ITV

Category: Broadband

  • Idea expands 4G service across 39 Karnataka towns

    Idea expands 4G service across 39 Karnataka towns

    MUMBAI: Idea Cellular has expanded its high speed 4G LTE services across 39 towns in Karnataka.

     

    What’s more, by March 2016, the company will extend its services to three more key markets namely, Maharashtra & Goa, North East and Orissa, and by June 2016, Idea’s 4G footprints will cover 750 cities across 10 telecom circles.

     

    Within a month, the company has expanded its 4G LTE service footprint to 24 districts, including major towns of Bangalore, Mysore, Madikeri, Karwar, Chikmagalur, Belgaum and Chitradurga; covering 20 per cent of the state’s total population.

     

    In addition to Bangalore metro, Idea has launched its 4G services in other towns of Channarayapatna, Udyavara (CT), Harihar, Kunigal, Mulbagal, and Toranagal. Additionally, Idea is planning to launch its 4G services in Mangalore, Udupi-Manipal, Bijapur, Bellary and 18 more towns by end of this financial year, taking the total tally to 61.

     

    It can be recalled that last year in December, Idea Cellular had launched 4G LTE services in all four telecom circles (five states) of South India, namely Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh & Telangana, and Karnataka. Earlier this month, the company launched services across three more circles (four Indian states) – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Punjab, expanding its 4G LTE service footprint to 7 telecom service areas.

     

    Idea Cellular deputy managing director Ambrish Jain said, “Since last week of December 2015, Idea has rapidly rolled out its high-speed 4G LTE network to cover seven major markets in India.”

     

    Idea Cellular currently holds 1800 MHz 4G spectrum in these 10 telecom circles, which cover 50 per cent of telecom market but over 60 per cent of Idea’s gross revenue. Additionally, Idea has recently signed an agreement with Videocon Telecommunications for acquiring ‘Right to Use’ 1800 MHz spectrum under Spectrum Trading Agreement in two of its key telecom leadership markets of Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh (West). Post completion of this transaction, 4G services will be extended to 12 service areas, covering 75 per cent of Idea’s revenue base in the country.

     

    Idea Cellular chief marketing officer Sashi Shankar added, “Idea customers with 4G devices in these 183 towns can now start experiencing super fast speeds by simply upgrading their existing SIM cards to new 4G SIM cards. The company is also offering attractive subscription plans to digital content including a wide range of the latest music, movies and games. Idea has also partnered with leading handset manufacturers and e-commerce retailers for special data bundling offers on new 4G smartphones.”

     
    Idea’s 4G Prepaid & Postpaid tariff plans are priced at par with existing 3G plans. The company is also offering ‘4G Packs’ starting as low as Rs 21.

     

    Digital Content for 4G consumers 

     

    Idea, marking its first foray in the digital space, is launching an assortment of digital content in partnership with content aggregators.

     

    For music, it has tied-up with Hungama Digital, wherein it will offer content at a monthly subscription price of Rs 99 for all its consumers. For movies and videos, Idea has partnered with Eros International, wherein content will be offered at a monthly subscription price of Rs 49 for all its consumers. Idea will also be launching ‘Idea Games Club’ powered by Opera for all its consumers from 1 February, 2016, at a monthly subscription price of Rs 150. However, as an incentive for new 4G customers, a special offer for subscription at just Rs 29 per month till 31 March, 2016 is available for these packs.

     

    Idea will also unveil ‘Ultimate Plans,’ which provide a Bundleof 4G Data, Unlimited Voice calls and Content subscription, which is powered by Hungama.

     

    Wide Portfolio of 4G Smartphones & Devices

    Currently, 2.7 million 4G devices across these seven circles are registered on Idea’s network and growing at an exponential rate. To facilitate 4G device upgrade, Idea has launched branded 4G devices namely Idea 4G Dongles, 4G Mi-Fi (connects 10 users) and Home Wi-Fi (connects 32 users), which are now available at Rs 2,599 onwards with 4G Data offers.

     

    Idea has partnered with Samsung for special offers on its 4G Smartphones, wherein the two companies will launch a variety of programmes to offer differentiated and significant value to customers.

     

    The TSP has also tied up with smartphone manufacturers including Intex Technologies, Lava, Lenovo and Xolo to offer bundled 4G data plans on smartphones.

     

    A tie up is also in place with e-commerce retailer Snapdeal for providing bundled data offers on 4G devices.

     

    Launch of 4G website

    The company has also launched its responsive 4G website -www.ideacellular.com/4G, wherein consumers can log on to get more information about 4G services, tariff plans and recharges, locate the nearest Idea stores offering 4G SIMs and much more. Idea is also rolling out a smartphone e-store on its website. Consumers can now buy 4G smartphone brands, Mi-Fi and Dongles. 

     

    The company has also rolled out its FDD platform enabled 4G LTE services on the 1800 MHz frequency band, which is the most preferred spectrum band for deployment of 4G services globally, and is supported by the majority of 4G handsets available in the market.

     

    Idea Cellular’s 4G LTE Network will be equipped with the enhanced ‘Fast Return’ feature enabling seamless and quick toggle for consumers across Idea’s 4G, 3G and 2G networks, offering superior experience for both mobile data and voice services. While the company possesses the capability to introduce VoLTE feature, existing customers’ current 4G devices do not support this feature. Accordingly, the deployment of VoLTE will be evaluated at a later stage.

     

    Idea is deploying state-of-the-art, ‘Single RAN’ equipment, which supports multiple technologies in a given frequency band. For every 4G site on 1800 MHz, this equipment also provides additional 2G voice capacity on GSM spectrum.

     

    For FY16, Idea Cellular’s capex guidance is Rs 6,500 crore, significantly higher than earlier years’ annual capex spends. In this fiscal year, Idea plans to add 40,000 – 45,000 sites on 2G, 3G and 4G technology platforms, complete a cumulative roll out of 111,000 kms of Fibre, and add an incremental 175-200 million population to the mobile broadband (3G & 4G) population coverage. The 4G launch in Southern India is part of the capex guidance by Idea.

     

    The roll out of Idea’s 4G services will be financed through internal accruals. The company recorded an EBITDA of Rs 5,739 crore in H1-FY16, a growth of 27.6 per cent  over H1-FY15 and cash profits of Rs 5,085 crore, a robust growth of 32.5 per cent over H1FY15.

  • Idea expands 4G service across 39 Karnataka towns

    Idea expands 4G service across 39 Karnataka towns

    MUMBAI: Idea Cellular has expanded its high speed 4G LTE services across 39 towns in Karnataka.

     

    What’s more, by March 2016, the company will extend its services to three more key markets namely, Maharashtra & Goa, North East and Orissa, and by June 2016, Idea’s 4G footprints will cover 750 cities across 10 telecom circles.

     

    Within a month, the company has expanded its 4G LTE service footprint to 24 districts, including major towns of Bangalore, Mysore, Madikeri, Karwar, Chikmagalur, Belgaum and Chitradurga; covering 20 per cent of the state’s total population.

     

    In addition to Bangalore metro, Idea has launched its 4G services in other towns of Channarayapatna, Udyavara (CT), Harihar, Kunigal, Mulbagal, and Toranagal. Additionally, Idea is planning to launch its 4G services in Mangalore, Udupi-Manipal, Bijapur, Bellary and 18 more towns by end of this financial year, taking the total tally to 61.

     

    It can be recalled that last year in December, Idea Cellular had launched 4G LTE services in all four telecom circles (five states) of South India, namely Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh & Telangana, and Karnataka. Earlier this month, the company launched services across three more circles (four Indian states) – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Haryana and Punjab, expanding its 4G LTE service footprint to 7 telecom service areas.

     

    Idea Cellular deputy managing director Ambrish Jain said, “Since last week of December 2015, Idea has rapidly rolled out its high-speed 4G LTE network to cover seven major markets in India.”

     

    Idea Cellular currently holds 1800 MHz 4G spectrum in these 10 telecom circles, which cover 50 per cent of telecom market but over 60 per cent of Idea’s gross revenue. Additionally, Idea has recently signed an agreement with Videocon Telecommunications for acquiring ‘Right to Use’ 1800 MHz spectrum under Spectrum Trading Agreement in two of its key telecom leadership markets of Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh (West). Post completion of this transaction, 4G services will be extended to 12 service areas, covering 75 per cent of Idea’s revenue base in the country.

     

    Idea Cellular chief marketing officer Sashi Shankar added, “Idea customers with 4G devices in these 183 towns can now start experiencing super fast speeds by simply upgrading their existing SIM cards to new 4G SIM cards. The company is also offering attractive subscription plans to digital content including a wide range of the latest music, movies and games. Idea has also partnered with leading handset manufacturers and e-commerce retailers for special data bundling offers on new 4G smartphones.”

     
    Idea’s 4G Prepaid & Postpaid tariff plans are priced at par with existing 3G plans. The company is also offering ‘4G Packs’ starting as low as Rs 21.

     

    Digital Content for 4G consumers 

     

    Idea, marking its first foray in the digital space, is launching an assortment of digital content in partnership with content aggregators.

     

    For music, it has tied-up with Hungama Digital, wherein it will offer content at a monthly subscription price of Rs 99 for all its consumers. For movies and videos, Idea has partnered with Eros International, wherein content will be offered at a monthly subscription price of Rs 49 for all its consumers. Idea will also be launching ‘Idea Games Club’ powered by Opera for all its consumers from 1 February, 2016, at a monthly subscription price of Rs 150. However, as an incentive for new 4G customers, a special offer for subscription at just Rs 29 per month till 31 March, 2016 is available for these packs.

     

    Idea will also unveil ‘Ultimate Plans,’ which provide a Bundleof 4G Data, Unlimited Voice calls and Content subscription, which is powered by Hungama.

     

    Wide Portfolio of 4G Smartphones & Devices

    Currently, 2.7 million 4G devices across these seven circles are registered on Idea’s network and growing at an exponential rate. To facilitate 4G device upgrade, Idea has launched branded 4G devices namely Idea 4G Dongles, 4G Mi-Fi (connects 10 users) and Home Wi-Fi (connects 32 users), which are now available at Rs 2,599 onwards with 4G Data offers.

     

    Idea has partnered with Samsung for special offers on its 4G Smartphones, wherein the two companies will launch a variety of programmes to offer differentiated and significant value to customers.

     

    The TSP has also tied up with smartphone manufacturers including Intex Technologies, Lava, Lenovo and Xolo to offer bundled 4G data plans on smartphones.

     

    A tie up is also in place with e-commerce retailer Snapdeal for providing bundled data offers on 4G devices.

     

    Launch of 4G website

    The company has also launched its responsive 4G website -www.ideacellular.com/4G, wherein consumers can log on to get more information about 4G services, tariff plans and recharges, locate the nearest Idea stores offering 4G SIMs and much more. Idea is also rolling out a smartphone e-store on its website. Consumers can now buy 4G smartphone brands, Mi-Fi and Dongles. 

     

    The company has also rolled out its FDD platform enabled 4G LTE services on the 1800 MHz frequency band, which is the most preferred spectrum band for deployment of 4G services globally, and is supported by the majority of 4G handsets available in the market.

     

    Idea Cellular’s 4G LTE Network will be equipped with the enhanced ‘Fast Return’ feature enabling seamless and quick toggle for consumers across Idea’s 4G, 3G and 2G networks, offering superior experience for both mobile data and voice services. While the company possesses the capability to introduce VoLTE feature, existing customers’ current 4G devices do not support this feature. Accordingly, the deployment of VoLTE will be evaluated at a later stage.

     

    Idea is deploying state-of-the-art, ‘Single RAN’ equipment, which supports multiple technologies in a given frequency band. For every 4G site on 1800 MHz, this equipment also provides additional 2G voice capacity on GSM spectrum.

     

    For FY16, Idea Cellular’s capex guidance is Rs 6,500 crore, significantly higher than earlier years’ annual capex spends. In this fiscal year, Idea plans to add 40,000 – 45,000 sites on 2G, 3G and 4G technology platforms, complete a cumulative roll out of 111,000 kms of Fibre, and add an incremental 175-200 million population to the mobile broadband (3G & 4G) population coverage. The 4G launch in Southern India is part of the capex guidance by Idea.

     

    The roll out of Idea’s 4G services will be financed through internal accruals. The company recorded an EBITDA of Rs 5,739 crore in H1-FY16, a growth of 27.6 per cent  over H1-FY15 and cash profits of Rs 5,085 crore, a robust growth of 32.5 per cent over H1FY15.

  • Sky invests $10 million in DataXu

    Sky invests $10 million in DataXu

    MUMBAI: After recently investing in OTT video company TV4 Entertainment and online video aggregator Pluto TV, Sky has now invested $10 million in Boston based programmatic marketing analytics, data management and media activation software company DataXu.

     

    DataXu partners with advertisers and media agencies to help them engage more efficiently and effectively with consumers across all of their devices. DataXu’s expertise in programmatic marketing – the automated, data-driven planning and trading of advertising across multiple media devices and formats – benefits Sky as both an advertiser and investor. The DataXu platform has the capability to analyse and optimise buying decisions on over 100 billion digital advertising opportunities every day around the globe.

     

    Sky’s advertising sales division, Sky Media, will also work closely with DataXu to explore a number of new opportunities, including: extending the reach of Sky Media’s revolutionary product, Sky AdVance; leveraging DataXu’s market-leading experience in helping advertisers to buy addressable TV ads programmatically; and harnessing the power of data and analytics to drive superior marketing results. 

     

    Sky Media has a strong track record of innovation. In 2014, it launched Sky AdSmart, a product designed to make TV advertising effective for niche or smaller brands. Sky AdSmart serves different ads to different households watching the same programme, showing the most relevant ads as guided by data from profiling experts.

     

    This was followed in 2015 with the introduction of Sky AdVance, which allows advertisers to connect journeys across screens so that audiences see the right ad, at the right time, in the right sequence and on the right screen. 

     

    Sky Media deputy MD Jamie West said, “This investment will help us develop a deeper understanding of programmatic advertising, and play our part in shaping the market as it progresses. Combining Sky’s knowledge, experience and innovation in advertising with DataXu’s programmatic marketing expertise will provide exciting opportunities for both businesses, and most importantly, for Sky’s advertising partners.”

     

    “This strategic investment allows DataXu to partner with a true, global leader in television and media. DataXu and Sky have strong alignment on the future of programmatic and advanced television; and this investment ensures our two companies continue to learn and grow together,” added DataXu co-founder and CEO Mike Baker.

     

    Sky also has investments in US technology companies, including the online sports network Whistle Sports, IP streaming service provider Roku and cinematic virtual reality company Jaunt.

  • Sky invests $10 million in DataXu

    Sky invests $10 million in DataXu

    MUMBAI: After recently investing in OTT video company TV4 Entertainment and online video aggregator Pluto TV, Sky has now invested $10 million in Boston based programmatic marketing analytics, data management and media activation software company DataXu.

     

    DataXu partners with advertisers and media agencies to help them engage more efficiently and effectively with consumers across all of their devices. DataXu’s expertise in programmatic marketing – the automated, data-driven planning and trading of advertising across multiple media devices and formats – benefits Sky as both an advertiser and investor. The DataXu platform has the capability to analyse and optimise buying decisions on over 100 billion digital advertising opportunities every day around the globe.

     

    Sky’s advertising sales division, Sky Media, will also work closely with DataXu to explore a number of new opportunities, including: extending the reach of Sky Media’s revolutionary product, Sky AdVance; leveraging DataXu’s market-leading experience in helping advertisers to buy addressable TV ads programmatically; and harnessing the power of data and analytics to drive superior marketing results. 

     

    Sky Media has a strong track record of innovation. In 2014, it launched Sky AdSmart, a product designed to make TV advertising effective for niche or smaller brands. Sky AdSmart serves different ads to different households watching the same programme, showing the most relevant ads as guided by data from profiling experts.

     

    This was followed in 2015 with the introduction of Sky AdVance, which allows advertisers to connect journeys across screens so that audiences see the right ad, at the right time, in the right sequence and on the right screen. 

     

    Sky Media deputy MD Jamie West said, “This investment will help us develop a deeper understanding of programmatic advertising, and play our part in shaping the market as it progresses. Combining Sky’s knowledge, experience and innovation in advertising with DataXu’s programmatic marketing expertise will provide exciting opportunities for both businesses, and most importantly, for Sky’s advertising partners.”

     

    “This strategic investment allows DataXu to partner with a true, global leader in television and media. DataXu and Sky have strong alignment on the future of programmatic and advanced television; and this investment ensures our two companies continue to learn and grow together,” added DataXu co-founder and CEO Mike Baker.

     

    Sky also has investments in US technology companies, including the online sports network Whistle Sports, IP streaming service provider Roku and cinematic virtual reality company Jaunt.

  • Reliance Jio to raise Rs 15,000 crore via rights issue

    Reliance Jio to raise Rs 15,000 crore via rights issue

    MUMBAI: Mukesh Ambani’s telecom company Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd is planning to raise a sum of Rs 15,000 crore via a rights issue. The company’s board has approved the plan for the same.

    According to the information given in a regulatory filing, the company will issue 15 billion equity shares of Rs 10 each totalling up to a whopping amount of Rs 15,000 crore to its existing shareholders.

    As of yet, the company has not given any further clarification for raising such a large amount.

    As was reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, Reliance Jio also inked a spectrum sharing and trading agreement with Reliance Communications to strengthen its indoor coverage and voice services.

    Further, the company also plans to offer 4G services at a monthly charge of Rs 300 – 500 and will also provide 4G mobile phones at a low price of Rs 4000 per unit.

     

  • ACT continues to lead in wireline broadband internet additions in 2015: TRAI October 2015

    ACT continues to lead in wireline broadband internet additions in 2015: TRAI October 2015

    BENGALURU: South Indian broadband internet service provider Atria Convergence Technologies Private Limited (ACT) continued to lead in addition of new subscribers in wireline broadband internet services during the period between 31 December, 2014 and 31 October, 2015. ACT added 2.10 lakh net subscribers or 22.11 per cent of the all India additions during the period as per the Telecom Regulatory of India (TRAI) report for the month ended 31 October, 2015. As per the TRAI reports, as on 31 December, 2014, ACT had 6.1 lakh subscribers (3.98 per cent of all India subscribers) and it had 8.2 lakh subscribers (5.04 per cent of all India subscribers) as on 31 October, 2015. Hence, its growth has also been the highest in percentage terms at 34.43 per cent during the period.

    The top five players in India in the wireline broadband internet space in pecking order are the public sector Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), Bharti Airtel Limited (Airtel), public sector Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL), Atria Convergence Technologies Private Limited (ACT) and You Broadband (You BB). Among these five, only BSNL and Airtel could be termed national players at present. BSNL, Airtel and MTNL also provide wireline and mobile services while Airtel also has a direct to home (DTH) segment.

    Note: (1) 100,00,000 = 100 Lakh = 10 million = 1 crore

    (2) TRAI reports indicate data in millions of numbers up to two decimal places. Hence it is assumed in this report that a figure of 0.47 million (4.7 lakh) subscribers for You BB for July-2015 would be granular to the nearest 10,000. While percentages perforce have been mentioned up to two decimal places, the accuracy may vary, depending upon the exact number.

    (3) Industry sources say that TRAI numbers in the case of ACT for May-2015 are incorrect at 0.66 million and the correct number would be 0.693 million. This paper considers the number as 6.93 lakh or 0.693 million.

    (4) MSOs have a number of subsidiaries and alliances, hence broadband numbers are split as applicable. The consolidated subscription numbers of these entities could be larger. Hathway is a case in point.

    (5) Ortel’s numbers for Q3-2015 have been estimated from the numbers released by it for Q1-2015, Q2-2015, Q4-2015 and FY-2015.

    (6) The term ‘operating revenue’ in this paper indicates ‘total income from operations.’

    Please refer to Figure 1 below. Overall, during the 10 month period in CY-2015 until end October 2015, wireline broadband internet subscriber base in India grew by 6.2 per cent or by 9.5 lakh net new subscribers. During the period, wired broadband internet subscriber base increased from 153.2 lakh to 162.7 lakh. During the period, the combined share of wireline broadband internet subscribers of the top 5 players has dropped 246 basis points from 88.45 per cent as on 31 December, 2014 to 85.99 per cent as on 31 October, 2015. The drop in share between 30 September, 2015 and 31 October, 2015 was 31 basis points from 86.30 per cent to 85.99 per cent as on 31 October, 2015. Of the 9.5 lakh new all additions, 4.4 lakh (46.32 per cent of total additions) were added by the top five players. Compared to the all India growth of 6.2 per cent in subscribers, the top five players combined subscription numbers grew by 3.25 per cent.

    Telecom major Bharti Airtel Limited (Airtel) is not far behind ACT in subscriber additions during the 10 month period. Airtel has added two lakh net new subscribers or 21.05 per cent of the net new all India additions during the period. Its subscriber base grew two lakh (grew by 14.18 per cent) in the first 10 months of CY-2015. Airtel’s wireline broadband internet subscriber base grew from 14.1 lakh (9.20 per cent of the all India base) as on 31 December, 2014 to 16.1 lakh (9.90 per cent of the all India base) as on 31 October, 2015. While the share of subscribers of Airtel, ACT and You BB has been growing, the shares of the public sector BSNL and MTNL have fallen, either because of fall in number of subscribers or because of no growth in numbers. Please refer to Fig 2 below.

    MSOs’ contribution to broadband

    As mentioned above, the combined share of overall wired internet subscribers of the top five companies is declining, with other players increasing their contribution to wireline broadband subscription numbers.

    The decline between 31 December, 2014 and 31 October, 2015 was 246 basis points. Other ISPs’ share of subscribers has increased to the same extent. Among the ‘Others’ are included Cable TV MSOs. MSOs in India, which are looking at broadband revenues to prop up their cable revenue numbers because of the comparatively higher ARPUs from broadband internet services. We can only repeat the figures that we have mentioned in our earlier report Wired Broadband: ACT, Airtel lead growth in Sep 2015; MSOs’ broadband numbers increasing.

    MSOs have started reporting double digit increase in internet subscribers and revenue. Four MSOs – Hathway, Siti Cable, Ortel and Den added 1.09 lakh (25.34 per cent of total additions in Q2-2016 or the quarter ended 30 September, 2015) subscribers during that period as per their financial reports filed at the bourses. QoQ, the combined broadband subscribers in Q2-2016 added by the four MSOs increased by 58.36 per cent from 0.69 lakh added in Q1-2016. The third quarter of the current fiscal (Q3-2016) ended on 31 December, 2015 and companies will start filing their numbers over the next few weeks.

    Some MSOs’ broadband numbers from our previous report

    Broadband contributes in double digit percentages to the total incomes or operating revenue of two of the four companies – Hathway (about 25 per cent and growing) and Ortel (declined from 21.07 per cent in Q1-2015 to 16.80 per cent in Q2-2016). In the case of Siti Cable and Den, revenue from broadband services contributed to less than five per cent to their operating incomes. However, sources at Siti Cable say that the company will now be focusing at broadband internet services in a big way.

    Hathway reported broadband revenue of Rs 71.9 crore (26.24 per cent of operating revenue) in the current quarter, 58.4 per cent higher YoY than the Rs 45.4 crore (17.23 per cent of operating revenue), and 10.4 per cent more than the Rs 65.1 crore (24.62 per cent of operating revenue) in the immediate trailing quarter. Last quarter, the company said that it had added 50,000 broadband subscribers in Q1-2016, and claimed a broadband subscriber base of 4.6 lakh, of which 1.7 lakh were under Docsis 3.0. Hathway says that broadband ARPU increased 6.8 per cent QoQ to Rs 616 from Rs 577 and that its Docsis 3 consumer ARPU has reached Rs 750.

    Ortel’s broadband customers grew 8.9 per cent to 63,663 in Q2-2015 from 57,528 in Q2-2015 and grew 4.5 per cent from 60,900 in Q1-2016. Ortel’s broadband ARPU in Q2-2016 was Rs 395, in Q2-2015, it was Rs 398 and in Q1-2016, it was Rs 393. Ortel reported 11.7 per cent growth in YoY total broadband services revenue to Rs 8.1 crore (16.80 per cent of operating revenue) in the current quarter as compared to Rs 7.3 crore (19.89 per cent of operating revenue) and a 7.9 per cent QoQ growth from Rs 7.5 crore (17.40 per cent of operating revenue).

    Siti Cable says that it has added 16,950 broadband subscribers in Q2-2016, taking its broadband subscriber base to 91,450 from 74,500 in the previous quarter. Broadband revenue increased 50 per cent YoY in Q2-2106 to Rs 9.30 crore (3.30 per cent of operating revenue) from Rs 6.20 crore (3.95 per cent of operating revenue) and increased 3.3 per cent QoQ from Rs 9 crore (2.83 per cent of operating revenue).

    Den says that it has added 21,000 subscribers in Q2-2016 as compared to 12,000 in Q1-2016. Its total broadband subscriber base in Q2-2016 was 57,000 as compared to 35,000 in Q1-2016 and 16,000 in Q2-2015. Den’s broadband revenue increased 58 per cent in Q2-2015 to Rs 8.23 crore (3.03 per cent to operating revenue) as compared to the Rs 5.21 crore (1.96 per cent of operating revenue) in Q1-2016 and Rs 1.44 crore (0.49 per cent of operating revenue) in the corresponding year ago quarter.

  • Broadcom launches low power combo chip for mobile platforms

    Broadcom launches low power combo chip for mobile platforms

    MUMBAI: Broadcom Corporation has launched its latest and lowest power Wi-Fi/Bluetooth combo chip for mobile platforms and accessories.

     

    The BCM43012 delivers up to 3X longer battery life compared to Broadcom’s previous combo chips, enabling OEMs to design a new wave of high-performance connected devices.

     

    The BCM43012 allows OEMs to integrate Wi-Fi into platforms that have traditionally been powered by Bluetooth alone due to battery size or constrained power budgets. 

     

    In some applications, the BCM43012 Wi-Fi consumes 80 per cent less power than the most common Bluetooth solutions today. This reduction in Wi-Fi power consumption enables OEMs to leverage the increased throughput and range of Wi-Fi to deliver new use cases in a wide variety of devices. Using integrated Wi-Fi, accessories can also connect directly to the cloud without an intermediary smartphone.

     

    “For more than a decade, Broadcom has achieved a market leadership position in connectivity combos by setting the standard for performance, features, and power consumption,” said Broadcom wireless connectivity combos vice president – marketing Dino Bekis. “We have applied this expertise to launch a family of products for the promising mobile accessories markets with solutions that allow our customers to deliver a new generation of connected platforms with breakthrough capabilities.”

  • Wired Broadband: ACT, Airtel lead growth in Sep 2015; MSOs’broadband numbers increasing

    Wired Broadband: ACT, Airtel lead growth in Sep 2015; MSOs’broadband numbers increasing

    BENGALURU:  ACT continues to lead the wired broadband growth in calendar year 2015 with 1.9 lakh subscribers(or 23.46 percent of the total all India additions since December 31, 2014) additions fromDecember 31, 2014 until September 30, 2015. However, month-on-month, Bharati Airtel leads growth in subscription numbers by contributing 40,000 additions or 30.77 percent of the 130,000 broadband numbers added all India in the month of September 2015. ACT added 30,000 subscribers or 23.08 percent of the total broadband subscribers added in September 2015. BSNL added 10,000 or 7.69 percent of the total subscribersadded in September 2015. Both MTNL and You BB did not report any change from their August 2015 subscription numbers.

    Are the MSOs’ initiatives by carrying internet on their cable TV infrastructure beginning to show? Definitely yes! Will they surpass the numbers attained by the top 5 ISPs’? Maybe with a concentred effort, yes they may, but it will take plenty of doing and make take some time.Please read on.

    Note:(1) 100,00,000 = 100 Lakh = 10 million = 1 crore

    (2) Trai reports indicate data in millions of numbers up to 2 decimal places. Hence it is assumed in this report that a figure of 0.47 million (4.7 lakh) subscribers for You BB for July-2015 would be granular to the nearest 10,000. While percentages perforce have been mentioned up to two decimal places, the accuracy may vary, depending upon the exact number.

    (3) Industry sources say that Trai numbers in the case of ACT for May-2015 are incorrect at 0.66 million and the correct number would be 0.693 million. This paper considers the number as 6.93 lakh or 0.693 million.

    (4) MSOs’ have a number of subsidiaries and alliances, hence broadband numbers are split as applicable. The consolidated subscription numbers of these entities could be larger. Hathway is a case in point.

    (5) Ortel’s numbers for Q3-2015 have been estimated from the numbers released by it for Q1-2015, Q2-2015, Q4-2015 and FY-2015.

    (6)  The term ‘operating revenue’ in this paper indicates ‘total income from operations’.

    The Top 5 ISPs’

    The latest subscription numbers disclosed by The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) as on September 30, 2015, reveal that the total number of wired broadband subscribers in India stood at 161.3 lakh. Hence 8.1 lakh subscribers were added between December 31, 2014 and September 30, 2015, and 1.3 lakh subscribers were added in September 2015. Please refer to figure 1 below

    The pecking order for the top 5 wireline internet service providers or ISPs’ remains the same with the top three – Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), Bharati Airtel (Airtel) and Mahanagar Telecom Nigam Limited (MTNL) also providing voice (telephone) services and many of their wired internet customers use both services – voice and data. The big three are followed by ACT (Atria Convergence Technologies) and You Broadband India Private Limited (You BB).

    Please refer to figure 2 below. As mentioned above, ACT still continues to lead the growth in wired broadband subscriptions with a net addition of 30,000 subscribers in September 2015, taking its tally to 1.9 lakh subscribers (23.46 percent of the all India additions) added sinceDecember 31, 2014.Hence ACT’s market share in the wired internet space in India improved by 15 basis points to 4.96 percent in August 2015 as compared to 4.81 in Aug-2015. Since December 31, 2014, ACT’s market share has gone up 98 basis points (from 3.98 percent) based on a granularity of 10,000.

    However, telecom major Bharti Airtel is swiftly closing the gap. Like in August2015, the behemoth added 40,000 wiredinternet subscribers in September 2015, taking its tally to 1.7 lakh subscribers (20.99 percent of the all India additions) added between December 31, 2014 and September 30, 2015.  Airtel’s market share improved 17 basis points to 9.80 percent in Sep 2015 as compared to 9.63 percent in Aug 2015. Airtel had a market share of 9.20 percent on December 31, 2014.

    You BB did not report any subscriber additionsin September 2015, its tally remained the same at 4.8 lakh subscribers until September 30, 2015, and it had a net addition of 60,000 subscribers (7.41 percent of the all India additions) since December 31, 2014. Hence You BB’s market share has declined by 2 basis points to 2.98 percent in September 2015 as compared to the 3 percent in August 2015. You BB had a market share of 2.74 percent as on December 31, 2014.

    The public sector BSNL increased its subscription numbers by 10,000 to 99.3 lakh or 61.56 percent of the all India total. However, BSNL’s market share declined by 44 basis points as compared to 62 percent in August 2015.As on December 31, 2014, BSNL had a market share of 65.14 percent

     MTNL subscription numbers were the same as the numbers reported for June 2015, July 2015 and August 2015, and hence there appears to be no net growth in wired broadband subscribers on its part. However, since the overall market size is increasing,MTNL’s market share has also declined even further. MTNL lost 5 basis points to reach a market share of 7.01 percent as compared to 7.06 percent in August 2015. As on December 31, 2014MTNL had a market share of 7.38 percent.

    MSOs’ contribution to broadband

    The combined subscription number of the top five wired ISP’ as on September 30, 2015 was 139.2 lakh or 86.30 percent of the total number of the 161.3 lakh wireline broadband subscribers in India. On December 31, 2014, the corresponding combined number was 135.5 lakh or 88.45 percent of the total number of 153.2 lakh broadband wireline subscribers in the country. The combined share of overall wired internet subscribers of the top five companies is declining, with other players increasing their contribution to wireline broadband subscription numbers.

    The decline between December 31, 2014 and September 30, 2015 was 147 basis points. Other ISP’s share of subscribers has increased to the same extent. Among the ‘Others’ are included Cable TV MSOs’. MSOs’ in India are looking at broadband revenues to prop up their cable revenue numbers because of the comparatively higher ARPUs’ from broadband internet services.  Please refer to Fig 3 below.

    In the three month period starting July 1, 2015 until September 30, 2015 or Q2-2016 (current quarter), the wired internet subscriber base in the country has grown by 4.3 lakh. Of these, the top 5 ISPs added 2.3 lakh subscribers or 53.49 percent of total additions in Q2-2016. At the same time, MSOs’ have started reporting double digit increase in internet subscribers and revenue.  Four MSOs’ – Hathway, Siti Cable, Ortel and Den added 1.09lakh (25.34 percent of total additions in Q2-2016) subscribers during that period as per their financial reports filed at the bourses.QoQ, the combined broadband subscribers in Q2-2016 added by the four MSOs’ increased by 58.36 percent from 0.69 lakh added in Q1-2016.

    For Q1-2016, if the drop in broadband subscription numbers to the extent of 50,000 and 10,000 by BSNL and MTNL respectively is neglected, the other three players among top five wirelineISPs’ in India added 1.2 lakh (37.50 percent of total additions in Q1-2016) of the 3.2 lakh subscribers added in that period.If the drop in subscriber numbers by BSNL and MTNL is considered, the top 5 ISPs’ added just 0.6 lakh wireline broadband subscribers or 18.75 percent of the total subscribers added in Q1-2016. The four MSOs’ contribution to the subscriber base was approximately 0.69 lakh or 21.50 percent of the total additions in Q1-2016. Hence in Q1-2016, four MSOs’ actually added more subscribers than the combined number of subscribers added by the top 5 wired ISPs’ in India.

    Cable companies such as Hathway reported consolidated internet subscription numbers of 5.15 lakh with 2 lakh asDocsis 3.0at the end of the current quarter (Q2-2016). While ACT has laid separate optical fibre for internet and is exploring territories beyond which it has cable TV operations, for the other MSOs’ it is a lot cheaper to have the internet signal ride on their existing cable TV networks wires.

    Last quarter (Q1-2016), Ortel announced that it had introduced free broadband option for all Ortel Cable TV subscribers in the states of Odisha, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh as a complimentary special value added service in order to target to deeper penetrate into markets by making internet affordable. Ortel says that its offer includes a free data limit every month for a year. The subscriber will be charged a nominal amount after exceeding the free data usage for the month.

    Some MSOs’ broadband numbers

    Broadband contributes in double digit percentages to the total incomes or operating revenue of two of the four sample companies in this paper – Hathway (about 25 percent and growing) and Ortel (declined from 21.07 percent in Q1-2015 to 16.80 percent in Q2-2016). Please refer to Fig 4 below. In the case of Siti Cable and Den, revenue from broadband services contributed to less than 5 percent to their operating incomes.

    Hathway reported broadband revenue of Rs 71.9 crore (26.24 percent of operating revenue) in the current quarter, 58.4 percent higher YoY than the Rs 45.4 crore (17.23percent of operating revenue), and 10.4 percent more than the Rs 65.1 crore (24.62 percent of operating revenue)in the immediate trailing quarter.Last quarter, the company said that it had added 50,000 broadband subscribers in Q1-2016, and claimed a broadband subscriber base of 4.6 lakh, of which 1.7 lakh were under Docsis 3.0. Hathway says that broadband ARPU increased 6.8 percent QoQ to Rs 616 from Rs 577 and that its Docsis 3 consumer ARPU has reached Rs 750.

    Siti Cable says that it has added 16,950 broadband subscribers in Q2-2016, taking its broadband subscriber base to 91,450 from 74,500 in the previous quarter. Broadband revenue increased 50 percent YoY in Q2-2106 to Rs 9.30 crore (3.30 percent of operating revenue) from Rs 6.20 crore (3.95 percent of operating revenue) and increased 3.3 percent QoQ from Rs 9 crore (2.83 percent of operating revenue).

    Ortel’s broadband customers grew 8.9 percent to 63,663 in the current quarter from 57,528 in Q2-2015 and grew 4.5 percent from 60,900 in Q1-2016.Ortel’s broadband ARPU in Q2-2016 was Rs 395, in Q2-2015, it was Rs398 and in Q1-2016, it was Rs 393. Ortel reported 11.7 percent growth in YoY total broadband services revenue to Rs 8.1 (16.80 percent of operating revenue ) crore in the current quarter as compared to Rs 7.3 crore (19.89 percent of operating revenue ) and a 7.9 percent QoQ growth from Rs 7.5 crore(17.40percent of operating revenue).

    Den says that it has added 21,000 subscribers in the current quarter as compared to 12,000 in Q1-2016. Its total broadband subscriber base in Q2-2016 was 57,000 as compared to 35,000 in Q1-2016 and 16,000 in Q2-2015.Den’s broadband revenue increased 58 percent in the current quarter to Rs 8.23 crore(3.03 percent to operating revenue)  as compared to the Rs 5.21 crore (1.96 percent of operating revenue) in Q1-2016 and Rs 1.44 crore (0.49 percent of operating revenue) in the corresponding year ago quarter.

    End points

    The four ISPs’(other than ACT) in this report that use their MSO platform for internet service delivery currently are –Hathway, Siti Cable, Ortel and Den in that order in terms of number of broadband internet subscribers in Q2-2016. Three of the four have cable TV subscribers in excess of 100 lakhs each on a consolidated basis, while Ortel had around 5.72 lakh revenue generating units (RGUs)as on September 30, 2015.

    The largest cable TV ISP among them is Hathway with 5.15 lakh subscribers, or just around 5 percent of its total cable TV subscriber base. In the case of Siti Cable and Den, their own internet penetration within their respective cable TV subscriber bases is less than 100 basis points. Many of these MSOs’ subscribers must have opted for internet services from other ISPs’, and all must have some non-cable TV  broadbandinternet subscribers. For these MSOs’ (and other MSOs’) the potential for converting their cable TV subscribers to double play subscribers is huge. This is the low hanging fruit that the MSOs’ can easily pluck if they do it right and increase their revenues and profitability.

  • World Radiocommunications Conference calls for preservation of satellite spectrum from telecom

    World Radiocommunications Conference calls for preservation of satellite spectrum from telecom

    Spectrum, or the paucity of it, is an oft repeated complaint by sectors that use it, more so from telecom service providers. Are they fully using the spectrum that has already been allocated to them? How will allocating more spectrum in the ‘C band’ range affect others?  Excerpts of a press release issued by Asia Pacific Satellite Communications Council (APSCC), Cable and Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (CASBAA), EMEA Satellite Operators’ Association (ESOA), Global VSAT Forum (GVF), Interference Reduction Group (IRG), Society of Satellite Professionals International (SSPI), World Teleport Association (WTA), and other international associations of the satellite industry:

     

    Major inter-governmental and private-sector organizations responsible for providing safety-of-life communications to millions of people have requested the national administrations of every region to preserve satellite spectrum for use in delivering mission-critical satellite services worldwide. The unprecedented demonstration of support for satellite spectrum was made during a series of briefings held at the International Telecommunication Union’s (ITU’s) World Radiocommunication Conference (WRC), where the wireless industry is attempting to get access to satellite spectrum despite reports that previous efforts have already disrupted communications services with serious interference.

     

    Included among those calling for safeguarding of satellite services were the United Nations World Food Program and Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the International Civil Aviation Organization, the World Meteorological Organization, the World Broadcasting Unions, NetHope, the International Maritime Organization, and the Space Frequency Coordination Group, a group of space agencies from throughout the world.

     

    In a joint statement issued by an international coalition of seven non-profit associations representing the global satellite communications sector, the show of support was strongly commended: “The high level of support from these organizations makes clear the importance of satellite communications in C band spectrum and how further disruption of safety-of-life services due to wireless interference is unacceptable.”

     

    As governments consider whether any portion of the 3400-4200 MHz band (‘C band’) should be identified for IMT, they have heard from the safety-of-life organizations during a series of briefings held for the inter-governmental groups of each major world region, including the Arab Spectrum Managers Group (ASMG), Asia Pacific Telecommunity (APT), the Conference Europeenne de Postes et Telecommunications (CEPT), the Inter-American Telecommunication Commission (CITEL), and the RCC & Commonwealth of Independent States.

     

    “Some administrations may be under a misimpression,” the coalition statement continued.  “It is not necessary to support IMT identification if they have already authorized WiMax or other terrestrial wireless services.  An identification for IMT is not required to make WiMax or other authorizations comply retroactively with ITU rules.  No ITU rule change is required at the WRC in order to enable national deployments of WiMax or other wireless services.”

     

    Background

     

    1.  Realistic solutions to protect existing satellite links in C band have not been identified; migration of IMT services to this band would cause more extreme harm to the global community that relies heavily on satellite services.

     

    It is clear from the most recent reports and studies from the ITU that mitigation techniques, such as separation distance, earth station shielding, or the use of filters on satellite receive antennas, to block interference from IMT networks into satellite networks are often ineffective and moreover would be far too severe to be justifiable from a technical or economic perspective.  This means that in practice, mitigation measures would not be effectively implemented.  Furthermore current IMT proposals offer no protection for FSS receive-only earth stations, which are deployed broadly and on a licence-exempt basis in many countries.

     

    Within the last few months, satellite stakeholders have experienced further degradation of services in some parts of the world due to terrestrial mobile operations using the same C band frequencies.  For example, millions of Philippine citizens’ television signals were disrupted due to interference from mobile services.  Similar cases of interrupted service were also reported in South Asia, South America, the Caribbean, and Africa.  These are not isolated incidents – disruption of C-band satellite services from terrestrial wireless interference has been taking place around the world since 2006.

     

    It is understood that this has been the result of Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) systems being deployed in the C band.  However, the negative effects will be far more wide-reaching in the case of terrestrial mobile IMT broadband services, which have larger coverage requirements and are expected to transmit at higher rates and consequently with more power.

     

    2. Global and national studies indicate that less than 50% of the spectrum currently allocated to IMT is in use.

     

    Claims have been made that mobile broadband will need between 1100 and 1900 MHz more spectrum by 2020, even though IMT is not using most spectrum currently assigned for its use. In anticipation of the growth of the mobile industry, the ITU has already allocated and/orrecommended a substantial amount of spectrum for use by IMT. Around the world less than 50% of this spectrum is licensed and even less is in use according to a recent detailed study on the subject by LS Telcom.

     

    It would be unwise to unnecessarily reassign spectrum used for other often-critical services. IMT can achieve its growth targets without a need for the additional spectrum they are requesting, often on the basis of predictions, population density and traffic numbers that are grossly exaggerated. 

     

    Conclusion

     

    New and existing C band satellite services are actually bridging the digital divide.  It is the duty of the international community to safeguard these vital services.  The effects of failing to do so fall disproportionately on the developing world and rural areas.  IMT should be directed to use their current frequency allocations fully and more effectively, or concentrate its planning for additional allocations to other, more appropriate bands.