Weakness in Mark Demand, MediaTek 4G Shipments to Remain Flat Rick Tsai, chief executive officer of MediaTek said in the earnings call that the weakness in market demand in India and other emerging countries will have an impact on the demand of 4G products. “Of course what’s happening in India and other emerging markets, are having impact on the demand of the 4G product,” Tsai said in the earnings call....
The government of India has recently announced digital Intelligence Unit (DIU). The DIU will communicate with the financial institutions, telcos, and the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to investigate fraudulent acts committed through telecom resources. A redressal mechanism is being set up by the government, which will help users facing financial frauds and harassment through pesky calls or SMS file real-time complaints against the telemarketers or individuals. The government will facilitate users with a mobile application as well as a website platform and SMS system to lodge the complaints — more details on the story ahead....
The setting up of an optical fibre network all over India under the BharatNet initiative via the public-private partnership (PPP) model is projected to offer a growth opportunity to the private infrastructure sector. This approach encourages the adoption of similar models in other sectors as well. Now, the Parliament was informed that the telecom department has not directly awarded any work under the BharatNet initiative to CSS Wi-Fi Chaupal Services India....
Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has left the final call for setting the price of the spectrum on the cabinet. DoT has not suggested any change or reduction in the price of the spectrum as proposed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). The next spectrum auction is likely to take place in the first quarter of 2021. Since DoT hasn’t suggested any price modification, the government body has left the decision to the Union Cabinet....
Before the initial sale or before the import of the device, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has ordered smartphone producers and importers to register the IMEI number of the device on a new portal that is operational from 2020. The Department of Transportation (DoT) on Monday released a notification for the Mobile Device Equipment Identification Number, Rules, 2017 to make it mandatory for smartphone manufacturers to register the IMEI numbers of all mobile devices made in India with the DoT’s Indian Counterfeit Device Restriction Portal (ICDR)....
Bharti Airtel and TTSL Merger - Pending Clearance from DoT As per an ET Telecom report, an official person aware of the development said, “Airtel and TTSL have to pay around Rs 10,000 crore and Rs 2,800 crore, respectively, as SUC.” He further added, “Then there is another Rs 2,000 crore of OTSC that transferee firm Airtel will have to pay in the form of bank guarantees to the government....
The Digital Communications Commission (DCC) had last week backed the TRAI’s (Telecom Regulatory Authority of India) recommendations for the base reserve price of the airwaves for the 5G spectrum auctions. Along with that, the body had said that the premium ‘E-Band’ spectrum should be given exclusively to the telcos via an administrative allocation route. However, this has seriously disappointed the tech companies and Wi-Fi/Broadband players across the country. ET Telecom reports that these companies will shortly write to the government that the DCC’s decisions are in direct conflict with what the sector regulator had suggested....
There are a number of internet service providers (ISPs) in the country which may offer the same broadband plan with different benefits, putting the users in the dilemma of choosing. While popular service providers Airtel offer broadband plans with added benefits of OTT and more, some of the lesser-known ISPs like Excitel actually offer comparatively cheaper broadband plans. In this article, we are going to take a look at the 200 Mbps broadband plans offered by Excitel in comparison to Airtel and BSNL along with pack details....
“Facebook 2FA numbers are also shared with Instagram which prompts you ‘is this your phone number?’ Once you add to FB. WhatsApp also shares phone numbers with Facebook. Facebook shares phone numbers with advertisers,” said Burge in a series of tweets. “For years Facebook claimed… adding a phone number for 2FA was only for security. Now it can be searched, and there’s no way to disable that,” Burge added. Last September, Gizmodo reported that Facebook also uses security information to target adverts....
One of the biggest social media platforms around the world, Facebook, has just banned the account of Donal Trump on its platform for 2 more years. As per a Reuters report, the suspension will stay in place until at least 2023. The platform might extend the suspension even further, but there’s no clear word on it. Facebook has faced a lot of anger and fire from people who think the platform treats world leaders and politicians differently than the other users....
Five Indian States Accounted for 24.98% of Total Telephone Connections The DoT report highlights that Andhra Pradesh registered 129,599 new telephone connections in August while Assam and Bihar registered 140,311 and 720,249 connections respectively. It was also highlighted that Andhra Pradesh had the “highest share in the total telephones” at 7.53% followed by Assam, Bihar, Gujarat and Haryana. “These five Service areas taken together accounted for 24.98% of total telephone connections in India,” the DOT said in its Monthly Telecom Scenario report....
On an earnings call with reporters, Ruth Porat, Chief Financial Officer of Alphabet, cited “some of the recent pressures in the premium smartphone market” for the trouble in selling expensive Pixel phones. Google CEO Sundar Pichai said the smartphone industry is “working through a phase where there is definite year-on-year headwinds.” “But I do think, especially, the ecosystem is constantly pushing it forward. I continue to be excited about the innovation speed, 5G coming or the early look into foldable phones, which I am really pleased is a big part in driving,” Pichai said....
Google on Thursday announced multiple initiatives to support small businesses across India including the expansion of Nearby Stores feature. According to Google, the company has “consistently invested in programs and solutions that remove the barriers that come in the way of small and medium businesses benefitting from the Internet.” However, Google said that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns have increased the need for many small and medium businesses to switch to digital platforms “to minimise the disruption....
Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro Not Launching in India Not Surprising Google isn’t going to be launching the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro in India but it isn’t the least bit surprising. The company has already made it clear that it sees India as a super price-sensitive market and will only bring smartphones that are in the mid-range category to the Indian market. This is a fair strategy from Google but there’s no denying that there might be many in India who want to get their hands on the flagship Pixel smartphones....
Google has been rumoured to expand to the consumer electronics portfolio by introducing a smartwatch of its own. With the way Google has been lining up its products, it is expected that the wearable will be called the Google Pixel Watch. While not much is known about the smartwatch from Google, a new report suggests that the company is working on introducing something called “sensor fusion” which is a combination of sensors that can recognise gestures made outside the body of the watch itself....
Government of India might defer 5G spectrum sale in 2021 and focus on 4G auction in 2020. Officials from the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) stated that 5G auctions in 2020 would have intrigued fewer buyers which might be one of the primary reasons for pushing the 5G sale in 2021. However, as reported by ET Telecom, the lack of clarity on whether Chinese vendors Huawei and ZTE can deploy their next-generation mobile technology could be another reason for the deferment of 5G sale in 2021....
In today’s day and age, with global adoption, the 3GPP-based fixed-wireless access or FWA has finally become a mainstream service for telcos, on Tuesday, with over 436 mobile network operators or MNOs spread across 171 countries and territories now offering users with FWA via either 5G or LTE. This news came via the Global mobile Suppliers Association or GSA 4G-5G FWA Forum early on Tuesday, with the forum adding that at the same time, around 425 operators in 169 countries are now offering FWA services that are based on LTE whilst 64 operators are now marketing business or residential based 5G FWA broadband services, a steady rise from 44 in the previous 6 months....
Hathway Playbox Users Will Get 3 Months of Netflix for Free New Hathway Playbox users can redeem three months of Netflix subscription for free. Alongside Netflix, Hathway is also providing one year of Sun NXT subscription and two months of ZEE5 and Yupp TV subscriptions. Furthermore, the Playbox also comes pre-installed with VOOT and YouTube apps as well. It also allows users to install apps via the Google Play Store since it runs Android TV platform....
The outbreak of COVID-19 has made work from home the new normal. Telecom subscribers have been using data and voice benefits extensively to cater to their work and entertainment needs. All the telecom operators have been offering special prepaid plans to their subscribers amid the stressful times to keep them connected with their loved ones. Since data consumption has been increased in 2020, telecom operators Vodafone Idea, Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio has launched various prepaid plans with extended data benefits to ensure that all the internet needs of the subscribers are fulfilled....
Huawei has been under immense scrutiny in recent months, from being banned from the US due to security concerns to losing access to Google’s GMS services, the instances that have occurred have left the company’s smartphone businesses in shambles. What Huawei and HONOR have to support their business is the laptop side of things, since the company has been quite well known for its offerings, most of which are popular in the Asian market....
