Arun 795 Report post Posted October 22, 2007 R-Com plans to roll out GSM services in 100 cities in 6 months Business Standard / New Delhi October 22, 2007 To offer dual-chip phones for both its CDMA and GSM networks. CDMA-technology service provider Reliance Communications (R-Com) has prepared a plan to roll out its GSM services in over 100 cities and towns within six months of the government providing it spectrum (radio frequencies that enable wireless communications). This will be part of the first phase of its pan-India GSM services launch. Sources said a launch of GSM services in all 15 circles would be completed in around 12 months. The company is also expected to offer dual-chip phones that will operate both on its CDMA and GSM networks. Sources said the company would invest around $2 billion over two and a half years to put together a network to support GSM services. The company has set itself a target of over 100 million customers by 2010. Some analysts have predicted that by then around 30 million R-Com customers would come from its GSM operations The Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group-controlled company received permission, and has paid the fee, for dual-spectrum use last week. The company operates mainly CDMA services but has GSM operations in some eight circles. Before last week, the company was permitted spectrum for either one or the other of the technologies in each circle but had requested the government for spectrum for GSM services under its existing licence in February 2006. The request followed serious differences with Qualcomm, sole global proprietors of CDMA technology. The initial marketing focus is on cities and towns where the churn of GSM customers is high by offering them an attractive alternative. An R-Com spokesperson, however, declined to comment on the issue. R-Com has already signed flexible agreements with leading telecom equipment companies like Chinese major Huawei and Alcatel-Lucent that will reduce the time needed to roll out the GSM network. Also 95 per cent of its over 14,000 towers are linked to a fibre optic backbone that eliminates the need for a micro-wave link, which also requires spectrum and therefore adds to delays. The company is investing heavily to set up 37,000 towers by March next year. The company, however, has to wait till the department of telecom acquires around 20 MHz of spectrum from the defence services. Except in Mumbai, where it is number three in the queue for spectrum (Aircel and Idea are ahead), R-Com is number two in all other areas for which it has applied for GSM spectrum. The company has also applied for a fresh pan-Indian licence through two companies, Swan Telecom and Cheetah, in which it has less than 10 per cent equity. It is one among 30 companies that recently put in their applications. Analysts said the applications were primarily an alternative plan if the government decided to disallow dual spectrum allocation. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
copperco2 24 Report post Posted October 23, 2007 Arun, A very nice piece of information... Now, according to the newspaper reports RCom is going to push for twin sim Handsets after the GSM Rollout.. At least now, i wil be sure of Constant Signal..if not CDMA then GSM twin..in my area.. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arun 795 Report post Posted October 31, 2007 Reliance Communications to launch all India GSM services within a year of getting spectrum 2007-10-31 16:56:43 Source : moneycontrol.com Anil Ambani has said that Reliance Communications will launch nationwide GSM services within a year of receiving GSM spectrum. He added that Reliance Communications is committed to support strong teledensity in India. Reliance Communications will be at forefront of affordable connectivity to 500 mn by 2010. The company's EBIDTA is highest in indian telecom, he added. Q2 capex spend of Rs 5300 crores is highest in Indian telecom. He plans world's largest telecom network roll out this year; Reliance Communications network will cover 23,000 towns and 6 lakh villages this year, Ambani said. ... well, so maybe by 2008 end only Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arun 795 Report post Posted November 1, 2007 Reliance Communications to invest Rs 5,000 crore for GSM set-up Business standard / Mumbai November 02, 2007 Reliance Communications will invest an additional Rs 5,000 crore for GSM electronics, over and above the investment earmarked for setting up the telecom infrastructure for its GSM foray. The investment would be made in the first year of operations itself, which was in addition to those planned for setting up the passive infrastructure (including towers) through Reliance Telecom Infrastructure Ltd (RTIL), RCom Chairman Anil Ambani said today at a meeting of analysts. He, however, did not comment on the passive infrastructure of the company. Recently, RCom received the government’s permission to start GSM operations in the country and is now awaiting the allocation of spectrum. “Our GSM expansion will leverage RCom’s existing infrastructure. The dual network operation will lead to capital expenditure rationalisation and even to stronger margins. RCom expects to get over 30 per cent share of new subscribers from existing dual network areas,” he said. India is the fastest growing telecom market with 10 crore net additions annually, and “RCom is well-positioned to participate in growth opportunity,” he added. When asked whether the company would phase out its CDMA operations, Ambani said that Reliance had no such plans. Reliance Communications chairman Anil Ambani on Thursday gave an upbeat assessment of the company’s performance in the second quarter and reiterated a strong outlook for the next six months. Mr Ambani elaborated upon the numbers for the second quarter in perspective and shed light on where the company is headed in the near future. Mr Ambani said that the Indian telecom market is probably the fastest growing telecom market in the world with an annual run rate of 100 million net additions. More importantly, he said that RCOM was well positioned to participate in this growth advantage and said that the company was looking to add 300 million into RCOM’s network coverage by year end. He also pointed out that close to one out of every three new subscribers in existing dual network areas signed up with RCOM. Given the increasing presence of the company in the GSM space, he said the company would benefit to a great extent thanks to its ability to leverage from the existing infrastructure and that dual network operations would help in capex rationalisation and even stronger margins. He also said that the aggressive growth plans would not mean a slowdown in profits and that the company was fully committed to delivering ‘profitable growth’. Given all of the above he said that RCOM was well positioned to further improve returns and drive shareholder value. Evidence of this, he said, could be seen in the fact that the RCOM EBITDA margin is among that of the top 10 global telcos and that RCOM’s ARPU is amongst the highest in the country. Currently RCOMs asset base is Rs. 60,000 crore, operating cash flow is at Rs. 8,000 crore and liquid asset base stands at Rs. 12,500 crore. Mr Ambani also addressed the speculation that has been rife about the listing of the tower business and Flag Telecom. Said Mr Ambani, “RTIL will be the leading telecom infrastructure player in India and will be listed by next year. As for FLAG, it will make a private placement of equity within this fiscal year.” Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ramchi 0 Report post Posted November 2, 2007 Will it be rolled out in Chennai in the near future? If so, from when onwards? I am tired of Vodafone-Hutch-blabla. Airtel is very expensive in Chennai for Data/Call plans. I know Reliance is not the best when it comes to Prepaid but I am willing to sing up for Postpaid if they have good plans. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arun 795 Report post Posted November 2, 2007 Reliance Communications plans price war encore in GSM, to slash GSM call rates by 30% Business Standard / Mumbai November 3, 2007 After four years, Reliance Communications, India's largest mobile service provider offering Code Division Multiple Access technology, is set to start another price war in the Indian telecom space by cutting Global System for Mobile call rates 30 per cent when the service is launched. The company recently received permission to launch GSM services within its existing license and is awaiting allocation of spectrum, the radio frequency that enables wireless communications, from the government. CDMA and GSM services cannot be operated on the same spectrum. In 2003, when RCom (then Reliance Infocomm) launched its CDMA operations, GSM call charges were at around Rs 4.50 per minute. Reliance Infocomm, under its Dhirubhai Ambani Pioneer Scheme launched on May 1, 2003, offered a free mobile phone, unlimited free incoming calls and national long-distance calls at 40 paise a minute. Though the scheme was withdrawn later, it had forced rivals offering GSM to slash their rates. GSM accounts for the bulk of mobile services in India. The company, now controlled by Anil Ambani, plans to slash GSM mobile call rates -- rental as well call charges -- to bring them in line with CDMA service charges. At present, the GSM mobile call charges are higher than that of CDMA services (see table). All-India average tariff* Post-paid Pre-paid Blended GSM Rs 1.02 Rs 1.14 Rs 1.11 CDMA 93 paise 82 paise 85 paise * Figures as on quarter ended June 30, 2007 RCom is planning to cash in on the difference in the average tariff between GSM and CDMA operators. On average, GSM services are 33 per cent higher than CDMA operations. With RCom intending to offer services on dual-chip phones, the company thinks it is necessary to have uniform prices. A difference in prices will result in different billing and other issues, informed sources told Business Standard. A company spokesperson, however, declined to comment on the issue. Moreover, the company expects more subscribers to move from other GSM networks to RCom's network if prices are comparatively low. RCom's potential competitors in the GSM space said they will take a view on the new tariifs after the company announced its intentions. RCom has paid the license fee for GSM service license and, therefore, is high up in a long queue of telecom aspirants for spectrum allocation. The issue, however, is currently the source of litigation, with GSM operators contesting RCom's GSM permission before the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appelate Tribunal. On Thursday, Reliance Communications Chairman Anil Ambani told an analysts’ conference that his company’s GSM expansion would leverage existing infrastructure and the dual network for cheaper tariffs. Analysts feel Reliance Communications could just about do it, because every new customer it adds bolsters its earnings. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Honest 836 Report post Posted November 3, 2007 ^^^ My dear friends, I'm eagerly waiting for such tariff and rental reductions by all GSM operators. After all its now subscribers turn to get the benefit of lower tariffs and rentals. All biggie operators had already enoughed looted us till date. Regards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bhupal 0 Report post Posted November 4, 2007 @ Arun Kumar. as per the same BS news item, to be on par with CDMA tarrifs, RCOM GSM prices will be 30% less compared to others. So it's good news for both GSM & RCOM users. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Ramchi 0 Report post Posted November 4, 2007 No information on which circles are going to be covered, when is it going to start etc... Tarrif details at this point makes no sense as Reliance can always slash prices by attaching rediculuous conditions. Without knowing the details of when this Reliance GSM going to be rolled out, we can only reserve our comments. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
swap2020 0 Report post Posted December 8, 2007 but when reliance going to start this gsm service in mumbai? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Honest 836 Report post Posted December 8, 2007 ^^^ @swapnil My dear friend, it may take near about 6 months or more from now. Regards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mn14april 0 Report post Posted December 10, 2007 Is it possible to Convert CDMA Number to GSM ? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kshah 452 Report post Posted December 10, 2007 Is it possible to Convert CDMA Number to GSM ? Yes, after number portability regime comes in force. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mobile Man 0 Report post Posted December 27, 2007 I hope it will come soon.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Arun 795 Report post Posted January 12, 2008 Reliance Communications to bring in cheaper mobile tariffs Saturday, 12 January , 2008, 09:51 Sify.com / Economic Times New Delhi: Reliance Communications on Friday said that its proposed GSM services will be based on quality and affordability platforms. Reliance Communications has been allotted 4.4 MHz of start-up spectrum in these 14 circles. Reliance, through its wholly-owned subsidiary, Reliance Telecom, already offers GSM services in the remaining eight circles. This implies that RCom’s plans of offering both GSM and CDMA services on a pan-India basis has finally be translated into a reality. The company confirmed that it has received spectrum from the Government to offer GSM mobile services in 14 new circles. This takes its total number of GSM circles to 22 including the 8 operational ones. The company, which has a pan-India CDMA network, currently owns 40 million subscribers. The GSM foray will enable it to target another 170 million more mobile subscribers. The company said that its network will cover 97 per cent of the population, 23,000 towns and 6 lakh villages. Company sources indicated that since RCoM was already offering cheaper tariffs on its CDMA platform, there was scope to launch its GSM services at tariffs that are much lower than the current levels. Earlier RCom had alleged that existing GSM operators were in a cartel to fix tariffs. RCom sources also said that it will soon come up with a tender to procure 100 million GSM lines. This will be the biggest tender in the country yet valued at over $6 billion. Economic Times has also learnt that RCom will roll-out GSM services in these 14 circles within the next couple of months and will offer tariffs that are up to 30% lower than the prevailing GSM call rates. RCom which offers CDMA services across the country plans to have a similar GSM network in place by the year-end. The move is set to trigger a series of price wars that will benefit consumers. Besides, increased competition will also ensure better quality of services and a wider rage of value added services as telcos go all-out to retain their subscribers. When contacted on the issue of being granted GSM spectrum, RCom, in a statement said, “The launch of nation-wide GSM services would enable Reliance Communications to effectively target the fast-growing subscriber additions of 6 million GSM subscribers every month. The company would also address the telecommunication requirements of the existing 172 million GSM customers with the launch of nation-wide GSM network in addition to its CDMA network.” Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
situ1962 21 Report post Posted January 12, 2008 Has reliance actually got the start up spectrum?if it's true,it's great news.now we can expect lower tariff soon in gsm also. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sougatadc 358 Report post Posted January 12, 2008 Is Reliance going to give more importance to GSM? With the new spectrum alloted to them will they launch new lines in the brand name RIM or a la their already available GSM sibling 'Smart'? Till now, Reliance used to give more importance to its CDMA service. Before the partition of Ambani brothers, the CDMA was in the hand of Mukesh and the GSM was Anil's. After Anil got the both, he continued the same pattern of business, only changed the logo and signature colours. And 'Smart' continued to be silent partner. The relianceinfo.com carried all details of RIM but was not that transparent about 'Smart'. The recharge cards of 'Smart' were used to be introduced or withdrawn arbitrarily without much fanfare. There is no GPRS in 'Smart' even after so many years of its introduction (it was the first mobile service provider in West Bengal circle), and customers are happy with the limited facility. They don't even bother with the dismal quality of its signal. So, with the new spectrum, will this 'Smart' become a little bit smarter? With Arun's post, it appears that the next expansion in Reliance's mobile telephone services will target GSM only. Will there be 3G, EDGE? Except these facilities, using of high-end handsets and PocketPCs are useless. Regards... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
situ1962 21 Report post Posted January 13, 2008 That.s quite right.smart hasn't started gprs service in any circle so far although it is the first company to start mobile service in many circles.even it's network coverage is also poor.it remains to be seen that whether they are upgrading their existing infrastructure in there 8 circles which has become quite old.it's true that the tariff of smart is lower than other gsm players.That.s why people have stuck to it even if there is no gprs.so at least when they are launching gprs remains to be seen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
shashank 8 Report post Posted January 13, 2008 No GPRS??????!! Thats insane! When they dont offer gprs or other VAS and with few towers obviously the tariff will be lower! BTW when can we expect Reliance GSM services in other states(Karnataka in particular)? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vmsanghrajka 0 Report post Posted January 13, 2008 RCom to start GSM service in state by March Sunday, 13 January , 2008, 10:09 Reliance Communication, the flagship company of the Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, which is already providing CDMA telecom service in the state, is set to offer GSM service to 14 new circles, including Gujarat, by March. After receiving start-up spectrum to launch nationwide GSM services under its existing Unified Access Service License (UASL), the company will now be able to launch GSM services in Gujarat and 13 other circles, it said in a press release. Before Centre gave the green signal to company to start the service in the state, Reliance Communication is ready with its infrastructure. "We were already working on the service and were waiting for government's approval. We are expecting the service to begin in Gujarat by March," said an official of the company. Reliance Communication will be the fifth telecom player in the state to offer GSM service. At present, in Gujarat, Vodafone, Idea, Bharti Airtel and BSNL are providing the GSM service and total GSM subscriber base in the state is 1.19 crore till December 2007. Source: http://sify.com/finance/fullstory.php?id=14588569 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Saurav 22 Report post Posted January 13, 2008 The best is if Reliance offers freedom to choose between GSM & CDMA handsets using same RUIM/ SIM. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KumaarShah 143 Report post Posted January 14, 2008 ^^^ I dont think the above is possible at all. You will have to buy a separate SIM and a separate RUIM. Then again, all the other operators will object, so it cannot be introduced at all. This is my opinion. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
FEVIN-RAJ 61 Report post Posted January 14, 2008 RCom GSM order: 80-100 mn lines Surajeet Das Gupta / New Delhi January 14, 2008 To account for 10% plus of 3-yr global output. Reliance Communications (RCom), the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group-promoted telecom company, has floated an order for 80 million to 100 million lines for GSM mobile services. The company recently received spectrum from the government to launch GSM services in 14 service areas under a controversial new cross-over technology policy. This will be the country’s largest order for telecom equipment and one of the world’s biggest. The installed production capacity of GSM electronics worldwide is 250 to 300 million lines annually, suggesting that the order could account for more than 10 per cent of global production over the next three years. The order, which will be spread over three years, is expected to be finalised in the next few weeks. The company has begun discussions with leading equipment manufacturers such as Huawei, Alcatel Lucent, ZTE, Ericsson, Motorola and Nokia, amongst others. A meeting of potential suppliers has been called at the end of this week to choose the vendors. An RCom spokesperson declined to comment on the issue. The largest order placed in India was for 45.5 million GSM lines by the state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL). However, the contract ran into a controversy, as a result of which it was halved to 22.75 million lines at a cost of $2.2 billion. Insiders said RCom is negotiating to cut the cost of equipment significantly by offering vendors a large upfront order to vendors. Executives involved in negotiations with the company said it has been looking for a 50 per cent reduction in price to its nearest competitor. In the last big order for GSM equipment, BSNL paid $100 per line for only second-generation (2G) services to Ericsson. The RCom order will have a combination of both 2G (of current level of services) and 3G equipment. Equipment manufacturers said considering the fact that Ericsson refused to accept the full order after other equipment manufacturers walked out of the BSNL deal, few manufacturers are ready to cut price in the interests of volume. “The Chinese might offer you lines at $50 (Rs 1,950) per line but they have no back-up support or experience in India. European companies have the experience and installations in India and for that you need to pay a premium,” said a executive who is negotiating with RCom. RCom, which is the country’s largest service provider of CMDA mobile services, already has GSM operations in six service areas. The company has over 40 million customers, of which 35.5 million are on CDMA while the rest are on GSM services. By adding GSM operations in 14 service areas, it will become a pan-Indian player, competing with incumbents such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone-Essar. Equipment makers said RCom’s pan-Indian GSM plan means that the company will also need to buy more transmission towers. It currently owns about 14,000 towers but will need 50,000 across the country. So far, the company has commissioned 40,000 towers through its subsidiary Reliance Telecom Infrastructure. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
sougatadc 358 Report post Posted January 14, 2008 RCom GSM order: 80-100 mn lines Surajeet Das Gupta / New Delhi January 14, 2008 To account for 10% plus of 3-yr global output. Reliance Communications (RCom), the Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group-promoted telecom company, has floated an order for 80 million to 100 million lines for GSM mobile services. The company recently received spectrum from the government to launch GSM services in 14 service areas under a controversial new cross-over technology policy. This will be the country’s largest order for telecom equipment and one of the world’s biggest. The installed production capacity of GSM electronics worldwide is 250 to 300 million lines annually, suggesting that the order could account for more than 10 per cent of global production over the next three years. The order, which will be spread over three years, is expected to be finalised in the next few weeks. The company has begun discussions with leading equipment manufacturers such as Huawei, Alcatel Lucent, ZTE, Ericsson, Motorola and Nokia, amongst others. A meeting of potential suppliers has been called at the end of this week to choose the vendors. An RCom spokesperson declined to comment on the issue. The largest order placed in India was for 45.5 million GSM lines by the state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL). However, the contract ran into a controversy, as a result of which it was halved to 22.75 million lines at a cost of $2.2 billion. Insiders said RCom is negotiating to cut the cost of equipment significantly by offering vendors a large upfront order to vendors. Executives involved in negotiations with the company said it has been looking for a 50 per cent reduction in price to its nearest competitor. In the last big order for GSM equipment, BSNL paid $100 per line for only second-generation (2G) services to Ericsson. The RCom order will have a combination of both 2G (of current level of services) and 3G equipment. Equipment manufacturers said considering the fact that Ericsson refused to accept the full order after other equipment manufacturers walked out of the BSNL deal, few manufacturers are ready to cut price in the interests of volume. “The Chinese might offer you lines at $50 (Rs 1,950) per line but they have no back-up support or experience in India. European companies have the experience and installations in India and for that you need to pay a premium,” said a executive who is negotiating with RCom. RCom, which is the country’s largest service provider of CMDA mobile services, already has GSM operations in six service areas. The company has over 40 million customers, of which 35.5 million are on CDMA while the rest are on GSM services. By adding GSM operations in 14 service areas, it will become a pan-Indian player, competing with incumbents such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone-Essar. Equipment makers said RCom’s pan-Indian GSM plan means that the company will also need to buy more transmission towers. It currently owns about 14,000 towers but will need 50,000 across the country. So far, the company has commissioned 40,000 towers through its subsidiary Reliance Telecom Infrastructure. Still no question of competing with Vodafone or AirTel. Reliance's 'Smart' GSM is a no-frill service, without any GPRS/EDGE, no call conferencing, no post-paid connection, no MMS, no value added services like using the phone as credit card, news alerts, stock ticker etc. Without all these, Reliance GSM is still a competitor of no-frill service providers like Aircel. One cannot use PocketPC or smartphone for mobile browsing internet or cannot MMS a pic taken by 2MP camera of the phone. So, let us wait and watch whether the service becomes at par with RIM or lags behind. Increasing the subscriber base only will not suffice to be a market leader. Regards. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Saurav 22 Report post Posted January 14, 2008 ^^^I dont think the above is possible at all. You will have to buy a separate SIM and a separate RUIM. Then again, all the other operators will object, so it cannot be introduced at all. This is my opinion. I thinkm RUIM is compatible with both GSM & CDMA Handsets Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
