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Tag: Reliance Industries

  • Jio signs up 16 million 4G subs; target, 100 million

    Jio signs up 16 million 4G subs; target, 100 million

    MUMBAI: Think Big. Think Global. That’s been the motto of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani. And, now the world’s biggest start-up Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. (Jio) — which he has been incubating for more than half a decade — has announced that it has achieved a global first.

    The number of registered sign-ups Jio has achieved in the first month of its 4G commercial launch – September 2016 — has crossed 16 million. That’s a faster adoption rate than that achieved by any telco or any start-up like Facebook, WhatsApp and Skype.

    And, of course, Ambani is pleased as punch by the consumer response. Said he in a press release: “We are delighted and humbled by the overwhelming response across India to the Jio Welcome Offer. Jio is built to empower every Indian with the power of data. We are delighted that people have recognized this and are utilizing our services to the fullest. We are customer-obsessed and committed to improve every day to exceed expectations of our customers.”

    Observers say Jio’s subscriber number could have been higher had Ambani and Jio managed to not run into a wall with older competitors like Airtel, Vodafone, Idea. Jio – which has made calls free – reported humungous amount of call failures because its rivals disallowed call connections by the newbie’s users.

    Jio is looking to disrupt the entire Indian telecom ecosystem. While all Indian telcos charge for calls, Jio announced that it would not be charging for calls made using its network. And it announced cheaper data plans than rivals. It has been running its Jio Welcome Offer wherein all its services – including data and apps – are free for customers until 31 December 2016. Last week, it announced an offer for iPhone users wherein buyers of the 7, the 7 Plus, the 6, the 6 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus, and the 5SE would not be charged for data and services for 12 months.

    To top it all, Jio has introduced Aadhaar-based paper-less Jio SIM activation across 3,100 cities and towns. This enables the customer to complete the SIM activation process in a matter of minutes, with only his/her Aadhaar number.

    The press release states that the “this process will be extended across the country and fully stabilized for satisfactory on-boarding experience in the next few weeks.”

    Ambani announced at the company’s AGM at the beginning of this month that Jio had set its ambitions high. His goal was to have 100 million subscribers to its services within a year.

    Rivals have been scrambling to ward off the Jio onslaught, dropping prices for data and bandwidth, as well as offering value added services at promotional rates.

    The overall Indian telecom sector has been seeing shifts too. According to the latest telecom data up to 31 July 2016, the wireless telecom subscriber base shrank to 1034.2 million as against 1035.1 million in end June. Amongst the big losers in the month were Reliance Communications which shed 32.4 lakh customers, and Tata Teleservices and Sistema lost 6,96,325 and 2,28,626 subscribers.

    Bharti Airtel led in the gainers table, adding a net 10.7 lakh new customers, taking its total sub base to 256.8 million, whereas Vodafone added 326,248 to take its tally to 199.7 million. Idea signed up 256,170 users taking its final number to 176.4 million.

    With Jio expected to spread out its availability further in the coming months, observers are expecting the battles to continue.

  • Jio signs up 16 million 4G subs; target, 100 million

    Jio signs up 16 million 4G subs; target, 100 million

    MUMBAI: Think Big. Think Global. That’s been the motto of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani. And, now the world’s biggest start-up Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd. (Jio) — which he has been incubating for more than half a decade — has announced that it has achieved a global first.

    The number of registered sign-ups Jio has achieved in the first month of its 4G commercial launch – September 2016 — has crossed 16 million. That’s a faster adoption rate than that achieved by any telco or any start-up like Facebook, WhatsApp and Skype.

    And, of course, Ambani is pleased as punch by the consumer response. Said he in a press release: “We are delighted and humbled by the overwhelming response across India to the Jio Welcome Offer. Jio is built to empower every Indian with the power of data. We are delighted that people have recognized this and are utilizing our services to the fullest. We are customer-obsessed and committed to improve every day to exceed expectations of our customers.”

    Observers say Jio’s subscriber number could have been higher had Ambani and Jio managed to not run into a wall with older competitors like Airtel, Vodafone, Idea. Jio – which has made calls free – reported humungous amount of call failures because its rivals disallowed call connections by the newbie’s users.

    Jio is looking to disrupt the entire Indian telecom ecosystem. While all Indian telcos charge for calls, Jio announced that it would not be charging for calls made using its network. And it announced cheaper data plans than rivals. It has been running its Jio Welcome Offer wherein all its services – including data and apps – are free for customers until 31 December 2016. Last week, it announced an offer for iPhone users wherein buyers of the 7, the 7 Plus, the 6, the 6 Plus, 6S, 6S Plus, and the 5SE would not be charged for data and services for 12 months.

    To top it all, Jio has introduced Aadhaar-based paper-less Jio SIM activation across 3,100 cities and towns. This enables the customer to complete the SIM activation process in a matter of minutes, with only his/her Aadhaar number.

    The press release states that the “this process will be extended across the country and fully stabilized for satisfactory on-boarding experience in the next few weeks.”

    Ambani announced at the company’s AGM at the beginning of this month that Jio had set its ambitions high. His goal was to have 100 million subscribers to its services within a year.

    Rivals have been scrambling to ward off the Jio onslaught, dropping prices for data and bandwidth, as well as offering value added services at promotional rates.

    The overall Indian telecom sector has been seeing shifts too. According to the latest telecom data up to 31 July 2016, the wireless telecom subscriber base shrank to 1034.2 million as against 1035.1 million in end June. Amongst the big losers in the month were Reliance Communications which shed 32.4 lakh customers, and Tata Teleservices and Sistema lost 6,96,325 and 2,28,626 subscribers.

    Bharti Airtel led in the gainers table, adding a net 10.7 lakh new customers, taking its total sub base to 256.8 million, whereas Vodafone added 326,248 to take its tally to 199.7 million. Idea signed up 256,170 users taking its final number to 176.4 million.

    With Jio expected to spread out its availability further in the coming months, observers are expecting the battles to continue.

  • APOS 2016: Reliance Industries’ Adil Zainulbhai & the Jio launch

    APOS 2016: Reliance Industries’ Adil Zainulbhai & the Jio launch

    BALI: For all those who have been speculating about the commercial launch dates of Reliance Industries Jio services – whether wireless broadband and 4G or wired broadband – in India, here’s  the final word from the Network 18 Media & Investments chairman and Reliance Industries independent director Adil Zainulbhai.

    Speaking at APOS2016 in Bali, Zainulbhai admitted even he does not know it. “There is probably one person who knows when the launch date is: that is the chairman. And the chairman of the board will decide one day when it will launch and I don’t think even he knows today what that date is. He will let us know when that is to happen.”

    Zainulbhai stated that Jio was very close to being ready in terms of infrastructure for broadband wireless. He pointed out that the company was currently looking at what all was required from the marketing and processes perspectives.

    He revealed that close to 250,000 km fibre has been laid for wired broadband. These services will follow only after the launch of wireless broadband.

    “In the next 18-24 months, a large proportion of the high net worth homes in India will have the potential to have a fibre connection. And then they will have to choose when they want it or not,” he expounded. “Today an average data user on wireless broadband uses 0.18 GB a month. We have 500,000 users on our network testing it –they are using on an average 20GB. This is going to be a disruption. We don’t know how things will roll out when you give people an opportunity to consume as much as they want for a very reasonable price.”

    Zainulbhai stated the Reliance group has never looked at any project business case wise. “The thought has always been how can we disrupt the existing scenario, improve lives of people and  in the process make money,” he disclosed.  “Right from the founder Dhirubhai Ambani’s time. And this has worked well for it with every project paying off.”

    He directed the attendees attention to benefits like health and education which will be the other services the group will provide under Jio. “There’s a shortage of doctors and teachers in India. We want to help plug that gap through our broadband digital infrastructure. Entertainment services will pay for the laying of the fibre. The biggest change will happen in other fields.”

  • APOS 2016: Reliance Industries’ Adil Zainulbhai & the Jio launch

    APOS 2016: Reliance Industries’ Adil Zainulbhai & the Jio launch

    BALI: For all those who have been speculating about the commercial launch dates of Reliance Industries Jio services – whether wireless broadband and 4G or wired broadband – in India, here’s  the final word from the Network 18 Media & Investments chairman and Reliance Industries independent director Adil Zainulbhai.

    Speaking at APOS2016 in Bali, Zainulbhai admitted even he does not know it. “There is probably one person who knows when the launch date is: that is the chairman. And the chairman of the board will decide one day when it will launch and I don’t think even he knows today what that date is. He will let us know when that is to happen.”

    Zainulbhai stated that Jio was very close to being ready in terms of infrastructure for broadband wireless. He pointed out that the company was currently looking at what all was required from the marketing and processes perspectives.

    He revealed that close to 250,000 km fibre has been laid for wired broadband. These services will follow only after the launch of wireless broadband.

    “In the next 18-24 months, a large proportion of the high net worth homes in India will have the potential to have a fibre connection. And then they will have to choose when they want it or not,” he expounded. “Today an average data user on wireless broadband uses 0.18 GB a month. We have 500,000 users on our network testing it –they are using on an average 20GB. This is going to be a disruption. We don’t know how things will roll out when you give people an opportunity to consume as much as they want for a very reasonable price.”

    Zainulbhai stated the Reliance group has never looked at any project business case wise. “The thought has always been how can we disrupt the existing scenario, improve lives of people and  in the process make money,” he disclosed.  “Right from the founder Dhirubhai Ambani’s time. And this has worked well for it with every project paying off.”

    He directed the attendees attention to benefits like health and education which will be the other services the group will provide under Jio. “There’s a shortage of doctors and teachers in India. We want to help plug that gap through our broadband digital infrastructure. Entertainment services will pay for the laying of the fibre. The biggest change will happen in other fields.”

  • Raghav Bahl resigns as director from Network18 & TV18

    Raghav Bahl resigns as director from Network18 & TV18

    MUMBAI: Network 18 Media & Investments and TV18 Broadcast founder Raghav Bahl has resigned as a director from both the companies with effect from 8 February, 2016 due to his “pre-occupation.”

    Bahl exited the TV news business after the sale of Network18 Media & Investments and all its subsidiary companies in 2014 to Independent Media Trust, which is part of Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries.

    It may be recalled that Bahl was recently in the news for his intentions to re-enter the news broadcast space with Bloomberg.

    Bahl’s new venture The Quintillion Media, which also runs the online portal The Quint, is said to be looking at a strategic partnership with Bloomberg in the wake of the latter exiting its licensing partnership with Reliance ADAG’s Business Broadcast News.

    According to media reports, Bahl and Bloomberg have invested in a joint venture, which will later look at broadcast news with Quintillion Media holding at least a 51 per cent stake.

    As per reports, the new online portal under the JV is expected to launch in the coming weeks, while the business news channel is expected to launch by the end of the current calendar year. The Quint, however will continue to exist as it is.

  • Raghav Bahl resigns as director from Network18 & TV18

    Raghav Bahl resigns as director from Network18 & TV18

    MUMBAI: Network 18 Media & Investments and TV18 Broadcast founder Raghav Bahl has resigned as a director from both the companies with effect from 8 February, 2016 due to his “pre-occupation.”

    Bahl exited the TV news business after the sale of Network18 Media & Investments and all its subsidiary companies in 2014 to Independent Media Trust, which is part of Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Industries.

    It may be recalled that Bahl was recently in the news for his intentions to re-enter the news broadcast space with Bloomberg.

    Bahl’s new venture The Quintillion Media, which also runs the online portal The Quint, is said to be looking at a strategic partnership with Bloomberg in the wake of the latter exiting its licensing partnership with Reliance ADAG’s Business Broadcast News.

    According to media reports, Bahl and Bloomberg have invested in a joint venture, which will later look at broadcast news with Quintillion Media holding at least a 51 per cent stake.

    As per reports, the new online portal under the JV is expected to launch in the coming weeks, while the business news channel is expected to launch by the end of the current calendar year. The Quint, however will continue to exist as it is.

  • Scale meets technology at Reliance Jio’s massive employee launch

    Scale meets technology at Reliance Jio’s massive employee launch

    MUMBAI: Reliance Jio’s launch for its employees is set to create history in corporate India, as for the first time an employee launch will see as many as 35,000 people attending the event at the venue. 

    The event will be beamed live on the Jio network across 1000+ locations – one of them being in Dallas, US – where another 80,000 – 90,000 Reliance Industries Ltd’s (RIL) employees and their immediate kin will be watching.

    The locations will be connected to the event venue at Reliance Corporate Park (RCP) via Jio’s high-speed network, which will enable two-way video interaction between employees outside Mumbai and RIL chairman Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani. 

    “The conglomerate will provide high-speed Jionet Wi-Fi free to 35,000 spectators at the venue in RCP,” the company said. The venue, with its huge futuristic stage to match the digital spirit of Jio and spaced out stands for spectators’ viewing comfort, has been built from scratch in seven days flat, with thousands of men, and heavy duty machines like earthmovers and cranes, working in shifts round the clock. Gigantic LED screenshave been set at strategic locations at the event venue.

    Digital invitations have been sent out to every RIL employee. The link on the digital invite leads employees to an exclusive portal managed by BookMyShow (BMS). Once employees registers themselves and their immediate family on the portal, the portal allocates tickets for the employees and their families.

    “Seat allocation happens automatically (no choice of option), and QMS codes are generated to facilitate electronic allocation. Seats are colour-coded and numbered. Car parking too is allotted by the same portal, with separate spaces for chauffeur-driven and self-driven cars” an executive taking care of the production informed Indiantelevision.com.

    The mega launch of Reliance Jio will no doubt be watched with bated breath by all and sundry. 

  • Hathway re-appoints Jagdish Kumar G Pillai as MD & CEO

    Hathway re-appoints Jagdish Kumar G Pillai as MD & CEO

    MUMBAI: Hathway Cable & Datacom’s board of directors have re-appointed Jagdish Kumar G Pillai as the managing director and CEO of the company for a period of two years with effect from 21 December, 2015.

     

    Since 21 December, 2012, Pillai served as CEO, MD and executive director of Hathway Cable and Datacom Limited.

     

    With more than 27 years of experience, Pillai has worked with bluechip companies like ITC Ltd, Star TV and Reliance Industries.

     

    Prior to joining Hathway, he was part of the Reliance Jio project team as president – media & entertainment at Reliance Industries Ltd.

  • “There is no creativity or innovation in the Marathi news channels’ space:” Nikhil Wagle

    “There is no creativity or innovation in the Marathi news channels’ space:” Nikhil Wagle

    At the age of 19 he became the editor-in-chief of a regional daily and today has journalism experience of more than 35 years. Besides being on top of each and every beat, he was keenly focused on investigative journalism. 

     

    In August 2004, he became a victim of aggressive Shiv Sena supporters who were irked by his belligerence and brave journalism. He is the inspiration for many igniting minds who are keen to peruse a career in journalism; he is none other than veteran Marathi pressman Nikhil Wagle.

     

    Speaking exclusively to Indiantelevision.com’s Sagar Shere, Wagle shares his vision on the Marathi news space, where he feels there is huge room for creative experimentation.

     

    Excerpts:

     

    How has your stint with Mi Marathi been so far? What was the reason behind choosing the channel when you switched from IBN Lokmat?

     

    It’s just been nine months since I joined Mi Marathi and I am not working full time here. I only do one show for them which is Point Blank. The reason behind switching from IBN Lokmat was that the entire IBN network was taken over by Mukesh Ambani. We had conflicts on policies and ideology with them. We worked under Rajdeep Sardesai as a team and resigned because we thought Ambani will not give us the freedom to work as a journalist. 

     

    I liked the policies of Mi Marathi and their ideation behind news so I thought of coming to Mi Marathi. 

     

    There has been a drastic growth in the Marathi news channel space. What do you think is the pulling point for audiences and what does the Marathi news channel genre needs to work on to get in more viewers?

     

    Marathi news channel is growing and it was always better than Hindi news channel on the basis of content. When IBN Lokmat and ABP Mazha were newly born, they infused young blood and were ready to experiment. However now they seem to have faced a setback. These days Marathi news channels have started following a set pattern for everything, be it for news gathering, news visualizing, programming or debate. There is no innovation in Marathi news space. 

     

    From your perspective, what are the changes that you have seen over the years in the genre? In terms of approach for news, do you think there is a different strategy that Marathi channels are adopting now? 

     

    We need more creativity, more ideas and more experimentation in Marathi news channels. We should infuse young blood so that we can experiment and create good content. We need to concentrate on investigative journalism. These days all news channels thrive on byte journalism and feature programmes. However the need of the hour is investigative journalism. Over the past seven years, news channels have turned stale. We need fresh outlook. Moreover, new perceptions and innovation is always accepted by the audience. 

     

    Do you think there is scope for more news channels in the Marathi space?

     

    There is ample scope for Marathi news channels because IBM Lokmat has gone down in TRP and advertising. There was competition between IBN Lokmat, ABP Mazha and Zee 24tass. However, over the last one year there is no competition between these news channels. Also there is no quality news gathering, quality of format and quality programmes.

     

    If there is no competition you lose the passion and that is what has happened with Marathi news channels. At this point in time, if someone tries to break the format and comes up with something new, it will be great and viewers will definitely like it.

     

    What is the target group for regional news channels?

     

    Target audience for Marathi regional channels are all Marathi speaking audiences. They cater to middle class, higher middle class, rural and urban audience. Everyone has a different taste and a news channel should look after all its target audiences but sometimes you don’t need to look for a TG because some stories are important for the nation news wise and at that time you don’t look for TG. Stories like farmers’ suicide, terrorist attacks and natural calamities are serious issues and you can’t look at the TG before showcasing them.

  • Q1-2016: Reliance Retail y-o-y revenue up 17.5%

    Q1-2016: Reliance Retail y-o-y revenue up 17.5%

    BENGALURU: Reliance Industries Limited’s (RIL) organized retail segment – Reliance Retail is a tiny fraction of the revenue that India’s largest private corporate reports. However, this segment has been growing consistently, quarter on quarter.

     

    In Q1-2016 (quarter ended 30 June, 2015), though RIL has reported a 23 per cent y-o-y consolidated revenue drop, Reliance Retail posted a 17.5 per cent revenue growth in the same period at Rs 4968 crore as compared to the Rs 3999 crore in Q1-2015. Reliance Retail’s Q1-2016 revenue however was 1.9 per cent lower than the Rs 4788 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

     

    Note: 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million = 1 crore

     

    The retail segment reported a profit before tax (PBIT) of Rs 111 crore (2.4 per cent EBIT margin) in the current quarter, 37 per cent more than the Rs 81 crore (2 per cent EBIT margin) and 6.7 per cent more than the Rs 104 crore (2.2 per cent EBIT margin) in Q4-2015.

     

    Though RIL reported a drop in revenue to Rs 83,064 crore in Q1-2016 as compared to the Rs 1,07,905 crore in Q1-2015, it was 17.2 per cent more than the Rs 70,863 crore in Q4-2015. RIL also posted a record consolidated PBDIT of Rs 12,095 crore, up 9.8 per cent as compared Rs 11,016 crore to Q1-2015. Net Profit at Rs 6222 crore was 4.4 per cent more than the Rs 5957 crore in the corresponding year ago quarter, but declined 2.5 per cent as compared to the Rs 6381 crore in the immediate trailing quarter.

     

    Company speak on organized retail segment

     

    The company says that its Value Formats consolidated its leadership position further of being the largest grocery retailer in the country. The business expanded its network further with new store openings to strengthen its leadership position and optimise its operations. The formats launched several own brands products under various categories in the quarter.

     

    Reliance Market continued additions to its store network, reaching out to more and more kiranas, traders and institutions as partners across the country. Contribution of Private Label Sales to overall sales increased to 10 per cent from eight per cent in the same period last year. Reliance Market now serves over 17 lakh registered members across 35 cities.

     

    The digital sector maintained its growth momentum and operates 1,298 stores across the country.

     

    Reliance Digital with its superior in-store experience and extensive product assortments continued to improve its proposition and delight customers. Digital Express Mini rapidly scaled up its operations during the quarter and surpassed the milestone of operating over 1,000 stores across the country in a short time since launch, a feat achieved by any retailer first time in the country.

     

    The Fashion and Lifestyle sector delivered strong performance in the quarter by offering fashionable, high quality merchandise at great value. Reliance Trends operates a strong own brand portfolio comprising over 20 brands that contribute over 70 per cent of overall sales. During the period, the format has partnered with a globally renowned fashion house to augment its in-house product design capabilities. The association would help in bringing global fashion trends to the Indian market thereby bridging the gaps in the merchandise offerings.

     

    Reliance Brands strengthened its presence through its partnerships during this period. During the period, Reliance Brands announced an exclusive partnership with Japanese retailer Muji, which sells a wide verity of household and consumer goods and 130 year old Dutch lingerie brand Hunkemöller.

     

    The first BCBG MAX Azria store was launched in Delhi, marking the launch of international womenswear brand known for its contemporary fashion sensibilities in India.

     

    As on 30 June, 2015, Reliance Retail operated 2,747 stores across 210 cities in India.