To track your gifted subscription, go to your Account Settings 
We’ve emailed your gift link. Want us to send some more?
0 of 0 Subscription available
Not now, thanks
FILTERS
For now, the narrative has helped the equity market, but the relationship can get rocky
Airtel, Jio, and Vi push for "fair share". Tech giants don’t want to part with their incredible cash piles for telecom access. But the government’s decision is not likely to come before 2024 General Elections
That’s the annual amount Amazon pays Indian telcos to send SMSes. Though the US e-commerce major has been lobbying India's telecom regulator for two years fearing ‘substantial financial implications’, it still finds itself paying increasing international SMS rates
In 2020, Amazon was looking to invest in Airtel. In 2021, it did serious due diligence on Vi, with the government as the matchmaker. Now that the telco is admittedly close to raising Rs 20K crore, could the Amazon-Vi match finally be made?
Trai’s attempts to stem the menace of spam calls and messages go back 15 years. In 2018, it finally implemented a blockchain-based system that was meant to be a silver bullet. Four years on, however, this silver bullet seems to have missed its target
Some blocks of spectrum under consideration for 5G services already have occupants, potentially delaying India's spectrum auctions. Migrating these incumbents won't be quick or cheap, with satellite operators and broadcasters digging their heels in and accusing the telecom lobby of attempting to hoard spectrum
For years, India’s cash-strapped telcos have been bullish on 5G deployment. But with high spectrum prices and home-grown tech falling short, rivals are finding common cause in delaying the expensive transition to the new generation of mobile networks
For the better part of its existence, India's telecom regulator has suffered from a lack of autonomy. With new technologies on the horizon and the telecom sector teetering on the brink of a duopoly, will Trai finally get the powers necessary to do its job?
India’s third largest telco already has one foot in the grave. To avoid a funeral, it needs help from the Indian government. The question now is whether the government believes it’s worth saving or whether it expects Vi to get itself out of this mess (or die trying)
The change in leadership at NHA—from a seasoned health economist to a career bureaucrat with close ties to Aadhaar—indicates a shift in focus. India’s digital health ID mission may just be superseding Ayushman Bharat, the world’s largest public health insurance programme
As price wars and survival struggles drew to an end in 2020, new plotlines have emerged for the year to come. Will 5G spectrum find any takers? What will Trai be like under its new chief? And what will India’s upcoming satellite communications policy look like?
A 25% tariff hike in 2019 allowed Vi to raise its average revenue per user (ARPU) to Rs 114. To remain in business, it must double this ARPU in the next two years. Its rivals, too, want higher tariffs, but doing so without losing users is a tough ask
Reliance Jio boasts the most mobile subscribers in the country, but its 4G-only network cuts it off from ~300 million 2G users. Desperate to convert them, Jio wants to get rid of India’s 2G networks altogether
In the last five years, telecom revenues are down, debts are up; litigation is high, trust is low. The new leadership at Trai has to ensure all telcos are treated fairly and the sector is nursed back to sanity
The Indian government wants 10 million public WiFi hotspots by 2022. Trai believes the country should have 100 million by 2023. Right now? India has 0.1 million
Reliance Jio wanted to upend the broadband space the same way it changed the telecom game. Its old tricks, however, haven’t yielded similar success, leaving its sales teams struggling to meet internal targets
Tariff hikes were a lifeline for telcos Airtel and Vodafone Idea. For Mukesh Ambani-owned Jio, though, it’s a ticket to a successful public listing
Vodafone Idea Limited’s demise won't just hurt its promoters. The government, banks, customers, and even its rivals would also bear the brunt of India’s second largest telco going belly-up
Trai wanted to protect TV viewers from high DTH and cable TV bills. What it did instead was empower big broadcasters and OTT players
Telcos are hiving off their fibre assets, seeking billions of dollars in investment but unless they share fibre with each other, it’ll remain sunk cost. As Jio’s GigaFiber kicks off today, it’s time to look at how big a competitive advantage is fibre and how long it will remain so
Bruised, battered but still standing after two years of the Jio explosion, Bharti Airtel wants to change the way it fights Jio
India has Net Neutrality for internet access providers. Does it also need Net Neutrality to counter Google’s Android market share?
The line between telecom and media is blurring, and Indian DTH companies such as Dish TV, Airtel, and Tata Sky must evolve or risk getting buried by the sands of time
Around the world, the blind belief in self-regulation as the guiding principle for the internet is slowly fading. Indian regulators may have found part of the answer in reining in the likes of Amazon, Google and Facebook, which have, for long, been left unregulated. Will others follow suit?
As a new tariff framework comes knocking, TV broadcasters and distribution platforms get their act together
The world’s largest digital infrastructure project has become a shining example of how government processes and bureaucratic structures can destroy a well-intentioned project
The Ken’s guide to the myriad entities involved in changing the engines of tech policy-making mid-flight
The dust of consolidation in the telecom industry is still settling but a lot is already clear. Spectrum is no longer the rare commodity it once was. Its acquisition no longer priority number one. But if they aren’t interested in acquiring spectrum, what exactly are telcos up to?
Trigger-happy and whimsical, Indian regulators pose a threat to the very industries, businesses and consumers they’re meant to protect
Telcos will fight satellite companies. The Dept of Space will fight the Dept of Telecom. There will be blood
If you are running a business, almost any kind of compliance needs expertise. That’s why it takes time. Costs money. Now throw confusion in this mix, and you are courting a lot of trouble
Just when MVNO licensing could’ve picked up, India seems to have ditched it. Telecom operators are still giving MVNOs the cold shoulder. In all this, consumers could be losing out on new services
What makes Facebook want to provide internet so badly that it’s making a second attempt at it in India? This time, it isn’t even a Facebook ecosystem experience. And it doesn’t help the social networking giant that the government has set its own plans in motion
Multiple court cases are attacking the core functions of the telecom regulator. Defanged by court decisions, Trai’s new regulations are seen favouring Reliance Jio
From the government to direct-to-home and cable companies, everyone wants to know what you watch on TV, and when you watch it. Surveillance state, here we come
Remember those long queues outside ATM machines from the days (more like months) of demonetisation? Today, the Indian TV broadcasting industry is a lot like that. Long queues of companies waiting for permission slips
After losing the POI battle to Reliance Jio, incumbent telcos are about to lose the IUC one too. Their mistake was to rely on conventional tactics
Like bulls in a china shop, the government and regulators are disrupting companies and business models by forcing ‘free’ on them. They may end up undermining free markets
Subterfuge, opacity and regulatory warfare will mark the next phase of Indian telecom
By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
“There's no greater gift than thinking that you had some impact on the world, for the better.”
– Gloria Steinem
Our anti-piracy system has flagged your account for suspicious activity and has temporarily paused your account. This may happen due to a number of reasons.
If you think that this was done in error, please get in touch with us at [email protected].
