Aircel is all set to commercially launch its long distance calling card which will allow users to make calls to the USA and Canada at Rs 1.99 per minute. The average cost of making a call to these countries is about Rs 7 per minute.
An Aircel spokesperson informed Telecom Yatra that the promotional rate is currently applicable only to USA and Canada. Tariffs for other countries are still being worked on and would soon be announced. The service is expected to be launched next month, and will be available in all circles where Aircel is currently present.
The calling card is currently accessible via Aircel’s website but is not yet available at retailers. To avail the service, users need to register their number on Aircel’s website and buy a recharge card for Rs 100, Rs 300, Rs 500 or Rs 1000. Once the account is recharged the customer needs to dial a toll free number from an Aircel mobile.
In case a user dials from a phone number that is already registered on the Aircel site, he will need to punch in a 4 digit PIN or else a 12 digit PIN followed by the 4 digit PIN. After this the current balance and validity of the account will be announced and the destination number (in Canada or the United States), can be dialed.
Only Aircel subscribers can call the toll free number. However there is a possibility, in the future, of this number being accessible from phones using other networks.
“Delhi has high calling minutes to USA and Canada. Punjab only has for Canada while Kerala has for UAE. On the other hand, West Bengal has for Bangladesh and from Jammu and Kashmir high amounts of international calls are made to Pakistan,” added the spokesperson.
International calling card service is currently offered by almost all major network services provider in the country. Operators such as Airtel, Vodafone, MTNL and Idea allow their subscribers to make STD/ISD call at a lower rate.
Aircel set to launch international calling card
Airtel to stream Radio Mirchi content
Bharti Airtel has partnered with private FM station Radio Mirchi to launch Mirchi Mobile. The new service allows Airtel mobile subscribers to choose a local Mirchi station or follow one of 12 Mirchi stations, from across India. The service costs Rs 10 for a week’s usage of up to 100 minutes of Radio Mirchi.
Powered by Spice Digital, this service also allows users who do not have an FM-enabled handset to access Radio Mirchi content streamed through the Airtel network. Mirchi Mobile will initially be available to Airtel customers in Delhi and Mumbai, followed shortly by the rest of the country.
Shireesh Joshi, director, marketing, mobile services, Bharti Airtel, said in a company statement, “Today we are happy to partner with Radio Mirchi to innovate the radio listening experience for our customers, enabling them to carry their favourite radio experience wherever they go to any part of the country. Not limited by location or by handset features, Mirchi Mobile on Airtel offers a unique experience only for Airtel customers.”
Owned by the Times Group, Radio Mirchi operates FM radio stations in 32 cities in the country and has more than four crore listeners.
MTS launches mobile TV on its data card
MTS, the CDMA services brand of Sistema Shyam TeleServices (SSTL), has announced the launch of a new service for MBlaze users. The service named MTS TV has been launched in association with Apalya Technologies, a mobile TV provider. MTS TV will allow MBlaze users to watch 60 live and video on demand (VOD) channels on the move. The channels may be from among the news, entertainment, sports, kids and regional language categories. Some channels that are available are Cartoon Network, CNBC Awaaz, CNN, ESPN MobileTV, IBN7, India TV, NDTV 24X7, Pogo, TV9 Mumbai, Zoom, Aaj Tak etc.
To access the service, users need to download an MTS TV application from the MTS website. The service will be available free. However, standard data charges according to the user’s data plan will apply.
MTS TV will be available in the 57 cities where MBlaze is present. Currently, 60 channels are available on the service and the company said in a press statement that other optional channels and live cricket updates will soon be offered.
Users are prohibited from copying, recording or re-purposing content. MTS TV uses Windows and MAC operating systems and does not require any other software. The service can also be availed while Roaming at standard data roaming charges.
Leonid Musatov, chief marketing officer, SSTL, said in a press statement, “As an emerging industry, mobile TV will require a willingness of operators, regulators, broadcasters and device suppliers to strike new deals. Consumer reaction and usage patterns will help the broadcast and mobile industries understand what content viewers want to see on this exciting new technology.”
Uninor rolls out data services for prepaid users
Uninor has announced the launch of data services based on GPRS for its prepaid subscribers across the nine states it is present in.
Uninor’s internet services will be available for free trial till May 6 and after that at a base tariff of 10 paise per 10 KB. Subscribers could also opt for myconnect 9, priced at Rs 9, valid for three days with free browsing of up to 60 MB and myconnect 90, priced at Rs 90, valid for 30 days and with 3 GB of free browsing. With both plans, usage beyond the free data limit will be charged at 10 paise per 10 KB and accessing social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn will be free.
A Uninor spokesperson told Telecom Yatra that since a majority of subscribers use prepaid connections, it has first launched data services for them. He added that data services for post paid users will be launched soon.
Uninor also has an automatic device setting server which enables automatic download of GPRS settings on a handset as soon as the SIM is inserted. The system detects the device make and model and automatically sends data settings to the phone. Uninor’s mobile portal has six icons on the homepage including those for social networking.
Uninor is a joint venture between Unitech and Norway based Telenor Group. The Telenor Group has invested a little over Rs 6135 crore through new shares in the joint venture to hold 67.25 per cent stake in the company, which holds a pan India license to offer mobile services in 22 circles. At present, Uninor’s services are available in the eight circles of UP (West), UP (East), Bihar, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh.
Dual SIM handsets make inroads, attract new customer segments
There has been a constant rise in demand for dual SIM handsets (supporting two mobile connections at the same time),which is estimated to be growing at the rate of 30 to 40 per cent annually compared to the overall Indian handset market which is growing at the rate of 15 per cent, according to research firm KPMG.
Speaking on the growth of dual SIM handsets, Jaideep Ghosh, executive director, KPMG says, “These handsets are amongst the fastest growing segment among handsets. This is reflected in the number of companies that sell dual SIM handsets, which has rapidly increased. Till about 18 months earlier, there were only three companies selling dual SIM phones – Micromax, Spice and Intex Technologies. Now, there are about 40 brands in the market offering these. The dual SIM handset market in India is pegged at about Rs 2,200 crore annually.”
Growth in focus
Interestingly, it is not just Indian manufacturers but international brands such as Samsung and LG that have become part of the dual SIM market. Recently, Nokia announced that it is readying its own dual SIM handset for India.
In fact, many dual SIM manufacturers in India have stopped manufacturing single SIM handsets and have turned their focus to dual SIM phones. One such company is Intex Mobiles which offers only dual SIM phones now. GeePee Mobiles, a Kolkata-based handset manufacturer, is also focused on producing multi-SIM handsets. Bijay Agarwal, managing director, GeePee Mobiles, remarks, “The dual SIM device market is growing at a fast pace. Today, dual SIM phones constitute almost 30 per cent of the entire handset market. 95 per cent of the handsets in our portfolio are dual SIM”.
Who’s the customer?
What is the market segment driving this growth, Ghosh says, “Most of the demand in India comes from prepaid services users looking to make use of the best rates and services on offer from different operators.”
Sudhir Kumar, national sales head, mobiles, Intex Technologies, shares, “Initially, maximum demand for these devices came from tier two and three towns. However, there has been a shift in the trend and now we are getting demand from bigger cities and metros as well.”
A handset manufacturer shares that the demand for these handsets is driven by three segments: urban users who wish to keep their professional and personal lives separate; semi-urban users who use two different SIMs because of the packages and connectivity that various operators offer and users who travel a lot and carry two SIM cards to control Roaming costs.
Santosh, owner of a handset retail store in Delhi, adds, “These people (who use dual SIMs) are either college students who want to get benefit of best tariffs available with different operators or people who come from low income group seeking maximum features at reasonable price.”
“There is a resistance in carrying two phones, especially when one can get the work done with a single handset,” says a Samsung spokesperson, adding that Samsung Mobiles expects 15 per cent of its revenue to come from dual SIM handsets this year.
Enter multi-SIMs
The dual SIM handset market is clearly big but handsets with three SIM slots are already gaining ground. GeePee, Intex and Olive are some of the manufacturers offering triple SIM handsets. Agarwal of GeePee says, “This feature is a value addition as three SIM slots give functions of CDMA plus GSM, plus GSM or CDMA. Customers using two CDMA with one GSM numbers or vice versa prefer going for triple SIM devices rather than dual SIM ones.”
Alcatel to enter Indian handset market with three models
Alcatel is the latest entrant in the Indian mobile handset industry. Alcatel’s handsets will be launched as the result of a partnership between TCT Mobile (which will operate in India under the brand name Alcatel) and Dutch company ICE Mobile Network Systems, hence the handsets will be co branded Alcatel ICE. Hong Kong-based Alcatel has debuted in India with its handset named Alcatel ICE3 which comes with social networking features. The phone is priced at Rs 7,000.
MS Malik, director, ICE Mobile Network Systems told Telecom Yatra. “We are planning to launch three new Alcatel handsets in the next two months and reach a total of five handsets in our portfolio by July.”
The company is targeting a presence of at least a million handsets in the Indian market within a span of six months. Malik added, “We are targeting young people who are tech savvy and are looking for latest technology and style statement. The handsets would be priced starting from Rs 3,000 up to Rs 15,000. We will also be including 3G handsets in our product portfolio.”
Talking about Alcatel’s presence in the handset market, Praveen Valecha, country manager, Alcatel Mobile, said, “Alcatel has been in mobile business for a long time. Globally we are among the top 10 vendors in mobile telephony.”
Valecha said that the company intends to be aggressive in its marketing campaigns. It aims to rank amongst the top three mobile handset providers in Qwert, email and multimedia handset categories in India, by 2012.
The company has signed on actress Kangana Ranaut as its brand ambassador. “Kangana has a special appeal which is fashion and style and definitely she matches coolness of ICE… We are promoting our product 360 degrees and it will be available via 10,000 counters in next three months,” added Valecha.
TCT Mobile is a Hong Kong based mobile phone design house and manages two brands: TCL and Alcatel.
ICE Mobile Network Systems has been in the Indian market for 25 years and has a wide distribution network for fixed lines, wireless phones, data cards, reverse logistics and mobile phones.
MTNL launches 3G mobile TV streaming service
Alcatel-Lucent, the French communications solutions provider, and Aksh Optifibre, a Delhi-based IPTV service provider, have announced the launch of India’s first 3G-based mobile TV streaming service. The new service will be offered exclusively by MTNL to its subscribers in Delhi and Mumbai.
To enable the mobile TV service, Alcatel-Lucent will provide its Packet Video Streaming Server, which is a solution to launch video services on 2.5G and 3G networks. The solution also helps monetise the mobile TV service by providing open interfaces that enable ad insertion for any mobile video application.
A spokesperson from Alcatel-Lucent told Telecom Yatra, “This is the first time that a 3G-based streaming service has been launched in the country and Alcatel Lucent is providing the platform for this service.”
He added that Aksh will be working on ad insertion solutions with its existing IPTV service i-control, which allows multiple ways of ad insertion. “Ad insertions in live TV will not be possible as broadcasters will not allow it but in video-on-demand, classified ads and location-specific ads can be placed,” the spokesperson said.
Aksh Optifibre is an optical network solution provider with presence in Fibre to the Home (FTTH) solution, broadband, IPTV and VoIP services.
Motorola in trials to launch SIMs that support multiple numbers
Motorola, the USA-based communications company, said it is in discussion with operators in India for trials of iSIM (intelligent SIM) solutions. The Motorola iSIM platform enables a phone to support up to four IMSI (international mobile subscriber identity) profiles or phone numbers, without changing the SIM card. These numbers could be of one or many operators. iSIM also has a smart dialer feature which allows each button on the keypad to be programmed to dial a particular phone number. It can also be used for sales force automation and for Messaging within an enterprise.
In an email response to Telecom Yatra, Tarvinder Singh, director of marketing and product management, networks enterprise mobility solutions and networks, Motorola India, said, “Motorola iSIM is a flexible and powerful platform that helps mobile operators and enterprises to enable mobile lifestyle experiences effectively and efficiently. It is based on a flexible wafer that can be attached to the subscriber’s original SIM providing additional services that can be controlled via SIM tool kit (STK), allowing third party developers to build applications and services.”
iSIM comes with a parental control service that can be used to restrict the usage of facilities on the phone at any particular time. The restriction can be extended to particular websites, numbers etc. It also enables secure mobile banking and can be used as a credit card as it has built in secure ID, and also NFC (near field communication) capability.
Singh said, “iSIM provides significant value proposition for end-users and also to various industry verticals like enterprises, banks, financial institutions, telecom, retail etc. It makes it easier for end users to have a seamless experience without replacing mobile device or SIM card.”
Motorola’s iSIM is compatible with all SIM cards and is a 0.4 mm thick wafer added on a SIM.
Commenting on the response that Motorola has received for iSIM, Singh said, “Overall, responses are positive. It is an innovative way to drive new applications with lower subscriber acquisition cost and low replacement cost while supporting multiple business models.”
The company recently announced the commercial deployment of iSIM with Bipper, a Norwegian mobile web solutions company, in the EMEA (Europe, Middle East and Africa) region and it is also running active trials in China.
Airtel brings live aarti to mobiles
Bharti Airtel has announced the launch of Live Aarti service for its subscribers. Airtel subscribers will now be able to listen to live prayers from some places of worship in India which include Tirupati Balaji, Sidhi Vinayak, Shri Shirdi Sai Baba and Bangla Sahib.
In a press statement, the company claimed it was the first service on mobile offering live puja. Users need to call on different numbers from their mobiles for subscribing to different shrines and have to pay Rs 5 as a onetime membership fee along with a daily subscription charge of Rs 2 per shrine. Through the Live Aarti, Airtel users can listen to the Kalyanotsayam Tirumala, Arjita Brahmotsavan and Sahasra Depalankarana from Tirupati Balaji; Kaakad Aarti and Shaam ki Aarti from Sidhi Vinayak and Kaakad Aarti, Abhishek and Satyanarayan Puja from Shirdi Sai Baba.
Devotional sermons from temples such as the Golden Temple, Vaishno Devi, Kashi Vishwanath, Har ki Podi, Nathdwara, Patna Sahib Gurudwara and Puri Jagannath will shortly be included in the service. The press release stated that the operator would soon include all other religions and cover other places of worship across India.
Airtel was earlier offering a similar service wherein subscribers could select devotional songs available in multiple languages, to set them as wake-up call alerts on their landlines or mobile phones. The company also provides content on spiritual gurus and institutions such as Iskcon and Art of Living foundation.
Currently, operators such as Vodafone and Reliance Communications are also offering devotional VAS either directly through voice or through their WAP sites using dial-in and subscriptions.
Vodafone provides devotional alerts through SMS and voice in the form of verses from the Bible and shlokas from Hindu scriptures. Vodafone users can also dial certain service numbers to listen to Gurbani, devotional songs, prayers and Osho’s philosophy. They can also get quotes by the Pope.
Reliance Communications also has a portfolio of devotional services on offer. The company provides prayer alarms and other voice based services such as Geeta Sar (verses from the Bhagwad Geeta), Gurbani, Bible, Mukhwak, Nineam, as well as packs which include complete festive darshan from temples on mobile phones.
RCom launches story voice portal for children
Pan India GSM and CDMA services provider Reliance Communications has announced a new value added service (VAS) where it would make children’s stories available on a voice portal. The story portal will retell some popular Indian stories which include Tenali Raman, Panchatantra ki Kahaniyan, Vikram aur Betal, Ramayan, Shri Krishna Bal Leela, Mahabharat and Tale Toon.
Customers can listen to stories at Rs 3 per minute. They can also set these tales as their caller tunes for Rs 10 per story. The portal offers stories in various languages including English, Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Gujarati and Punjabi.
Anil Pande, head, value added services, Reliance Communications, said in a press statement, “It is always a happy and delightful reflection for any individual who has been associated to these tales as a child. The essence of these stories lie in their timelessness as, even today, they can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike. We are pleased to recreate this experience on our voice portal and let them (our subscribers) take a trip down memory lane.” Pande was not available for further comments.
Although, mobile users already have access to these stories in the form of mobile comics, with this story portal RCom users can listen to the stories as well. Mobile comics are offered by various operators including Vodafone, Tata Docomo and Airtel.