InterneTelecom
Counsels appearing for IBDF told the SC that the tariff order restricted broadcasters’ ability to provision the signals of their pay channels to Prasar Bharati thereby impinging upon their fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression as guaranteed under Article 19 (1) (a) of the Constitution.
However, some exceptions could be given under the new Telecommunications Act to serve public interest, or to perform government function or where such auctions are not the preferred mode of assigning spectrum due to technical or economic reasons, minister of state for communications Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar said in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
It said satellite-based broadband services from Starlink and others will take a long time to impact the terrestrial network businesses of Jio and Airtel, who also have their own satcom plans.
The Modi government’s decision to waive off bank guarantees (BGs) for deferred spectrum payments for auctions conducted from 2012 onwards is a significant relief for the telecom industry, especially for Vodafone Idea (Vi).
New Delhi: Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea—continued to suffer major customer losses for the third month in a row in September, even as state-run BSNL continued its addition spree, following the mobile tariffs hikes by the private telcos in early July.
However, analysts suggest that while BSNL and MTNL may continue to capture some market share due to their lower tariffs, they are unlikely to significantly challenge the dominance of Jio and Airtel in the long term.
As a result, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has been putting off its decision on delicensing the band with telecom operators, broadband providers as well as the Indian Space Research Organsation (ISRO) caught in the tussle.
During Vodafone Idea (VIL) earning call for the second quarter ended September 30, 2024, the company's CEO Akshaya Moondra said that the loss of subscribers to BSNL due to the recent tariff hike is quickly reversing because of the state-run telecom firm's "network experience".
New Delhi: Elon Musk’s Starlink has hit back against Indian telecom operators’ demand that only auctioned satellite spectrum should be used to service urban or retail consumers, terming it “self-serving at the cost of underserved users”.
Jio and Mittal's Bharti Airtel - India's largest and second-largest operators, respectively - feel that giving away the satellite broadband airwaves at a pre-decided price by the government will create an uneven playing field since they had to compete in an auction to get spectrum for their terrestrial wireless phone networks.
By utilising the global OpenRoaming network comprising millions of hotspots, the new approach facilitates a smoother onboarding process, expediting the integration of Wi-Fi-based IoT devices across various sectors, including smart cities, manufacturing, and logistics.
Space World Group, a fibre assets company, plans to connect 35 data centres in seven major Indian cities, entailing an investment of $500 million through its new ventures called Constl and Ranext, co-founder Ankit Goel said.