for global and roaming subscribers. Reliance Globalcom, the subsidiary overseeing Anil Ambani-controlled RCom's global operations, is offering a special-edition international SIM card across 12 countries, aimed at sports fans travelling to China. The card enables Indian sports fans travelling to China to make and receive calls at rates starting from Rs 10 a minute. For people from other countries, the card offers roaming rates that are lower by 70-85 per cent compared with rates of other operators. BPL Mobile has launched a wireless access protocol portal on its handsets, which lets fans track the games on their mobile phones. The service, Olympics@Cafe, lets subscribers track the schedule of events, medal tallies, news, action-packed pictures, trivia, profiles of sportspersons, records made and previous ones, among others. The company has tied up with Mobile ESPN for the service. Tata Communications is launching pre-paid roaming and its Intelligent CAMEL eXchange is a service that the company claims will reduce roaming charges. It also said four global mobile operators and a Chinese telecom major would use Tata Communications' services. The service will allow the Chinese carrier to offer in-bound, pre-paid roaming for its roaming partners in time for the Olympic Games starting later this week in Beijing.

DoT allows home agents for call centres, telemarketers Business Line, New Delhi, Aug. 7 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Relaxed norms Companies have to submit a security deposit of Rs 5 crore with the Government. DoT reserves the right to conduct surprise inspection of agents’ premises. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- New Delhi, Aug. 7 The next time you call a customer care centre or call a toll free number for buying a service or product, you may be speaking to a customer-service agent who is working at home. In a move that will benefit hundreds of call centres and telemarketing companies in the country, the Department of Telecom has allowed them to appoint Extended Agent Position (work from home) and offer them connectivity to operate from home. Releasing the revised terms and conditions for Other Service Providers category, DoT said that companies wanting to appoint home agents will have to submit a security deposit of Rs 5 crore with the Government. DoT has reserved the right to conduct surprise inspection at the premises of such agents. Other Service Providers category includes companies providing services like tele-banking, tele-medicine, tele-education, tele-trading, e-commerce, call centre, network operation centre and other IT-Enabled Services, by using telecom resources. Interconnect allowed DoT has also allowed BPOs and call centres belonging to the same company or group to link their network within the country. For example, a company which owns call centres in Delhi and Chennai can now interconnect the two centres. This will allow these companies to route calls to various centres according to the load. So if the executives at the Delhi centre are busy, then the call can be routed to the Chennai branch resulting in better utilisation of resources. The Government has also relaxed the terms of sharing infrastructure between domestic and international centres. While infrastructure sharing was allowed even earlier, DoT has reduced the bank guarantee amount from Rs 5 crore to a maximum of Rs 1 crore. Sharing has been allowed between domestic Other Service Providers and International centres belonging to the same company. However, such centres should have at least 50 seats.

GSM cos hampering entry of Rcom, Tatas in GSM telephony: AUSPI 8 Aug, 2008, 1923 hrs IST, ET NEW DELHI: CDMA operators association AUSPI today charged the GSM players with hampering their entry into GSM space as also defying the regulator's direction on dual technology by denying interconnection to RCOM and Tata Tele. "The COAI has been trying to stop launch of fresh competition in the cellular market in every possible way. Its latest attempt to delay onset of competition by AUSPI members including Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices... by denying them network on existing Points of Interconnections," AUSPI said in a letter to TRAI Chairman Nripendra Misra. It said the move is not only illegal but also against the interest of consumers, as the full benefit of the competition will be delayed. AUSPI has also submitted that COAI's representation is not the consensus view of GSM operators - a few members including Aircel and BPL have already opened GSM codes of member service providers. The delay in interconnection is the handiwork of only few dominant GSM players with an aim to scuttle serious competition. It is a blatant attempt to defy DoT's and TRAI's directives, AUSPI said. TRAI had earlier said the existing interconnections can be used for exchange of traffic for both CDMA and GSM technologies. "On August 4, 2008, TRAI had again issued a fresh directive to the defaulting operators to open GSM levels allocated to our member service provider on existing PoI. COAI is contemplating to defy the fresh directive and questioning the TRAI's powers to issue this direction," it said.

^^^ My dear Abu, their are no separate drivers for LSP 350R to use with Windows Vista. But surely you can use this handset for Netconnect with Vista also. Just download the Xp driver for this phone from Reliance Website. Then install the same with compatibility mode of "Windows XP SP2". You have to right click at the *.exe file, click properties, click compatibility, select at "Run this programme with compatibility Mode of Windows XP SP2". Also you have to run this programme as an administrator. Thats it. You will be able to connect your LG LSP 350 R with Windows Vista. Regards.

^^^ My dear friends, actually GPRS too is not that bad. I used it for nearly 3 months with Vodafone even without Edge. Its good enough. In my case I got the best speeds from Vodafone Gprs. ^^^ @Setu My dear friend, I agree that you can use GPRS with above mentioned handsets but the same can be used only in the handset. You can't connect your handset with a PC and use GPRS on it. Like you connects your Reliance mobile with a PC and use Netconnect on PC. Regards.

^^^ My dear friend, you didn't mentioned the model of your handset. Are you asking about LG RD3100 ? Regards.

Spice Mobiles Launches Gaming Phone Spice Mobiles is launching Spice X-1, its mobile gaming phone, that comes with a dedicated gaming console and is pre-loaded with a variety of games. Users can either connect the gaming console to the phone to play or use the phone's dedicated gaming keys. The 2.4-inch display has auto rotate feature and the phone features a 2-GB expandable memory card slot. The phone is equipped with Yamaha-amplified 3-D surround-sound, a 2 MP camera, FM radio with Record-and-Play feature and stereo Bluetooth. The Spice X-1 comes pre-loaded with an Opera mini-web browser and WAP/MMS/GPRS features and costs Rs. 8,899. Courtesy : Tech2

^^^ Oh, I see. We never heard about battery problems in Nokia 6275 my dear friend. Although one or two cases are exceptional. Actually battery backup depends alot upon the usage of the phone. Playing Music, using Camera, Bluetooth and Wap for a lot of time can reduce the battery backup time in any phone regardless to its make. May be its Nokia, SE or Motorola. In my view, you should search the forum and read about other members views related to Nokia 6275. Regards.

^^^ @Umar My dear friend, the site address to get the Reliance Netconnect drivers is www.rcom.co.in Regards.

^^^ @Amrita My dear friend, although Samsung Max is a good handset, but its not better then Nokia 6275. By the way, about what problems did you heard for Nokia 6275. Regards.

^^^ @Setu My dear friend, although you could not get the speed in GSM GPRS as fast as in CDMA Netconnect. But it will be enough for you to do your routine work. Vodafone GPRS could be a better choice for you. And about chinese phones, I have a doubt that you can connect it with your PC and use Gprs. As I myself also is using a Chinese handset and Gprs can be used only in the handset itself. No connectivity with PC for Gprs. Regards.