Kolkata to go fully Wi-Fi in two months' time

Kolkata is set to become India's first fully Wi-Fi-enabled metro with a private operator launching the service from Park Street on February 5 and then rolling it out in a phased manner across 144 municipal wards. The whole city is expected to come under Wi-Fi coverage by Bengali New Year in mid-April.

Chief minister Mamata Banerjee made the surprise announcement at the inauguration of the Kolkata book fair on Tuesday evening. "Delighted to announce that #Kolkata will become India's first fully Wi-Fi enabled metro city in the next 2-3 months. Park St from Feb 5," the CM tweeted after making the announcement.

In an obvious reference to the Centre's ambitious Digital India programme, party spokesperson Derek O'Brien tweeted immediately, "Let others talk about Digital India. We just delivered Digital Kolkata."

Trinamool sources said Mamata was keen to do something that would be viewed as a game-changer to not only alter the perception about Kolkata but also change the image of her government as one that is passive and embroiled in corruption to progressive. "With Wi-Fi service, the party will be able to bridge the divide and disconnect with urban youths, something that BJP was taking advantage of. Wi-Fi will be Trinamool's 'killer app'," a Trinamool leader said.To begin with, users of smart phones, tablets, laptops and other Wi-Fi-enabled devices travelling through Park Street, Loudon Street, Royd Street, Sudder Street and adjoining localities will be to access the service. Mayor Sovan Chatterjee who was entrusted to ensure that the service delivery deadline is met, told TOI the Kolkata Municipal Corporation would monitor the progress of Wi-Fi rollout and give it due priority.

Sources in Trinamool Congress said Mamata was keen to do something that would be viewed as a game-changer to not only alter the perception about Kolkata but also change the image of her government as one that is passive and embroiled in corruption to progressive.

"With Wi-Fi service, the party will be able to bridge the divide and disconnect with urban youths, something that BJP was taking advantage of. Wi-Fi will be Trinamool's 'killer app'," a Trinamool leader said.

With service provider Reliance JIO's officials, including business development head (east) Tarun Jhunjhunwala unavailable for comment, it wasn't clear how the company would provide the expensive service free. But sources in the industry said the Mukesh Ambani-owned company with deep pockets would offer WiFi free during the trial period when the service is being rolled out across the city. Later, the free time may be reduced to 30 minutes in a day or even less as price packages are introduced. Reliance JIO is believed to offer the service free-of-cost to ministers, bureaucrats and police.

"Reliance will not only get a first-mover advantage, there will be many who will get so used to the fast WiFi service by then that they will find it impossible to revert to 3G that will appear too slow," an industry expert said, pointing out that the company had already received a huge carriage fee waiver from KMC for laying the optic fibre cables for its 4G network.

Rival cellular operators are skeptical about the feasibility and business viability in a city like Kolkata where less than 1 lakh persons have 4G handsets and the average disposable income is low. "The ecosystem for such high-end services is not ready in Kolkata. Carrying out such a gigantic investment may prove costly," a telecom expert said.

Bharti Airtel and Vodafone have not hinted at any plans to make such Wi-Fi forays in Kolkata in the near future. Bharti Airtel did launch 4G Wi-Fi-enabled buses but it failed to catch the imagination of commuters.

Source: TOI

Indian tablet users may touch 40 million in 2015

Among the fastest growing tablet markets in the world, India is expected to see over 40 million users of the smart device this year, although the popularity of phablets may restrict that growth, research firm eMarketer said.

Phablets are devices with screen size in the range of 5-7 inches.

The firm estimates the number of tablet users in one of the world's largest internet market to grow by 24.8% in 2015 to touch 40.4 million.

The figure includes all individuals who use a tablet at least monthly this year, whether they own their own or not, it added.

"eMarketer expects that, like in South Korea, the use of phablets may obstruct tablet uptake in India. When smartphone users have access to large screens, tablets may seem superfluous," the firm said.

The firm expects India to overtake the US as the largest smartphone market in the world in 2016, suggesting that consumers in India are not ready to put down their smartphones any time soon.

Tablet usage growth will continue in the double digits through the end of eMarketer's forecast period (2018), when it estimates 60.2 million people in India to use the smart device.

However, the firm said while this growth is impressive, it represents a tiny share of the population of the country and it is still a long way behind all other countries in the region.

In 2015, only 3.2% of the Indian population will use a tablet compared with over 45% in Australia, 24.1% in China and 20.1% in South Korea, it added.

Source: ET

Reliance to make small digital stores base for Jio experience

Of the record 231 Reliance Digital stores Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Retail opened during the December quarter of current financial year, about 90% are smaller Digital Express and Digital Express Mini which will serve as a base for Reliance Jio when the latter is launched, said an executive who is aware of the company’s plans.

Digital Express are 2,000 square feet stores which focus on mobile phones, electronic accessories and so on, meant to be experience stores.

“They will need a base when they roll out 4G. They cannot open hundreds of stores at one go after rolling out Jio. They plan to turn them into experience stores for Jio,” said the executive.

Reliance Retail did not respond to the queries on the subject. Of the 279 stores Reliance Retail opened during December FY15 quarter, 231 stores belonged to Reliance Digital, the durable format of Reliance Retail.Reliance is synergizing operations of Reliance Retail with Jio.

Recently Reliance Jio’s managing director Sandip Das stepped down as MD and joined Reliance Retail’s board and entrusted with the task of mentoring Jio division at Reliance Retail.

According to reports, Reliance Industries, the parent of Reliance Retail and Jio, is looking tohave common executives to handle both divisions and a common infrastructure for back end.

“It is a wonderful strategy. I think they will continue to sell digital products and Jio products. These stores will also help them bring awareness about Jio,” said Rajeev Karwal, founder director at Milagrow Business and Knowledge Solutions, who was the first CEO of Reliance Digital.

Reliance Jio Infocomm is set to roll out its 4G LTE services in 800 Indian cities between April and June next year.

Reliance Digital, which debuted in 2007 in Ghaziabad in the National Capital Region, posted a turnover growth of 32% in Q3 of FY 2015, highest after fashion and lifestyle category. About 24% of Reliance Retail’s Q3 revenue mix came from Reliance Digital.

Source: BS

Google planning to launch its own telecom service: Report

Google Inc is preparing to sell mobile phone plans directly to customers and manage their calls and mobile data over a cellular network, The Information reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Google is expected to reach deals to buy wholesale access to Sprint and T-Mobile mobile voice and data networks, making it a mobile virtual network operator, the technology news website said.

The project, codenamed "Nova", is expected to be launched later this year, The Information said.

Google was considering launching mobile phone plans for markets where it sells Google Fiber internet service, according to the report.

It was not clear how widely Google plans to offer the wireless service, how much it would cost or which mobile device manufacturers, if any, have already agreed to work with Google for its new service.

Google, T-Mobile and Sprint could not be immediately reached for comment.

Source: TOI

Microsoft Research's AutoCharge uses light to wirelessly charge phones

Imagine if you could just toss your cellphone on a table, where it is automatically charged using a beam of light. It may become a possibility!

A team from Microsoft Research in China, which developed the new system, said wireless charging pads are more convenient than traditional wired smartphone chargers, but they still require users to consciously place their phone in a specific spot.

The new AutoCharge system allows users to put their phone down anywhere on a regular table to be recharged. Using an overhead camera and object recognition software, AutoCharge continuously scans the table top, looking for smartphone-shaped objects.

It can detect one in less than a second and then it shines a beam of focused light onto it. Both the camera and the light can rotate, in order to image and illuminate the target from an optimum angle, 'Gizmag' reported.

A photovoltaic (PV) panel on that phone subsequently generates electricity from that light, charging the phone's battery. The researchers said that in tests of the prototype using a phone-sized PV panel, it was found to charge phones approximately as fast as some wired chargers.

In order to keep from continuously lighting up phones that don't need charging, AutoCharge utilises a system in which the PV panel powers a microcontroller and an LED indicator on the top surface of the phone.

When the phone is first illuminated, that LED blinks in a specific pattern, indicating the battery's current charge level. AutoCharge uses its camera to detect that pattern, and only keeps illuminating the phone if it needs to get charged.

Once the phone's battery is full, the LED will flash in a different pattern, letting AutoCharge know that it's time to stop.

Source: ET

Telecom Commission suggests Rs 3,705 cr per Mhz for 3G

Inter-ministerial panel Telecom Commission has suggested a base price of Rs 3,705 crore per megahertz as 3G spectrum base price for upcoming auction, about 11 per cent higher than what companies paid for the same in 2010 sale. It is also 36 per cent higher than what regulator TRAI's recommendation of Rs 2,720 crore per Mhz. "TC (Telecom Commission) is of the view that Rs 3,705 crore should be the base for 3G spectrum. The pricing will be proposed to be placed before Cabinet on Wednesday," an official source told PTI.

The Commission, headed by Telecom Secretary Rakesh Garg, has considered sale of only 5 megahertz of 3G spectrum, while determining the price. This is only 25 per cent 20 Mhz recommended for auction by TRAI. The industry had also demanded sale of 20 Mhz. While TRAI has recommended 5 Mhz of 3G spectrum should be counted as one block, which means it can be bought by one company, the panel has suggested that 5 Mhz be divided in to two blocks of 2.5 Mhz each. All the 3G spectrum, which proposed to be put up for auction, need to be freed by the Defence Ministry. The Ministry has agreed to free 5 Mhz of 3G spectrum as of now and 15 Mhz when the government will notify a dedicated spectrum for defence forces as 'Defence Band and Defence Interest Zone'. Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad expects the dedicated spectrum band for the defence sector to be notified in February. The Department of Telecom has announced dates for next round of spectrum auction for 800 Mhz (CDMA), 900 Mhz and 1800 Mhz bands but is yet to share details of 3G spectrum. The government expects to raise at least Rs 64,840 crore from the auction, excluding 3G.

Source: Moneycontrol

Reliance Jio to Work on Projects of National Interest

Reliance Jio, a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Industries, is working around various projects of national interest. It is amply known that the company is readying for its 4G services roll out but the company on Friday said that it is also working to address the entire value chain across various digital services.

“In addition to fixed and wireless broadband connectivity, RJIL also plans to enable end-to-end solutions that address the entire value chain across various digital services in key domains of national interest,” the company said in a statement while announcing its Q3 financial results.

The company’s net profit during the quarter dropped 7.7% to Rs5085 crore. The business from its BWA services or 4G services is mentioned in the ‘Other’ category in the report.

These domains, Reliance Jio said, include education, healthcare, security, financial services, government-citizen interfaces and entertainment.

“Reliance Jio aims to comprehensively address the requisite components of the customer need, thereby fundamentally enhancing the opportunity and experience of hundreds of millions of Indian citizens and organisations,” the company added.

It also said that the acquisition of Network 18 will help the company in launching some premier digital services in the domain of telecom, web and digital commerce.

Reliance Jio, the only company to have pan-India license for offering broadband services, is planning to roll out high-speed broadband connectivity as well as plethora of digital applications.

The company said around 100,000 people are working to build this infrastructure. Besides these, Reliance Jio had hired more than 10,000 full time employees and takes the help of around 30,000 more workers from its partners around the globe for this cause.

The company has also completed hiring of the top leadership which means that the projects are at the last leg of its trial and may be launched anytime now.

“Reliance Jio has finalised the key vendor and suppliers partnerships that are required to launch of our services and is making rapid progress in building the critical infrastructure needed to launch its services,” the company said in the statement.

In a recent show of its readiness, Reliance Jio, the Mukesh Ambani owned firm, had deployed its broadband access to offer WiFi during the Vibrant Gujarat event in Gujarat.

Source: Tele Analysis