Honest

Anil strikes back at Mukesh over MTN letter 15 Jun, 2008, 0502 hrs IST MUMBAI: The Ambani brothers are engaged in a war of letters, once again. Anil Ambani’s Reliance Communications (RCOM) on Saturday sent a strongly-worded letter to Mukesh Ambani’s flagship Reliance Industries (RIL) threatening to claim costs and damages from RIL if it takes any legal action to enforce its claimed first right of refusal. This round of the battle was began by RIL which on Thursday sent a letter to the South African telco MTN, which is in merger talks with RCOM, claiming that it enjoys the first right of refusal in case of sale of RCOM. RIL’s claim was based on a disputed agreement with three entities of the Anil Ambani group in January 2006. RIL sent the same letter to RCOM on Friday. In its letter dated Saturday (June 14), RCOM told RIL that “the tone of the letter clearly indicates that it is part of a mala fide design, with no substance, to simply try and disrupt talks between RCOM and MTN, by raising the false bogey of litigation and damages. The use of threatening and coercive language by RIL, India’s largest private company, with MTN, a globally respected telecom major, is very unfortunate.” RCOM and MTN are engaged in reverse-merger talks which, if successful, would help Anil Ambani to emerge as the single largest shareholder of the Johannesburg-based company while RCOM will become the subsidiary of MTN. However, the exact details of the proposed deal are yet to be finalised. It is expected that both the parties may announce a definitive plan in early July. RCOM also said: “It is surprising that without knowing the contours of a possible transaction between RCOM and MTN, RIL has jumped to a baseless conclusion that the same is covered by the alleged PACT dated January 12, 2006, which in any case was unilaterally signed only by RIL’s officials.” The Ambani brothers parted ways in June 2005 after one of the prolonged and bitterest battles in the history of Corporate India. The January 2006 PACT was to implement the demerger of businesses between the brothers. However, Anil Ambani challenged parts of the PACT on the plea that the companies, which had signed the pact, were under the control of Mukesh and therefore the agreement was untenable. The matter is still sub-judice. According to RCOM, RIL’s action in sending copies of the letter to a large number of banks and intermediaries without first communicating with RCOM further reflects its ulterior and malafide motives.

^^^ @Ankur My dear friend, if the problem is so severe that the service centre too can't find out, then you should have asked them to replace the handset rather then to send it for repairs to HO. That is not the case of all handsets in Samsung. One handset in thousands could be deffective and that is with all mobile manufacturers, be it Nokia or any other. Regards.

Don't confuse between settlements and pacts: Mukesh to Anil 14 Jun, 2008, 2201 hrs IST, PTI NEW DELHI: The controversy between Ambani siblings over division in Reliance empire on Saturday flared up with Mukesh Ambani's side cautioning Anil's camp not to create confusion between the family settlement and agreements signed between the two groups. Amid battle of the two groups over a potential 70-billion dollar deal between Anil-led Reliance Comm and South African telecom giant MTN, sources close to Mukesh-led RIL said that enforceability of agreements signed in 2006 has been asserted with "full sense of restraint and responsibility" and RIL expects all parties to maintain same level of responsibility. RIL sources also questioned the claims of the other camp that RCOM had responded to the contentious communication from RIL about the deal. RIL has not received any communication from Anil Ambani group, sources said, questioning the claims made by RCOM. "RIL in its communication has merely asserted its enforceable rights and has appraised all parties concerned. It has done so with full sense of restraint and responsibility and expects all parties to maintain the same level of responsibility," they added. "The family arrangement of June 2005 is distinct and different from the non-competition agreement dated January 12 2006, and the gas master supply agreement, to both of which RIL was a signatory," they added. The sources further said that these two agreements, executed pursuant to the sanctioned scheme of demerger, are not to be confused with the family MOU as these are distinct and separate and contain distinct rights and obligations.

MTN terms RCom's threat as false bogey of litigation, damages 14 Jun, 2008, 1803 hrs IST, PTI Asked if South African major saw any legal hurdles in deal with RCOM and if it was seeking legal opinion on RIL's claims, MTN Group's spokesperson Nozipho January-Bardill told the media, "I cannot comment on any of your questions. MTN's last SENS (regulatory) announcement remains as is." The deal is estimated to create a combined entity worth a size of about 70 billion dollars and could have operating profits higher than RIL, India's biggest private sector firm. Following up its strong criticism of RIL's communication, ADA group company wrote a letter to RIL, saying, "there is no question of taking note of any alleged rights on RIL's part... Its (RIL's) claim is legally and factually untenable, baseless and misconceived, to be dismissed with contempt it deserves." Though its spokesperson said that there was no change in RCOM's stand from what was stated on Friday the company sources said, "The use of threatening and coercive language by RIL, India's largest private company, with MTN, a globally respected telecom major, is very unfortunate." They said "RIL's action in sending copies of the letter to a large number of banks and intermediaries without even first communicating with RCOM reflects its ulterior and mala fide motives." Terming RIL's threats as "false bogey of litigation and damages," the RCOM sources expressed surprise that without knowing of the nature of a possible transaction between RCOM and MTN, how RIL has jumped to the conclusion that it would be covered by the alleged agreement of January 12, 2006. In its letter to MTN, RIL had said that as per the said agreement it has "a right of first refusal in respect of tranfer of shares of Reliance Communications Limited by the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group."

RCom to retaliate if RIL goes legal on MTN deal 14 Jun, 2008, 1743 hrs IST, PTI NEW DELHI: Ambani siblings' war intensified on Saturday with the younger Anil's group warning to retaliate in case Mukesh-led Reliance Industries goes legal with its claim on the potential multi-billion dollar amalgamation deal that the former is pursuing with South African telecom giant MTN. In a strongly worded reply to RIL's threat to go legal against ADAG to enforce its right of first refusal, Anil-led Reliance Communications said, "If RIL choses to take any legal action the same will be vigorously defended by R-COM, and R-COM would claim cost and damages from RIL." The battle between the two richest Indians had flared up after RIL wrote to MTN and ADAG, copies of which were sent to the bankers, cautioning that the amalgamation deal through reverse swap would tantamount to breach of RIL's first right of refusal to acquire a controlling stake in R-COM.

Experts see huge advertising potential in mobile phones 14 Jun, 2008, 1610 hrs IST NEW DELHI: Only a few months have passed since India overtook the US to become the number-two wireless network in the world. But already, this has opened up a huge potential for mobile telephony to be tapped as an advertising medium, experts at the "Mobile Conversation" conference, held in the capital Friday, said. "Mobile as a medium instigates immediate response and should be a part of any multi-channel advertising campaign," said Manoj Dawne, chief executive of Mauj - a mobile entertainment and advertising company. "It holds the potential to not just complement but enhance the impact of any promotion," Dawne added. Gopala Krishnan, co-founder and head of corporate development of Mobile2win, identified SMS, voice, WAP (Wireless Application Protocol), native applications and gaming as some of the key platforms employed by marketers. “These can be utilised in a stand-alone format or integrated, depending on the need of the client (advertiser) and the profile of the target audience,” Krishnan said. Ajay Gupte from OnMobile and Sujai Srivastava, deputy general manager of Reliance Communication, stressed on SMS and WAP as advertising mediums, while Salil Bhargava, CEO of Jump Games, highlighted the advertising avenues on mobile games. Srinivas Murthy of Coca-Cola presented the case study of the recent Sprite “Kholega Toh Bolega” campaign, which extensively utilised mobile advertising space. “The response to the campaign was enormous. We have got about 1.7 million SMSs from our customers till date, which is by far the largest response for any consumer product initiative on the mobile till now,” Murthy said.

Indian Telecom equipment industry grew by 24% in FY '08 Revenues of the Indian telecom equipment industry grew by 24% to touch Rs 95,407 crore in 2007-08, according to an annual survey by Voice&Data, a CyberMedia Publication. The 13th annual survey 'V&D 100' covered over 500 telecom companies in India spanning carrier equipment, enterprise communication equipment, and handset manufacturers. According to the survey, more than half of the telecom equipment revenue came from carrier equipment manufacturers, which grew 32% to touch Rs 56,994 crore during the year. The enterprise equipment grew at 27% to report revenues of Rs13,210 crore. The phone segment, contributed nearly one-fourth to the total telecom equipment industry, at Rs 25,203 crore recording a growth of 7%. Commenting on the results of the survey Mr Prasanto K Roy, Chief Editor of CyberMedia's business publications said, "This is robust growth for the Indian telecom equipment market--24% on such a large base. It continues to be driven by the rising demand for mobile handsets, especially beyond the metros, and the consequent wireless infrastructure expansion by service providers." The Top 10 Club Mobile handset maker Nokia had the highest revenue during the year followed by telecom network equipment major Ericsson, Nokia Siemens Networks, Alcatel-Lucent and Wipro. The other players in the top 10 were Cisco, TCS, Infosys, Sony Ericsson and ZTE. The Top 10 Telecom Equipment Players 2007-08 Nokia11,48615,00030.6 Ericsson5,0048,00059.9 Nokia Siemens Networks5,7007,77936.5 Alcatel-Lucent5,0007,00040 Wipro3,4715,58560.9 Cisco4,0375,04625 TCS3,0063,97832.3 Infosys2,6813,60034.3 Sony Ericsson1,3863,083122.4 ZTE2,5963,00015.6 Source: Voice&Data While Nokia and Ericsson retained their positions as the top players, Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN), struck major deals in the wireless segment to rise to number 3. The Top 10 club also saw the entry of Sony Ericsson at ninth position as its revenues grew 122.4% to Rs. 3,083 crore. Alcatel Lucent, with 40% growth moved from the fifth rank to the fourth. "Expansion of mobile networks and broadband infrastructure, and the introduction of 3G technology, will sustain the growth in the current year," adds Mr. Roy. Segment Wise Break-Up In the handset segment, revenues of companies making mobile handsets grew 12% to Rs. 24,003 crore while the fixed handset sales decreased by 41% to Rs. 1200 crore, over the same period last year. This indicates consumer preference for the more affordable, convenient and feature rich mobile handsets over the fixed phone. The Indian handset market recorded a 33% growth by volume with 95.6 million pieces sold during the year against 71.8 million in the same period in the previous year. Of the total handsets sold 68.3 million were based on GSM technology and 27.3 million on CDMA. The GSM handsets sales reported a growth of 34% compared to a 28% for CDMA phones. Top 10 Mobile Phone Players 2007-08 CompaniesRevenue 06-07Revenue 07-08Growth %ageMkt share Nokia11,48615,00030.662.5 Sony Ericsson1,3863,083122.412.8 Samsung1,2051,50024.56.2 LG2,3481,500-36.16.2 Motorola2,3871,200-49.75.0 ZTE7838508.63.5 Huawei132320142.41.3 Haier2943002.01.2 Others1,413250-82.31.0 Total21,43424,00312.0100.0 Source: Voice&Data Nokia had the highest market share in the handset space at 62.5% followed by Sony Ericsson (12.8%), Samsung and LG (both 6.2%), Motorola (5%), ZTE (3.5%), Huawei (1.3%) and Haier (1.2%). Within the carrier equipment business, wireless infrastructure segment grew 43% to report revenues of Rs 23,770 crore. The telecom software grew nearly 29% to record revenue of Rs 23,018 crore. Broadband infrastructure segment grew 68% to post revenues of Rs. 1510 crore as broadband connections increased during the year. The enterprise equipment business grew by 27% to Rs. 13,210 crore in FY 2007-08. While Network security business recorded a growth of 73% at Rs. 456 crore, the network storage business grew by 47% to record revenue of Rs. 1446 crore. About V&D100 V&D100 is the most comprehensive annual survey of the Indian equipment industries and telecom services. It is the most trusted and widely used survey for those seeking authentic information on Indian communications. It is also the most comprehensive, as it covers a wide range of segments and is the only 'single source' of such diverse information. The V&D100 (volume II) for 2007-08 survey will focus on telecom services and service providers, and is slated for release next month. Courtesy : ET

MTN says talks to go on with Reliance Communications 14 Jun, 2008, 1453 hrs IST JOHANNESBURG: South African telecom giant MTN on Saturday said its tie-up talks with Reliance Communications were still on, barely hours after the Anil Ambani-led group charged a rival corporate house with trying to derail the negotiations. "As far as we are concerned, we have a 45-day exclusive talks agreement with Reliance Communications and nothing has really changed from our statement on May 26," MTN spokesperson Nozipho January-Bardill told the media. The comments came in the wake of a letter to MTN from Reliance Industries, led by Mukesh Ambani, the estranged elder brother of Anil Ambani, saying that under a family pact between them, his group had the first right of refusal to buy controlling stake in Reliance Communications. But Reliance Communications has refuted the claim. "Last night, in a mala fide effort to disrupt the talks, Reliance Industries, part of the Mukesh Ambani group, has sent a communication to MTN group, making a false claim of an alleged right of first refusal to buy the controlling stake in Reliance Communications," an RDAG statement said late on Friday. "RIL's claim is legally and factually untenable, baseless, and misconceived," said the RDAG statement. "Reliance Communications dismisses RIL's claim with the contempt it deserves." Soon after Reliance Communications issued the statement, a spokesperson for the Mukesh Ambani-led group said its letter to MTN was issued in good faith and was merely stating the contents of the agreement reached in January 2006. "RIL has in good faith notified both Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group and MTN group of the stipulations contained in an agreement, the validity of which has never been questioned so far by ADAG," a Reliance Industries spokesman said. But the statement by the Anil Ambani group said Reliance Industries based its claim on the Jan 12, 2006 agreement that was unilaterally signed only by RIL officials and found to be "unfair and unjust" by the Bombay High Court Oct 26. Reliance Communications and MTN had said May 26 that they were in talks for a "possible combination of their business" just days after Bharti Airtel, India's largest private telecom company, ended merger talks with the South African firm. The group said the two entities had also agreed upon a 45-day exclusivity period to work out the modalities, during which neither party would negotiate with any other entity. "There is no certainty either on completion or the timing of the said proposal," the two groups had said in a statement. "Shareholders are advised to exercise caution in their dealings until a further announcement is made." Reliance has been attracted by MTN's 70 million customers in 21 countries, including South Africa, Nigeria, Iran and Cyprus and its impressive balance sheet, which shows a net profit of $1.58 billion on revenues of $9.62 billion. And for the South African company, a consolidation will result in access to 48 million customers of Reliance Communications, covering 15,000 towns and 400,000 villages in India on a network of 165,000 km of optic fibre cables.

Mukesh claims first right of refusal in RCom deal 14 Jun, 2008, 0238 hrs IST MUMBAI: It’s Ambani vs. Ambani once again and, this time, the fallout could be global. Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries (RIL) has suddenly entered the fray at a time when younger brother Anil Ambani’s negotiations with Johannesburg-based MTN was entering a decisive phase. The senior Ambani’s claim is that his flagship RIL enjoys the first right of refusal in case of sale of RCom, which is part of the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG). RCom and MTN are pursuing discussions to strike a complex deal which, if consummated, will result in Anil Ambani emerging as the single largest shareholder of the foreign company while his RCom will become a subsidiary of MTN. Both the companies had signed a 45-day exclusive discussion agreement on May 26. It is learnt that Reliance Industries has sent a letter to MTN on Thursday (the same letter was sent to RCom on Friday), citing a non-compete agreement which, according to RIL’s interpretation, empowers it with the first right of refusal in case ‘any group decides to sell any of its business’. “RIL has in good faith notified MTN and RCom of the contents of an agreement, the validity of which has not been disputed by ADAG,” an RIL spokesperson said late on Friday evening. Reliance Industries had signed the agreement on January 12, 2006, with some Anil Ambani group entities namely REVL, RNRL, RCVL and RCOVL. All these entities were created to implement the de-merger of businesses between the brothers in line with the June 2005 family settlement. Anil Ambani has subsequently challenged the legal validity of parts of the non-compete agreement on the plea that it was signed when all the companies, which had signed these agreements, were under Mukesh Ambani’s control. RCom, reacted vehemently to the RIL claim, describing it as “legally and factually untenable, baseless and misconceived.” In a press statement, RCom said: “RIL’s claim is born out of mounting despair and frustration at the Anil Ambani Group’s continuing success and the support it enjoys from 10 million investors. RIL is seeking to disrupt the creation of one of the world’s most valuable telecom combinations, which will make over a billion Indians proud. RIL’s actions are clearly anti-consumer, anti-investor and anti-globalisation, and against the vision, beliefs and principles of the founder of the group, late Dhirubhai Ambani.” RCom officials said that the ‘malafide’ nature of RIL’s move could be gauged from the fact that the letter was first sent to MTN and then to RCom. “It is only intended to disrupt the negotiations. But the negotiations are on track. MTN operates in 21 countries. They were not born yesterday,” an official said. Late on Friday evening a Reuters report quoted an MTN official as saying that negotiations were on. “As far as we are concerned nothing has changed. We are continuing talks as per our cautionary announcement published last month,” MTN spokeswomen Nozipho January-Bardill told Reuters. RIL for its part contends that Anil Ambani is planning to sell RCom — which Mukesh Ambani had built from scratch before handing it over to his brother as part of the family settlement — to MTN under the veil of a reverse merger. So, it should be given the first right to buy RCom. Also, since most of RCom shareholders are originally RIL shareholders, it was RIL’s duty to ‘protect’ them from a sale which would only help Anil Ambani. “If the price is attractive, RCom should return to the RIL family. It’s our fiduciary duty to RIL shareholders to explore all possibilities,” says an industry official close to RIL’s promoters. RIL and ADAG have been locked in litigation over a host of projects. The most serious of these is a prolonged stand-off over ADAG’s rights over the price and quantity of natural gas discovered by RIL from the KG basin. As a result of ongoing legal proceedings in the Mumbai High Court, there is uncertainty over when RIL can begin supplying natural gas from the KG basin, from what is India’s discovery of gas. The two groups have also been locked in litigation over the Mumbai trans-harbour link. A convention centre being built by RIL in Mumbai’s Bandra-Kurla complex and plans to built power plants in the Navi Mumbai SEZ (promoted by RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani) has also been embroiled in disputes and litigation. Industry observers describe RIL’s sudden intervention in the MTN deal as at least partly prompted by a desire to retaliate against the ADA Group. In recent times, government circles, particularly in Maharashtra, are learnt to have expressed frustration that disputes between the two brothers was hurting attempts to improve Mumbai’s infrastructure. Corporates are also not amused by the RIL move. “Both the brothers have developed a habit of putting the spanner in each other’s expansion plans ever since they have parted ways. There are instances of one taking legal recourse in case the other gets a new project. It is only expected that RIL would try its best to spoil RCom’s efforts to figure among the world’s top telecom companies,” said an observer. The Ambani brothers separated their businesses after one of the bitterest disputes in the history of corporate India. Anil Ambani got the control of telecom, power, entertainment businesses while Mukesh retained the money spinning oil & gas business. If RCom’s reverse merger with MTN goes through, it will create a telecom colossus with 115 million subscribers in 23 countries in Asia, South Africa and Middle East. Anil Ambani is expected to hold nearly one-third equity in MTN and he is likely to be the chairman of the company.

3G bidders may have to furnish experience certificate 14 Jun, 2008, 0210 hrs IST NEW DELHI/KOLKATA: In what will be a rude shock to all new telecom entrants, the department of telecom (DoT) plans to incorporate a clause in its upcoming 3G policy, mandating all potential bidders to have a ‘minimum period of exposure to telecom sector’ to be eligible to bid for 3G spectrum. According to a top source in the communication ministry, the eligibility criterion, or this clause will stipulate that “all telcos should have a proven experience in the telecom sector in India or abroad for a minimum period of one year, and must also have a subscriber base of at least 500,000.” This means that the likes of Unitech, Datacom, S Tel, Swan Telecom and several others who recently bagged telecom licences cannot participate in the 3G auctions. Besides, it will also rule out the participation of most of the 20-plus firms who are awaiting the grant of telecom licences from the government. The DoT has the law ministry’s go ahead in the matter, which has said that any possible exclusion of telecom newbies from the 3G race on ‘lack of experience’ grounds would be legally tenable and pose no hurdle for the government. “In respect of new licensees who do not have any prior exposure in the telecom sector, it may be stated that no right has accrued by them for bidding for 3G spectrum. If by fair application of this of pre-qualification norms, some of the existing licensees get excluded due to lack of requisite experience it should not be a legal hurdle in going ahead with the 3G auction,” the law ministry said in its communication to the DoT. In fact, going further, the law ministry has listed out several judgements from the Supreme Court to assure the DoT that a policy of this nature would pass the courts scrutiny, if it were to be challenged. For instance, the law ministry has pointed out that in the 1994 Tata Cellular vs. Union of India, the Supreme Court had observed that the ‘terms of the tender cannot be open to judicial scrutiny because the invitation to tender is on the realm of the contract’, while also adding that ‘the government must have the freedom of the contract’. The law ministry has, therefore, said that it was within the DoT’s powers to lay down the terms of the contract. The law ministry has also addressed the DoT’s concerns that new entrants (who hold telecom licenses) can go to the court on the grounds that such eligibility pre-conditions are against Trai’s recommendations that all existing license holders be allowed to bid for 3G spectrums. “It may be pointed out that while Trai recommended that the auction for 3G licenses should be restricted to existing UASL licensees, they only considered the commercial aspects of 3G spectrum and not the right of the existing UASL licensees. It is not in the case of Trai that existing UASL licensees has accrued any right in participating in bidding for 3G licences,” the law ministry’s communication added. DoT sources also said that finance ministry too was in support of having a ‘minimum period of exposure’ clause. Finance minister P Chidambaram in a recent communication to telecom minister A Raja had said that that international competitive bidding model for the 3G auction must be used with several clauses to ensure that the auction is restricted to serious contenders.

I too experiencing the Network problem in Mumbai from the last couple of days my dear friends. Regards.

Mobile guide for the footloose With mapping and navigation technology available on mobile handsets, going to unfamiliar territories is no longer a problem. Millions of drivers and ordinary consumers around the world now rely on the global positioning system (GPS) devices to help them find their way. Several companies like Nokia, HTC and Sony Ericsson have brought out GPS-enabled phones which provide users additional benefits. These gadgets throw up information on the routes and locations with the help of a series of maps and points of interest. Clicking on the application on the screen reveals a global map, and once there is a satellite fix, the device automatically shows your location on a more detailed map. The maps feature millions of points of interest —from railway stations and hospitals to tourist attraction and restaurants. Detailed information about each point of interest, like the address and telephone number can also be accessed. Here is a peek into some of the hot gadgets which have GPS functions in them. Sony Ericsson P1i Price: 17,800 This has a large 2.6 inch TFT touchscreen with a VGA camera for video call and matte-black plastic keypad. The shortcut buttons on the sides perform various functions based on the screen content. For connectivity, the phone supports 3G and Wi-Fi. It is also GPS enabled. Nokia N78 Price: 19,800 The Nokia N78 is an all-around phone designed for navigation, photography, and music. The model has integrated A-GPS with free Nokia maps for geo-tagging of your photos. The Nokia N78 has a 3.2 megapixel camera with Carl Zeiss optics. It can accommodate up to 8GB microSD cards. Nokia N82 Price: 19,500 The Nokia N82 merges A-GPS, photography, video, and the web. You can explore new places with maps, document your discoveries with a 5 megapixel camera and built-in Xenon flash. You can even publish your geotagged pictures at the single push of a button. Nokia N95 Price: 28,300 Nokia N95 does a lot more than just capturing images and DVD-like quality video. With access to the Internet, you can upload pictures and videos directly. With its integrated GPS and Nokia Maps application, finding your way is easy. Nokia N6110 Price: 13,400 It has a one-touch navigation button which provides easy access to GPS function and maps. It has HSDPA for fast web browsing and downloading of maps. There is also a 2 megapixel camera. You can also listen to your messages read aloud with message reader. HTC 3470 Price: 19,200 The HTC P3470 comes equipped with GPS. P3470 combines a lot of features within itself, main ones being lightweight design, large screen, navigation wheel, and macro lens. The smartphone runs on Windows mobile 6.0 professional. It boasts of a 2.8-inch TFT touch screen display, with a 240 x 320 pixel resolution that supports 65k colours. The scroll wheel for navigation lets you access the main fea-tures quickly and conveniently. Courtesy : ET

Reliance Comm says MTN talks progressing well 13 Jun, 2008, 2043 hrs IST NEW DELHI: India's Reliance Communications said on Friday said talks with South Africa's MTN Group to create a top-10 global telecoms firm with operations in about two dozen countries were progressing well. However, it said Reliance Industries, controlled by Mukesh Ambani, the estranged brother of Reliance Communications Chairman Anil Ambani, had made a claim of right of first refusal to buy the controlling stake in Reliance Communications. "Reliance Industries' claim is legally and factually untenable, baseless, and misconceived," Reliance Communications said in a statement. A Reliance Communications spokesman said the discussions with MTN were going well and said the claim would not delay them. Reliance Communications, valued at about $26 billion, is the second-largest mobile phone operator in India, the largest market in the world after China. Reliance had about 49 million subscribers at the end of May. MTN, which has a market capitalisation of about $31 billion, is sub-Saharan Africa's leading mobile operator. At the end of March, it had 68 million subscribers in 21 countries in Africa and the Middle East. Reliance and MTN began talks last month after Reliance's larger Indian rival, Bharti Airtel, and MTN failed to agree over the structure of a proposed tie-up.

^^^ Yes my dear Kumaar it seems that Reliance is sleeping right now and will wake up only after the lauch of Videocon in August. Regards.

Virgin's vSleek Offer Tata Teleservices' Virgin Mobile has announced a new "vSleek offer" targeted at the Indian youth. Through this offer, buyers of vSleek mobile phone, which is priced at Rs. 4,799, will get a lifetime validity voucher, a starter user kit, as well as 2000 minutes of free local calls to any network. The availability of the 2000 free minutes being offered will be spread over a period of five months. Every month, 400 minutes will be credited to the customer's account with a validity of 30 days from the date of credit. Virgin vSleek handset weighs 66gm, is 10 mm thin, and sports a 1.77-inch screen with 65K TFT display. It also works as an MP3 player, plays FM radio, has a micro SD card slot that supports up to 2GB memory cards, and a VGA camera. In addition, it offers 32MB of flash memory, 8MB of SRAM, 5MB of user memory, 250 phonebook memory, plus 250 in RUIM (SIM) memory. The phone is also capable of doubling up as a data modem with a speed of up to 153 Kbps. vSleek also offers one-touch access to Vbytes, Virgin Mobile's VAS data portal offering content, along with other applications for a charge of Rs. 5 per day. vSleek mobile phone is available across 15,000 outlets nationally, and at some modern retail outlets including The Mobile Store, RPG Cellucom, Univercell, Croma, Convergem, and Mobile NXT. Courtesy : Techtree

IDEA introduces new STD pack for HP subscribers 13 Jun, 2008, 1526 hrs IST, PTI SHIMLA: Leading mobile phone service provider IDEA Cellular Ltd today announced a new plan for its customers in Himachal Pradesh. The plan entails a recharge of Rs 31 which allows the customer to make STD calls at Re 1 and has validity of 30 days, a release from IDEA said. Peter Cherian, circle head, HP, IDEA Cellular said in the release, with continuously increasing trend of mobile usage among our customers we want to offer them the best value. This will benefit mobile customers in Himachal Pradesh, Cherian said adding we have been the front runner in introducing innovative tariff plans catering to the customer needs and is committed to providing a superior mobile experience to its customers.

Videocon to roll out telecom services from Chennai on Aug 15 13 Jun, 2008, 1705 hrs IST, PTI KOLKATA: Consumer durables major Videocon Group, which has bagged national telecom licence through its subsidiary Datacom Ltd, would roll out the GSM services from Chennai on August 15 this year. Unveiling the plans, Videocon Chairman Venugopal Dhoot said that GSM services would be first launched in Chennai on August 15, to be followed by other metros, Kerala and North India. "The national rollout plan will be completed in 18 months," Dhoot added. Datacom intends to build up a subscriber base of around 10 million in three-four years of launch. Datacom had obtained licences for providing GSM services in 22 circles across the country. Dhoot said telecommunications would be a focus area for Videocon Group in the coming years and the group would invest around Rs 6,000 crore in this business. The group was also in talks with some companies based in the Middle-East to rope in a foreign partner for the telecom business. He said that while the group had a strong cash balance, the foreign partner is also expected to bring in equity in the telecom venture.

BSNL tie-up with data provider 13 Jun, 2008, 1445 hrs IST, PTI MADURAI: Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd(BSNL) has entered into agreement with the Unstructured Supplementary Service data Provider--Contakt Technical Solutions--to provide "BSNL Expert alerts",a Value added service to be introduced for the cell one mobile users for the first time in South India, two officials said. Talking to reporters here, S E Rajam and V K Sanjeevi,General Managers,Mobile services,and BSNL Madurai area, said initially alert services would be given in 21 different subjects including Cricket, Astrology, News, health care and Stock indexes. Madurai being the base centre for south India,the service would be available to all the customers in the four states.The service would be available for mobile users for Rs.30 and 25 respectively, depending on the subject chosen by the subscribers,in SMS forms. It is being introduced on revenue sharing basis. Paresh Shah, Director,Contakt Technical Solutions,said they were operating in 13 countries,and would be introducing hundreds of services to various types of customers. They were in the process of entering into agreement with banks to guide the mobile users to know about their bank balance or where the ATM or Bank is situated in a new city where they were visiting for the first time.Besides they were also planning to enter into agreement with gas companies to enable the customers know when they would get the refill and other details. The Contakt solutions were already sending 1.5crore messages a day.The time bound location board would automatically refresh the items.The facility would benefit cell one subscribers in Andhra Pradesh, Karnatka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu,officials said.

Payments through mobile may soon become a reality 12 Jun, 2008, 2141 hrs IST, PTI NEW DELHI: Cell phone holders can soon avoid the pain of walking down the bank for depositing or withdrawing money if RBI's proposed operative guidelines for banks regarding mobile payments come into practice. "Considering that the technology (mobile banking) is relatively new and due care needs to be taken on security of financial transactions, there has been an urgent need for a set of operating guidelines that can be adopted by banks," the central bank today said while seeking the comments on the draft guidelines for mobile payment. Mobile payment involves debiting or crediting to a customer's account on the basis of funds transfer instruction received over the mobile phones. The central bank has proposed that all licensed banks would be permitted to offer mobile payment services to the residents of India after getting approval from their boards and would be restricted to only bank accounts and credit card accounts which comply to know your customer norms. Aiming at long-term goal, the RBI said, the framework would be such so as to enable transfer of funds from account in one bank to any other account in the same way or any other bank on a real time basis irrespective of mobile network of the customer. Also, the anti-money laundering would also be applicable for the customers opting for mobile-based banking services, the draft said.

"Sabka Spice" for Rural India Punjab's premier telecom service provider Spice Telecom has today launched a handset combo offer comprising a handset plus Spice connection. The offer is called "Sabka Spice", and will be made available at just Rs 599 in a bid to make mobile telephony accessible to the rural populace. Under the "Sabka Spice" offer, the handset comes with a three-years warranty and a choice of Spice prepaid or postpaid connection. The stylish Spice S 300 handset includes features such as: long battery life with promised talk time of 3.5 to 4 hours and stand-by time of 250 to 300 hours; Intelligent Audio Interface System that substitutes for LCD (alerts on the mobile are called out through this mechanism, meaning even those people who can't read can use the phone just by following audio alerts); choice of languages including English, Hindi, and Punjabi (even semi-literate rural consumers can use the phone with ease); speaker-phone that allows the phone to be operated even in noisy environments; universal charger (the phone can be charged using any mobile phone charger); speed dial that allows consumers to store oft-used numbers which could then be dialed with a simple push of the button; and intelligent LEDs comprising Red LED (on full charge, the color changes to green and missed calls are represented by blinking five times a second) and Blue LED (for network availability). The "Sabka Spice" Combo Handset offer provides the Spice S 300 handset along with a choice of prepaid or postpaid Spice connection -- all for Rs 599, the company claims. If the consumer opts for a prepaid connection, he/she gets the Spice S 300 handset along with three-years warranty. Additionally, he/she gets a Spice prepaid connection with SIM worth Rs 101, one-year validity worth Rs 198, or zero rental for one year worth Rs 148. Spice to Spice local calls cost 50 paise per minute; calls from Spice to other local GSM numbers cost 65 paise per minute; and calls from Spice to other local numbers cost Rs 1.10 per minute. In the event the consumer opts for a postpaid connection, he/she gets the Spice S 300 handset with three-years warranty. In addition, he/she needs to pay a monthly fixed charge of Rs 35. Spice to Spice local calls cost 10 paise per minute while calls from Spice to other local numbers cost 75 paise per minute. Courtesy : Techtree

My dear friends, if we compare according to price, then Xenitis 499/- mobile handset which is going to be launched could be better then Crap Classic handsets. Regards.

^^^ Even MTNL still not introduced EVDO my dear friends. Regards.

^^^ Thanks my dear Dr. Ali & Vishal. Will update the thread again within a couple of days. Regards.

India adds 6.3 mn GSM mobile users in May 11 Jun, 2008, 2204 hrs IST, PTI NEW DELHI: Indian mobile firms added 6.28 million users on the dominant GSM platform in May, an industry body said on Wednesday, maintaining growth momentum in the world's second-largest and fastest-growing wireless market. Top operator Bharti Airtel signed up 2.46 million new users in May to take its total user base to 66.8 million, data from the Cellular Operators' Association of India showed. India had 205.5 million subscribers on nine GSM networks by end-May, the data showed. The figure does not include No. 2 operator Reliance Communications Ltd's May additions. Reliance operates mainly on the rival CDMA platform but has also some GSM subscribers. The company releases its additions later. Third-ranked Vodafone Essar, in which Vodafone Group Plc owns a controlling stake, added 1.69 million new users, taking its subscribers to 47.5 million at end-May, the data showed. Unlisted state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd, the No. 4 player, added 314,281 subscribers, taking its total to almost 37 million. Idea Cellular, sixth ranked, got 1.1 million new GSM users in May to take its total to 26.1 million. Fifth-largest operator Tata Teleservices also runs mobile services on the CDMA platform and its subscriber additions are not yet out. Including CDMA operators, India had added 8.21 million wireless subscribers in April and had a total of 269.3 million mobile users.

RCOM hits debt trail to fund MTN deal 13 Jun, 2008, 0046 hrs IST MUMBAI: Reliance Communications’ (RCOM) advisory team is expanding as its negotiations with the MTN take a definitive shape. Barclays and HSBC are believed to have been appointed to help RCOM raise debt finance for the transaction. The induction takes the number of RCOM’s advisors to five. The broad structure of the reverse merger envisages that RCOM’s promoters, ADAG, would swap their shares in the country’s second-largest telecom company to get nearly one-third stake in MTN. On completion of the complex deal, RCOM chairman Anil Ambani would emerge as the single-largest shareholder in the South African telco and RCOM would become a subsidiary of MTN. Mr Ambani, it is learnt, is keen to scale up his holding in MTN to 35%, the maximum permissible limit in South Africa without launching an open offer. Indications are that ADAG may need to infuse money, in addition to swapping their equity in RCOM, to get nearly one-third stake in MTN. The funds required to consummate the deal, which would create a huge wireless company with 115 million subscribers in 23 countries in Asia, the Middle East and South Africa, is targeted through two routes. One, ADAG is expected to raise $2-3 billion from private equity investors. It has given the mandate to Deutsche Bank. Two, ADAG would tap the debt market in case it needs further money for which Barclays and HSBC are appointed. In all likelihood, ADAG would float a special purpose vehicle for the transaction in a tax-neutral country. The PE investors are expected to pick up stake in that company against their funds infusion. Then, the company would raise debt, mortgaging its holding in MTN. Sources said both the parties have agreed to the broad structure of the deal and are now working on a share-swap ratio. ET had already reported that while Mr Ambani wants a share swap ratio of 0.66:1 (66 MTN shares against 100 RCOM shares), the MTN management wants it to be 0.51:1. Mr Ambani's requirement of funds depends on the share-swap ratio. “But its almost certain that he needs to cough up some more funds to hold nearly 35% stake in MTN,” said a source close to the development. Sources said the deal is expected to be sealed by early July. RCOM’s advisors — Lehman Brothers and Lazard — are also trying to resolve the issue related to the management structure of MTN, post the deal. Although the existing management teams of both the companies are expected to remain unchanged in most geography, Mr Ambani is likely to be the chairman of MTN. MTN’s CEO Phuthuma Nhelko is expected to retain his job. The RCOM pack is led by veteran investment banker Ken Costa, head of Lazard's UK operations. Mr Costa is a legend of sorts in his own field. Meanwhile, MTN shares on Thursday increased the most in 2-week trading on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange. It rose 3.4% to 136 rand, the biggest increase since May 29. The stock traded at 134.80 rand in the morning trading session, valuing MTN $31.5 billion. The RCOM stock closed marginally lower at Rs 540, valuing the company at nearly $28 billion.