Showing posts with label Tata Teleservices. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tata Teleservices. Show all posts

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Tata Teleservices signs passive infrastructure sharing agreement with BSNL

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL), India’s fastest-growing pan-India telecom service provider, announced the signing of a landmark ‘Master Services Agreement for Passive Infrastructure Sharing’ with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL), becoming the first Indian private telecom operator to enter into an agreement of this nature.

The agreement, valid for 15 years, will be applicable to both Tata Teleservices and Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) in all of India’s 22 telecom circles.

“This is a moment of pride for us, as we have become the first private telecom operator to enter into such a strategically important agreement with BSNL, one that will allow us to expand our telecom footprint across the country much more quickly,” Madhav Joshi, President, Legal and Regulatory Affairs, Tata Teleservices, said.

The agreement comes at a very strategic time for Tata Teleservices Limited (TTSL) and Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Limited (TTML), as both companies have been aggressively expanding their network presence on the CDMA side with Tata Indicom, while also rolling out GSM services under the TATA DOCOMO brand name.

“In the short space of just three months, we have already rolled out our GSM services in nine Circles—Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Orissa, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Mumbai, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh and Haryana,” AG Rao, Chief Technology Officer, Tata Teleservices, said. “This agreement has the potential to not just speed up our network expansion and rollout process, but would also have a substantial impact in terms of reduced costs,” he added.

Under the terms of the agreement, TTSL and TTML will have access to thousands of BSNL towers all across the country.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Olive Telecommunication, Tata Teleservices, launch India's first 3G embedded netbook

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Olive Telecommunication, the parent company of Haier Mobile and Tata Teleservices Limited (TTSL), the country’s fastest-growing dual-technology telecom service provider, today announced the launch of India’s first netbook embedded with High-Speed Internet Access for mobile Internet connectivity and broadband access.

The Netbook X107H, powered by Qualcomm’s QSC 6085 chipset, will leverage the capabilities of HSIA technology on TTSL’s network to enable users with ‘Anywhere, Anytime’ broadband connectivity and help them access advanced data applications and services on the move.

The Netbook has a 1.6-GHz processor, 1-GB DDR memory and 160-GB 2.5” HDD storage. The Netbook comes with attractive payment options and will be available at Tata Indicom stores and other retail outlets across the country.

Arun Khanna, Chairman, Olive Telecommunication, said: "I am very grateful for the opportunity to be a first mover in a space that will surely heat up in the near future, and thank our technology partner Qualcomm as well as telecom partner TTSL for all their support.

"The Netbook, bundled with Tata Teleservices’ data packages, will bring to the consumer the convenience of connectivity ‘Anytime, Anywhere’. We look forward to surprising the Indian consumer with data-enabling devices that will make lives easier and empower greater numbers of Indians to connect to the Net conveniently. TTSL has been a partner since our inception in the telecom sector and we are proud to be associated with them in this new initiative too."

The netbook is being exclusively offered on India’s best wireless broadband service, Photon Plus by Tata Teleservices.

"The Olive Netbook powered by Tata Photon Plus heralds a new era in versatile computing access, and is in keeping with TTSL’s endeavor to provide affordable and ubiquitously accessible high-speed Internet access,” Anil Sardana, MD, Tata Teleservices, said.

"The unique advantages of our high-speed Internet access service get compounded by the feature-rich and attractively-priced Netbook, which will be on offer with an exclusive range of tariff offerings, designed to bring the best of both worlds to the market," he added.

"We congratulate Olive Telecommunication and Tata Teleservices for launching India’s first 3G-embedded Netbook. Computing and wireless are fast converging to enable a compelling mobile broadband experience for consumers worldwide,” Ms Peggy Johnson, Executive Vice-President of the Americas and India, Qualcomm, said.

"We are pleased to collaborate with our partners to bring to the Indian market an innovative solution that offers a world-class computing experience and ubiquitous broadband connectivity."

Friday, July 17, 2009

Tata Indicom global data roaming to postpaid customers via Cyberpass

NEW DELHI, INDIA: Tata Teleservices Ltd has launched of global data roaming in association with Tata Communications. Tata Communications has extended its global data roaming services to mobile customers through Cyberpass. Jetsetters can now avail of global data roaming with a single login internet access across 160 countries on Tata Indicom.

This first-of-its-kind roaming service will be available to Tata Indicom post-paid (mobile, Walky and data card) subscribers. Users can access the World Wide Web though dial-up, broadband or from Wi-Fi zones, across the world, using a single login and password enabled by Cyberpass. Globetrotters can now stay on top of their mails, send large files and browse the internet with a simplified billing structure that allows cost certainty when they roam abroad.

“This is a pioneering service introduced by Tata Indicom, another amongst the host of “firsts” offered to the customers. It brings together not only the comfort of a hassle–free and secure billing process, but also the calculations of the bill being in Indian Rupees in spite of international roaming. It further reduces the limitations of availing Tata Indicom services to enhance customer experience,” said Mr. Pradeep Dwivedi, Senior Vice President-Marketing, Tata Teleservices Limited.

“We are delighted to partner with Tata Communications for extending its global data roaming services through CyberPass that allows a host of services like internet access, content access, net telephony, e-mail, etc. through one power packed account !”, he added.

How it works:
This Global Data Roaming Service can be activated through a simple registration process at Tata Indicom and “Cyberpass” websites. Once registered, the user can download the dialer from the Tata Indicom website for a hassle-free log-in across the globe.

While on roaming at an overseas Wi-Fi zone, a customer can login through the dialer after selecting the appropriate service provider from the dropdown list, and start enjoying the extensive coverage provided by Tata Indicom.

Users will also be able to view their Global Roaming Usage by going in to the “My Usage” sub section in the “Cyberpass” website.**For Dial up Access through a Toll Free number, a flat rate of Rs.24/min will be charged.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Tata Teleservices, ECI Telecom to offer fixed broadband services across India

MUMBAI, INDIA: ECI Telecom, a global provider of networking infrastructure solutions optimized for NGN migration, and Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL), have partnered to deliver India's largest fixed-broadband access network supporting speeds of up to 18 Mbps.

As part of the frame agreement, TTSL will deploy an all-IP next-generation network featuring ECI's award winning Hi FOCuS Multi-Service Access Node (MSAN) and SR9000 Carrier Ethernet Switch Router (CESR) platforms.

This end-to-end broadband access solution for TTSL's 'Photon Pro' network has already been successfully deployed across eight cities: Hyderabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Vizag, Vijayawada, Surat and Baroda.

ECI's solution, part of the company's 1Net framework to simplify networks and allow for a smooth transition to NGN, represents one of the most comprehensive multi-service, IP-based, broadband access networks on the market today, simultaneously supporting next-generation data, video and voice, over both fibre and copper infrastructure.

The state-of-the-art solution will enable TTSL to lead the market with innovative triple-play services and applications such as IPTV, video on demand, high speed broadband Internet, VoIP and other bandwidth intensive services.

"ECI's expertise and in-depth understanding of broadband access solutions were key factors in our decision to choose ECI for this important project. The company's market leading solutions allow us to deliver a full spectrum of next-generation services today, well ahead of other operators in the market, while addressing our evolving needs as network architecture and technologies change in the future," commented A.G. Rao, President & Chief Technology Officer, Tata Teleservices.

The contract marks a significant milestone in the long-term relationship between ECI and the Tata Group. Israel-based ECI has been successfully providing the India communication conglomerate with network infrastructure solutions, such as wireless backhaul, WiMax backbone, and broadband access and transport solutions for over five years.

"We are proud of our long term partnership with TTSL and honored to be chosen as a trusted partner for this inaugural project. ECI brings proven experience and excellence in the broadband access market, servicing and supporting some of the world's largest tier-1 networks," commented Rafi Maor, President and CEO, ECI Telecom.

Friday, May 29, 2009

CDMA now being used by over 100 million people in India!

MUMBAI, INDIA: The CDMA Development Group (CDG) announced that there are now more than 100 million CDMA subscribers in India, making it the world's second-largest CDMA market.

Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices are placed among the top five CDMA operators globally, ranking second and fourth, respectively. The rapid growth of CDMA users in India is attributed to a wide selection of affordable devices -- ranging from entry-level handsets to feature-rich smartphones -- and the introduction of CDMA2000 voice and data services into urban and rural areas, helping to reshape the communications culture of India.

Since CDMA mobile services were introduced in December 2002, the cellular landscape in India changed rapidly. Efforts led by CDMA operators, device manufacturers, technology enablers and the CDG introduced an array of entry-level handsets to the market while tariffs dropped by more than 40 percent.

As a result, CDMA reached 50 million subscribers in India twice as fast as any competing cellular technology, and at the same time greatly increased voice telephony and wireless Internet connectivity in India. Now, recently-introduced CDMA mobile broadband solutions are poised to have a similar significant impact on increasing broadband penetration in the country.

"The CDG is encouraged by the continued CDMA subscriber growth in India, and we are proud to have worked with operators and manufacturers to bring wireless voice and data services to over 100 million Indians," said Perry LaForge, executive director of the CDG. "Efforts to bring a wide range of devices into the market have resulted in a tremendously rapid growth of voice telephony in the country. As we look to the next 100 million subscribers, CDMA mobile broadband is already satisfying the demand for affordable high-speed wireless data services, while CDG initiatives will further increase the selection of CDMA voice and data devices."

In March 2009, CDMA operators Reliance and Tata both launched high-speed mobile broadband services, delivering average download speeds of 600-1400 kbps with bursts up to 3.1 Mbps and average upload speeds of 500-800 kbps with bursts up to 1.8 Mbps. Reliance's Netconnect Broadband Plus wireless broadband service is offered nationwide in 35 major cities, 20,000 towns and 450,000 villages, covering 80 percent of the potential laptop and desktop broadband users in India.

"Reliance has been a pioneer and the largest operator of a CDMA platform in India's wireless sector. We have successfully launched and grown new segments in the wireless sector leveraging the unique strengths of CDMA technology, such as Unlimited and Bucket plans in voice usage, Wireless Broadband and anchored applications of PCO, ATM and FWP. We remain committed to further grow and serve our ever-increasing CDMA customer base through innovative applications, superior network quality and service and attractive value-propositions," said S.P. Shukla, President Wireless of Reliance Communications.

Concurrently, Tata Indicom is offering its Photon Plus services in several large markets including Bangalore, Calcutta, Chennai, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai, accessible via USB modems as well as routers.

"It has always been our mission to provide quality telecom services to subscribers in India and it is a matter of pride that we have played a role in this 100 million CDMA subscriber achievement. CDMA is a technology that allows a rich telecom experience, especially on the data side, and we are confident that in the years to come that experience will only get better, especially as 3G arrives and we are able to unleash the full potential of applications and services," said Anil Sardana, Managing Director of Tata Teleservices.

Dr. Mukund Rajan, Managing Director, Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Ltd, said: "There were a number of doomsday prophets who questioned the logic behind the introduction of CDMA in India. Today, 100 million satisfied CDMA subscribers, on networks across India that boast the best voice quality and excellent data throughput, vindicate our decision to launch CDMA services in India.

"The dramatic growth of CDMA in India, in the short span of six years, has led the surge in wireless subscriber additions in India and the huge jump in teledensity across the country. Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) (TTML), with over 7 million CDMA subscribers and 14 percent market share in the Mumbai-Maharashtra geography that contributes the most to India's GDP, is proud to have played its role in establishing CDMA as a compelling choice for customers."

"Qualcomm congratulates the CDMA ecosystem on this remarkable journey to 100 million subscribers in India, bringing in not just voice, but also wireless Internet and broadband connectivity. India is now the second largest CDMA market globally, and the ecosystem continues to grow with new operators, handset OEMs, content providers and application developers," said Kanwalinder Singh, senior vice-president of Qualcomm and president of Qualcomm India and South Asia. "CDMA triggered the wireless revolution in India by making mobile communication affordable, and has played a key role in bridging the digital divide. Qualcomm, along with its partners, will continue to bring the benefits of advanced CDMA technologies to India for an enriched and differential wireless experience."

T Narsimhan, Dy CEO, Sistema Shyam Teleservices Ltd, the new entrant to the CDMA ecosystem, said: "100 million subscribers is a landmark moment for the CDMA industry, and reiterates the huge potential for CDMA to grow in India. MTS is a hugely successful global brand and is committed to revolutionize the manner in which wireless telephony services are made available in the country. We stay committed to the continued explosive growth of CDMA telecommunication services in India."

According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), broadband penetration in the country was only at 5.5 million users as of the end of 2008, and PC connectivity continues to be a limitation in achieving faster growth. Recently launched mobile broadband services by CDMA2000 operators will have the same effect on increasing India's broadband penetration as CDMA2000 1X services had on increasing voice telephony in the region earlier this decade.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Telcordia gains in India through MNP initiative, customer wins

GURGAON, HARYANA: India represents one of the most dynamically evolving mobile markets in the world, with 10+ million new subscribers each month, and remains a strategic area of focus for Telcordia, a global leader in the development of fixed, mobile, and broadband communications software and services.

With its unmatched expertise in highly scalable communications networks, Telcordia is ideally positioned to help both the country's government and leading mobile operators successfully manage the sharply rising demands for advanced mobile services.

Recently, MNP Interconnection Telecom Solutions India Pvt Ltd, a joint venture of Telcordia, was selected by the India Department of Telecommunications (DoT) as the provider of number portability clearinghouse and centralized database services for the country's southern and eastern regions for the next 10 years. This will facilitate accurate number porting for subscribers, enabling the transfer of telephone numbers when subscribers want to keep their numbers if they move from one operator to another.

"Telcordia is committed to the India market and is helping operators successfully manage the unprecedented growth, realize operational efficiencies, and maintain a competitive edge that will drive communications usage and revenue," said Mark Greenquist, President & CEO, Telcordia. "The recent number portability clearinghouse deal will bring added choice and convenience to India's 400 million mobile subscribers and accelerate the rollout and adoption of brand-differentiating, value-added services."

Telcordia is a leading global provider of fixed, mobile, and broadband communications software and services. For 25 years, the company has created the innovations that have helped organizations deploy advanced networks and groundbreaking new communications services.

On the number portability front, Telcordia is the world's market leader in number portability clearinghouse and gateway solutions supporting fixed and mobile number portability services. Telcordia market leading number portability solutions are already deployed in 14 countries, including the United States, Brazil, Canada, Egypt, Greece, Lithuania, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and Turkey.

Telcordia's operator customers in India include:
* TATA Teleservices, which selected the Telcordia service delivery solution to grow its prepaid customer base, and introduce new and innovative value-added services in the converged environment.
* Idea Cellular, which relies on the Telcordia® Converged Application Server to consolidate prepaid services on a single real-time charging platform.
* Reliance Infocomm, which uses the Telcordia® Network Engineer planning and design solution to streamline the outside plant engineering process.

"Telcordia has made a substantial investment in India to fully understand the various cultures and business challenges that this hyper-growth market presents," said Greenquist. "We are seeing this commitment result in business opportunities throughout the country, highlighted by the recent number portability initiative."

Telcordia established an entity in India, Telcordia Technologies India Pvt Ltd, in 2006. The business is headquartered in Gurgaon, with program delivery offices in Hyderabad. The entity also includes Telcordia India Labs, a state-of-the-art facility based in Chennai. The office in Tidel Park provides dedicated software resources, including development, for mobile, fixed line and cable operators throughout India.

Monday, December 17, 2007

Kodiak brings PTT conferencing, group SMS to India

US-based Kodiak Networks is in the business of voice-based VAS for mobile networks. It has a large presence in Bangalore ~200 full-time employees, with a total global workforce of 260. All R&D, testing and customer support are handled out of India.

Kodiak's worldwide growth and application adoption puts a spotlight on this region for innovation and business success. The demand for wireless voice services continues to grow globally, but especially in this region.

According to Dr. Giridhar Boray, Country Manager - India, Kodiak Networks, three major operators have deployed the Kodiak Connected Portfolio [Idea, Airtel and Tata], and that Kodiak will continue to announce new applications geared toward business users and consumers.

He said that operators faced a common trend worldwide -- increasing subscriber growth and declining revenues. Hence, the operators are now looking at VAS. Push-to-talk (PTT), as a solution, is becoming popular in the USA. An example is Nextel, which grew out of Fleetcall, has evolved into cellular.

Dr. Boray said: "Initially, all operators were waiting for 3G, but they could not wait. They wanted PTT in 2G, with migration into 3G." Delving into history, he pointed out that AllTell, a CDMA operator and Kodiak's first customer, agreed to trial PTT product in 2002. Kodiak's customer base has swelled to 16 globally, since!

Dr Boray said: "In PTT, you need to have a dedicated button and a speaker. Our solution goes into the voice channel." He explained that for 2G PTT, the industry adopted two approaches -- PTT on the voice channel or PTT on the data channel.

Some of Kodiak's competitors reportedly introduced PTT on data channel. India's Tata Teleservices was the first to use PTT, but the service was discontinued after some time. Dr. Boray also added that for using PTT, the US government mandates that any service that is put on to the network can be legally intercepted or tapped as a matter of national security.

Kodiak's next big customer was AT&T Wireless, which tested its PTT solutions. A lot of its customers in the US are regional operators, who have roaming agreements with the bigger operators, which also helped Kodiak.

AT&T Wireless was also able to drive handset vendors to use PTT via Kodiak's solutions. "Right now, 45+ handset models carry our solutions," added Dr. Boray. "These include Blackberry, LG, Samsung, Nokia, Motorola, ZTE, etc."

Conferencing, group SMS trials in India
India hosts Kodiak's development center. He mentioned TRAI's statement on PTT that, PTT is legal as operators are able to meet the ADC requirements, plus all regulatory requirements related to voice, such as lawful interception. "They did not say that PTT on data channel was incorrect. To do that, you would need to first build the infrastructure," he added. Kodiak's solutions work on both GSM and CDMA standards.

Kodiak has now evolved PTT into two-way conferencing. As an example, on the Airtel Blackberry, users can select up to six people and do conferencing. Dr. Boray said: "We also have the application on the SIM card as AVS (advanced voice services). From our side, you can conference with up to 30 users, but operators generally allow the selection of up to five to six users from your contacts list."

Kodiak will be offering conferencing as well as group SMS with Airtel. "Only one SMS goes to the server, which distributes it," he said. "Group SMS, conferencing, etc., should be helpful during emergencies."

Touching on Kodiak's partnership with Airtel, Dr. Boray said: "Airtel started over six months back as a market trial. It is offering the services to some corporates, but only on postpaid. We will be extending it over prepaid as well over the next few months." As for the charges, he said that the customers would probably get deducted as per the existing and applicable NLD and ILD call charges.

Kodiak is also trialing the service with Idea in New Delhi. The next trial is with Tata Teleservices over BREW-enabled handsets. Kodiak offers applications for BREW.

Dr. Boray added: "We also want to enter into the prepaid coverage. Prepaid is widely used in enterprises as well." Besides these three -- Airtel, Idea and Tata -- Kodiak is in discussions with some other operators as well. Kodiak also offers voice SMS, which it is not pushing hard enough for the moment. Kodiak's India chief said that the enterprises may find value in this application.

PTT rollout with JMCC in China in Q1-08
Kodiak has also announced the first commercial PTT deployment in China for China Mobile's Jiangsu Mobile Communications Co. (JMCC). Its target are corporate users with an emphasis on transportation, municipalities, and retail segments. The PTT subscribers will be billed a monthly service charge (bundled service offering).

The initial launch will include Nokia Symbian GSM handsets. According to Dr. Boray, the roll-out is scheduled for Q1-2008. "JMCC is a big operator. This win will also help us get into the other provinces of China as well," he added.

The Kodiak PTT voice-based solution provides superior mobile coverage compared to previously trialed data/GPRS solutions. It is the only solution with QoS resulting in best-in-class reliability and speed for JMCC customers. Also, Kodiak PTT provides users with a convenient alternative to trunked radio (one handset provides function of both a radio and a mobile phone).

Some of Kodiak PTT's unique features include: real-time presence and availability indicators; quick group calling up to 10 group members; convert to cellular (upgrade a one-way PTT call to a two-way cellular call); PTT/GSM call waiting; permission-based contact management; and contact alerts.

Dr. Boray added: "Lot of IM features are also making their way into PTT. Our focus is on group communications."

Continued growth in 2008
To add to Kodiak's PTT success in 2008, eight new PTT handsets are likely to be announced in the first half of the year. Significant PTT customers in three regions are likely to be announced as well. Finally, 2008 will also see two Open OS, downloadable PTT client versions announcements with commercial customers.

Research firm In-Stat believes that the number of PTT global subscribers will grow to 67.8 million by the end of 2009. PTT/PoC has an opportunity to reach non-traditional business and consumer (especially youth) markets. One-third of In-Stat respondents would consider switching carriers in order to be able to use PTT/PoC.

According to a Wintergreen Research report from September 2007, there were 45.6mn PTT subscribers in 2006 and 64mn in mid 2007. This is likely to reach 340mn by 2013. The PTT subscriber revenue of $1.2bn in 2006 is also likely to reach $16.7 billion in 2013.

Multi-generation platform support
Kodiak's solutions are built on the Kodiak RTX platform, which will support the converged IMS network architecture with a software upgrade.

Kodiak RTX is a multi-generation platform that spans 2G and 3G network technologies, and extends services to social networks and IM communities. Kodiak IMS applications also leverage the Kodiak IMS Client framework.