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Tag: Reliance Communications

  • Facebook & Reliance tie-up to launch Internet.org in India

    Facebook & Reliance tie-up to launch Internet.org in India

    MUMBAI: They are both large corporations in their respective fields, having almost the same two identical colours as part of their logo. And now after its tryst in African nations, Facebook today launched its product, Internet.org services in India by partnering with telco Reliance Communications.

    Reliance Communications consumer business CEO Gurdeep Singh said that the idea behind it was to provide free access to 33 popular websites to its consumers without any cost, thereby democratising the consumption of internet.

    Adding some insights, Singh explained that one fourth of the world’s consumers who are yet to be “online” were present in India, out of which a further 70 per cent of India’s mobile users are yet to touch base with the evolving cyberspace.

    In a video taped message, Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg said, “We needed to make data more affordable and offer free services to the people of India. The idea was born during my visit to India last year where we met and discussed with the team from Reliance and decided to collaborate together.”

    Internet.org services is a bouquet of 33 popular websites put together, that besides entertaining consumers also provides a few utilities services free of cost. For now, only Reliance subscribers will be able to access the bundle by downloading the “FreeNet” connection app. To do so, a subscriber has to log on to www.internet.org or call up on 1800 300 25353.

    Facebook Internet.org vice president Chris Daniels informed, “After meeting the Reliance team in October last year we decided to come up with 30 free basic services across genres. We also are working with the Andhra Pradesh government and have come up with “AP Speaks” through which users and citizens will be able to send real time feedback and ideas to the government of the state.”

    The bouquet for now will consist of the following websites:

    Careers and Jobs: TimesJobs, Babajob.

    Education and Knowledge: Wikipedi, wikiHow, Dictionary.com, Translator, Reuters Market Lite, Jagran Josh.

    Health and Social Welfare: Facts of Life (UNICEF), BabyCenter&MAMA, Girl Effect (Nike Foundation), iLearn (UN Women), Malaria No More, Social Blood, AP Speaks.

    News: BCC News, Times of India, India Today, NDTV, BBC News, IBNLive, Aaj Tak,Amarujala.com, Daily Bhaskar, Maalai Malar, Maharashtra Times, Jagran, Newshunt, Manoramanews.com

    Search: Bing (from Microsoft)

    Social: Facebook, Facebook Messenger

    Sports: ESPN Cricinfo

    Utility: OLX, Astro, Cleartrip, AccuWeather

    But the free Facebook app present in the bundle is a compressed version and currently cannot support video viewing option that otherwise is present on the normal version of Facebook. Only when consumers activate a data plan, will they be able to access the normal version of Facebook.

    Low consumption of the internet in India was attributed to reasons like user capability, lack of awareness of the internet, language fragmentation and the key factor of cost and affordability. To address these hurdles, Singh said that the app has been designed in a manner that it is not bandwidth hungry. It will also be available in six local languages like Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Guajarati, and Marathi apart from English and Hindi. For now Reliance subscribers in seven telecom circles of Gujarat, Mumbai, Maharashtra, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Chennai will be able to avail the facility. No data pack is required to avail the bouquet and all phones which are internet capable can make use of the bundle.

    The marketing of the Internet.org services will be carried entirely by Reliance Communications. When asked about the revenue model and who would bear the cost of the initiative, officials from both sides declined to comment.

    When questioned if Facebook was looking at expanding the service with other telcos, Daniels told Indiantelevision.com, “We have so far not been approached by other companies except Reliance. We will look at options when approached further on.”

    Singh on a concluding note said that the service will be offered free for lifetime and in the coming 90 days will be launched pan India. The focus will also be on strengthening the content of the bundle.

  • Mobile subscribers continue to contribute to broadband growth in the country

    Mobile subscribers continue to contribute to broadband growth in the country

    NEW DELHI: Thanks to a growth of 5.16 per cent among mobile device users (phones and dongles) during December 2014, there was a growth of 4.28 per cent with the number of broadband subscribers increasing from 82.22 million at the end of November 2014 to 85.74 million at the end of December 2014.

     

    The subscribers of mobile subscribers grew from 66.56 million to 69.99 million, according to a report by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India ITRAI) based on inputs by service providers.

     

    There was a minimal growth of 0.56 per cent from 15.23 million to 15.32 million amongst wired subscribers, while the number of fixed wireless subscribers remained static at 430,000.

     

    The top five service providers constituted 87.24 per cent market share of total broadband subscribers at the end of December 2014. These service providers were Bharti Airtel (19.19 million), BSNL (18.90 million), Vodafone (16.65 million), Idea Cellular (12.95 million) and Reliance Communications Group (7.11 million).

     

    (Wireless subscribers with less than 1MB data usage in a month have not been considered as internet/broadband subscribers by Reliance Communication Group and Idea Cellular)

     

    As on 31 December 2014, the top five Wired Broadband Service providers were BSNL (9.98 million), Bharti Airtel (1.41 million), MTNL (1.13 million), Atria Convergence Technologies (0.61 million) and YOU Broadband (0.42 million).

     

    The top five Wireless Broadband Service providers were Bharti Airtel (17.78 million), Vodafone (16.64 million), Idea Cellular (12.95 million), BSNL (8.92 million) and Reliance Communications Group (7.00 million). 

  • Broadband subscribers show growth of 4.5 per cent between Sept and Oct

    Broadband subscribers show growth of 4.5 per cent between Sept and Oct

    NEW DELHI: As in the past few months, the largest growth in broadband during October this year was among mobile devices users (phones and dongles), registering a growth of 5.75 per cent growth.

    The number of broadband subscribers between September and October has increased from 75.73 million to 79.21 million, thus registering an overall growth of 4.59 per cent.

     There was no change between September and October in fixed wireless subscribers (Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, Point-to-point radio and VSAT) with the figures remaining at 4,20,000.

     Wired subscriptions showed a minimal growth going up from 15.13 million to 15.15 million, registering a monthly growth rate of 0.16 per cent.

     The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) which based the figures on reports from service providers said Wireless subscribers with less than 1MB data usage in a month have not been considered as internet/broadband subscribers by Reliance Communication Group and Idea Cellular.

     As on 31 October, the top five Wired Broadband Service providers were BSNL (9.97 million), Bharti Airtel (1.40 million), MTNL (1.13 million), Beam Telecom (0.43 million) and YOU Broadband (0.41 million).

     The top five Wireless Broadband Service providers were Bharti Airtel (15.91 million), Vodafone (14.15 million), Idea Cellular (11.47 million), BSNL (9.16 million) and Reliance Communications Group (6.48 million).

     

  • Mobile usage shows increase in broadband subscribers between April-May

    Mobile usage shows increase in broadband subscribers between April-May

    NEW DELHI: There was an increase of 5.82 per cent in the number of broadband subscribers in May, as against a mere 1.45 per cent in the number of broadband subscribers between March and April this year.

     

    Data released by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) shows that the total number of subscribers between April and May went up from 61.74 million to 65.33 million in all segments: wired subscribers, mobile device users (Phones + Dongles), and fixed wireless (Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, Point-to-Point Radio & VSAT).

     

    The largest change of 7.66 per cent was in the mobile segment, whereas wired subscribers showed an increase of 0.25 per cent and fixed wireless segment showed a change of 0.16 per cent.

     

    Top five broadband service providers constitute 84.35 per cent market share of total broadband subscribers at the end of May-14. They are BSNL (17.70 million), Bharti Airtel (13.84 million), Vodafone (8.23 million), Idea (8.19 million) and Reliance Communications Group (7.15 million).

     

    The top five Wired Broadband Service providers are BSNL (9.98 million), Bharti Airtel (1.40 million), MTNL (1.13 million), Beam Telecom (0.39 million) and YOU Broadband (0.39 million).

     

    The top five Wireless Broadband Service providers are Bharti Airtel (12.43 million), Vodafone (8.23 million), Idea (8.19 million), BSNL (7.72 million) and Reliance Communications Group (7.04 Million). 

  • Marginal increase in broadband subscribers between March and April 2014

    Marginal increase in broadband subscribers between March and April 2014

    NEW DELHI: There was an increase of a marginal 1.45 per cent in the number of broadband subscribers between March and April this year, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) report.

    The total number of subscribers went up from 60.87 million to 61.74 million in all segments: wired subscribers, mobile device users (Phones + Dongles), and fixed wireless (Wi-Fi, Wi-Max, Point-to-Point Radio & VSAT).

    The largest change of 2.5 per cent was seen in the fixed wireless segment, while there was a change of 1.78 per cent in the mobile users and just 0.34 per cent in the wired subscribers.

    The top five broadband service providers constitute 83.65 per cent market share of total broadband subscribers at the end of April. They are BSNL (16.94 million), Bharti (12.84 million), Idea (7.45 million), Vodafone (7.26 million) and Reliance Communications Group (7.15 million).

    The top five Wired Broadband Service providers are BSNL (10.01 million), Bharti (1.38 million), MTNL (1.13 million), You Broadband (0.39 million) and Beam Telecom (0.38 million).

    The top five Wireless Broadband Service providers are Bharti (11.46 million), Idea (7.45 million), Vodafone (7.26 million), Reliance Communications Group (7.04 million) and BSNL (6.93 Million).

    In telecom, private operators hold 89.36 per cent of the wireless subscriber market share where as BSNL and MTNL, the two PSU operators hold only 10.64 per cent market share. 

    Click here to read the full report

  • MEC adds more Reliance companies to its kitty

    MEC adds more Reliance companies to its kitty

    MUMBAI: MEC India, GroupM’s media agency, has expanded its client portfolio with the inclusion of Reliance Group companies – Reliance Capital (includes Reliance General Insurance, Reliance Life Insurance, Reliance Mutual Fund and Reliance Commercial Finance), Reliance Infrastructure, Reliance Power and Reliance Energy.

     

    The agency already handles the media business for Reliance Communications, Reliance Net Connect and Reliance Digital TV.

     

    The accounts will be serviced out of MEC India’s Mumbai office.

     

    On the new addition, MEC India managing director T Gangadhar said, “The team at MEC India is eagerly looking forward to provide excellence in crafting and executing customised integrated solutions across its suite of services. MEC India has shared a long standing relationship with various companies in the Reliance Group and our objective will be to provide superior assistance with media, analytics, content, activation and digital media services, as we have been doing with the award winning RCOM mandate in the past.”

  • ICC launches app for Champions Trophy

    ICC launches app for Champions Trophy

    MUMBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) today announced the update and re-release of its official ICC Cricket App, in partnership with Reliance Communications.

    The smart phone app, which will enable cricket fans from across the globe to follow all the action at the ICC Champions Trophy in England and Wales, is free to download.

    Among the features expected to be the most popular are the video match highlights, including opt in alerts for wickets and personal milestones, along with live audio commentary. There will also be free behind the scenes exclusive videos from the event, player interviews and footage from every post-match press conference.

    Cricket fans will also be able to use the app to vote in live polls during matches and throughout the duration of the tournament, the questions and results of these polls will be broadcast live on the global television broadcast.

    The official ICC Cricket App also includes exclusive access to the innovative Hawkeye technology for all ICC Champions Trophy 2013 matches, allowing fans to analyse many aspects of the players and team performances.

    The user will also have access to the live match centre on game day, which includes ball by ball text commentary and all statistical tournament information.ICC GM “ commercial Campbell Jamieson said, “We believe that the official ICC Cricket App will provide yet another invaluable platform to engage our fans at the ICC Champions Trophy 2013.”

    “By giving them an opportunity to have their say on the cricket they are watching, through the Pulse polls, or by providing notifications when a new piece of video content is available, we are offering an experience that all fans can enjoy, wherever they are in the world,” he added.

    The ICC Champions Trophy 2013 smartphone app was developed and produced through a partnership between the ICC, IMG Media and Moshen, a digital media and entertainment company based in Lancaster, England.

    The ICC Cricket App is available on iPhone, Android, Blackberry and Windows smartphones from the official App Stores and along with a Feature Phone Nokia App.

  • RComm signs $1 bn deal with Ericsson to manage network services

    RComm signs $1 bn deal with Ericsson to manage network services

    MUMBAI: Billionaire Anil Ambani-promoted Reliance Communications today signed an eight-year full-scope managed services agreement with Ericsson for $1 billion to operate and manage the wireline and wireless networks in the Northern and Western states of India.

    As per the contract, Ericsson will manage the day to day operations across wireline and wireless networks and will take over responsibility for field maintenance, network operations and operational planning of Reliance Communications 2G, CDMA and 3G mobile networks.

    This agreement is aimed to meet the fast evolving customer demand for communications applications and services in one of the world‘s most dynamic telecom markets.

    Reliance Communications will benefit from Ericsson‘s world-class processes, methods and tools and the partnership will allow Reliance Communications to free up resources to focus on user experience, as well as improving innovation power, agility and speed across the specified geographies. Reliance Communications‘ infrastructure covers 24,000 towns and 600,000 villages in India to which it offers converged services including voice, data and video.

    Ericsson will streamline Reliance Communications‘ operations by bringing all aspects of fiber, tower operations, wireless networks and wireline access networks to Reliance Communications‘ wireless and global enterprise business, across differentiated product lines. Ericsson will also drive a modernisation of the tools, processes and best practices that are applied across the business resulting in operational efficiencies by managing cost through consolidation.

    Commenting on the agreement, Reliance Communications CEO – Wireless Business Gurdeep Singh said, “We are happy to announce our partnership with Ericsson to manage our wireline and wireless network enabling us to provide a higher level of customer experience in terms of network and services. Given the complexity of network increasing with platforms, technologies and application offerings, we are banking on the experience, innovation and technical expertise of Ericsson to improve the productivity of our network and ensure that it delivers to its full potential. We are confident that they will exceed the expectations of our customers through optimization of resources and provide us cost effective solutions.”

    Ericsson EVP and Head of Business Unit Global Services Magnus Mandersson said; “We are excited to partner with Reliance Communications for this strategic multi-technology managed services deal. The increasing uptake of new technologies requires an increased focus on customer experience management in the hyper competitive and highly dynamic Indian telecom market. With this partnership Reliance will increase focus on their core business and innovation. We are pleased to welcome more than 5,000 employees who will join us from Reliance Communications and support our long term commitment to India‘s ICT market.”

    This agreement will be driven by defined service level agreement governance. Ericsson will be responsible for improving network performance and ultimately service quality, with the goal of increasing customer satisfaction and retention. Ericsson will also work closely with Reliance Communications to identify opportunities to introduce new services and expand its existing businesses to help realise the full potential of its network.

    “This partnership will enable our enterprise customers to deploy state-of-the-art data services on our integrated network through the global expertise of Ericsson. This is one of the first times that wireless and wireline enterprise network is being outsourced to deliver world-class service and performance assurance,” added Reliance Communications CEO, Global and Enterprise Business Punit Garg.

  • Grey creates new Reliance Communications TVC

    MUMBAI: Reliance Communications has launched a new television commercial titled ‘All Share Postpaid Plan‘.

    The TVC has been conceptualised and created by Grey India.

    This is the first time that the campaign is introducing brand ambassador Anushka Sharma‘s family in the commercial. Earlier the ads focused on Sharma and Ranvijay.

    Grey India NCD Malvika Mehra said, “There is a new energy in this film because for the first time we are introducing Anushka‘s family. The chemistry between all the characters on the set was so natural and effortless, one would think they are actually related. There is also an interesting take on the music. We purposely did a ‘filmi‘ and dramatic track in sync with the ‘joke‘ they all are playing on the poor brother. All in all we think the film showcases the plan in an entertaining manner‘

    “This was a great product and it gave us a chance to portray Anushka in a completely different context. Yet we wanted to keep Anushka in the sane mischievous, slightly wicked zone, so I suppose the brother had to bear the brunt of her prank. And we were also fortunate that we had stalwarts like Kitu Gidwani and Jayanth Kriplani to play her parents. It was great to catch the tremendous energy and chemistry on set. This is the first film in this series and we‘re sure, as the Family set piece develops it will be very popular” Grey ECD Vishnu Srivatsav added.

    Produced by Rising Sun, the film has been directed by Shoojit Sircar.

    According to Reliance Communication Sanjay Behl group head – brand and marketing said, “”All Share Postpaid Plan” is the first of its kind offering in the country to provide compelling new experience to subscribers using multiple smart communication devices with the exclusive facility to share Voice, Data and Text on a single bill giving them affordability along with great convenience. We are confident that our customers will enjoy sharing of Talktime, Data and Text among their members on this plan that will help them save on their bill every month through our innovation of ‘One Bill‘ concept for the entire family or group.”

    In the television commercial, Sharma‘s teenage brother, a vulnerable-looking boy, storms into the room where she is watching TV with the parents (played by Jayant Kriplani and Kitu Gidwani) with a Reliance phone bill in hand, looking a little miffed. He puts the bill down on the table and demands an explanation for why his name does not feature on the bill for a plan that is supposed to be shared by a family. Sharma sees this as an opportunity to play a prank on her unsuspecting brother. She tells him that it‘s because he‘s not a part of the family. She says “tu maa ko mandir ki sidhiyon pe mila tha”. The boy stands there looking devastated. It‘s only when Sharma and parents burst into laughter that the boy knows it was a joke. When the boy begins to leave the room in disgust, Sharma smothers him with sorries and lovingly pulls him on the couch laughing and saying “tujhe bhi adopt kar lenge plan main”. The boy drops his grudge and finally looks happy to know that he‘s in the family and will soon be on a plan that allows sharing of talk, text and data with the family. Which, the commercial reiterates, is simply better.