Uninor Majha Maharashtra Plan

Telenor’s Indian arm Uninor launches "Majha Maharashtra" plan on the eve of Maharastra Day for Maharastra and Goa telecom circles. Uninor Majha Maharastra pack offers unlimited Uninor to Uninor callings for 28 days in Maharastra and Goa at Rs. 58. Customers can also recharge with Rs. 6 for one day unlimited calls on Uninor. Speaking about the Majha Maharashtra pack, Ritesh Kumar Singh, Circle Business Head, Maharashtra & Goa said that, “Why spend 51% more on your mobile bills? There is no better way to celebrate Maharashtra than to keep making mobile telephony affordable for the people of the state. Whether you are in Goa or Gondiya; or calling from Parbani to Vasai; wherever you are in Maharashtra, the “Majha Maharashtra” will take the worries of expensive phone calls away. I encourage Maharashtra’s mobile phone users to switch to Uninor and begin their savings today.”

Uninor, which last year won spectrum to offer mobile phone services in only six of the 22 telecom services areas for Rs 4,018 crore after losing licenses in2G Scam.

TRAI releases Indian Telecom Services Performance Indicator Report

Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), New Delhi released the “ Indian Telecom Services Performance Indicator Report” for the Quarter ending December, 2012. This Report provides a broad perspective of the Telecom Services and presents the key parameters and growth trends for the Telecom Services as well as Cable TV, DTH &
Radio Broadcasting services in India for the period covering October to December 2012, and is compiled on the basis of information furnished by the Service Providers. The number of telephone subscribers in India declined from 937.70 million at the end of Sep-12 to 895.51 million at the end of Dec-12, registering a negative growth of 4.50% over the previous quarter sep-12. This reflects year-on-year (Y-O-Y) negative growth of 3.35% over the same quarter of last year. The overall Tele-density in India has declined from 77.04 as on 30th September, 2012 to 73.34 as on 31st December, 2012. The complete Report is available on TRAI’s website.

Nokia Launches Asha 501 at Rs. 5300 without 3G

Nokia unveiled the first of a new family of Asha smartphones with the introduction of the Nokia Asha 501. The handset pushes the boundaries of affordable smartphone design with bold color, a high-quality build and an innovative user interface. The Nokia Asha 501 is the first device to run on the new Asha platform, which is designed to make the experience faster and more responsive. The Asha platform also helps developers to create, publish and make more money from apps made specifically for the new generation of Asha devices. At a global event held in New Delhi, Nokia CEO Stephen Elop said that the company had been very impressed by the way Asha phones performed so far and that it was time to refresh the platform. He said the Series 5 Asha phones had been made specifically for consumers in countries like India. "India is a bellwether market... It's symbolic that we are launching it here, " said Elop. The Asha 501 runs on a revamped Asha operating system. It will cost Rs. 5300 in India. Nokia said that in India it will be available in June. The device supports only 2G connection and Wi-Fi. Nokia said that the 3G version is likely to be launched later.

Nokia Asha 501 specifications: 

- The Nokia Asha 501 is available in single or EasySwap Dual SIM models. All come with WiFi and Bluetooth.

- Dimensions:  99.2 x 58 x 12.1 mm; 98 grams
- Camera: 3.2 MP
- Single SIM standby time: up to 48 days

- Dual SIM standby time: up to 26 days

- Talk time: up to 17 hours
- Additional memory of 4GB (card included in box), expandable up to 32GB
- Forty free EA Games worth €75 downloadable from Nokia Store
- Available colours: Bright Red, Bright Green, Cyan, Yellow, White and Black
- Suggested pricing is Rs. 5300 before taxes and subsidies.

- 3G Network Not available, most disappointing thing when you spend Rs. 5300+ for a smartphone which didn't support 3G Services.
For details refer: http://conversations.nokia.com/?p=120951.

Vodafone pips Airtel in Rural India

Vodafone India has for the first time overtaken Bharti Airtel to become India's leading mobile phone company in rural India, according to the latest rural subscriber numbers collated by Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the industry body representing GSM operators. The Indian arm of Vodafone, which recently tweaked its distribution model to boost sales in the villages, now has the biggest rural customer base at 82.24 million, a shade above Bharti Airtel, whose total rural customer base is for the first time a tad lower at 82.16 million. As per COAI, Vodafone India added 4.9 million rural customers between February and March 2013. Bharti Airtel added 2.57 million customers, while Idea Cellular added 2.75 million users during the same period. 

During the period under consideration, Vodafone India net a higher number of rural customers in Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh East, Uttar Pradesh West, Bihar, Haryana and Rajasthan by offering users a mix of customised product launches focusing on voice and data. Also, between January and March 2013, GSM operators collectively added over 10 million rural customers. As on April 1, 2013, the total GSM customer base in rural India stood at 262.53 million. Further, as of March 31, 2013, Bharti Airtel continued to be the market leader with a total subscriber base of 188.20 million with a market share of 28.47 per cent. Vodafone India's total subscriber base for the period under review stood at 152.35 million with a market share of 23.05 per cent.  Together GSM operators  added 5.35 million customers in March and the pan-India GSM customer base on April 1 stood at 660.94 million.

Yogesh Malik Appointed CEO of Uninor

Uninor has appointed Yogesh Malik as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the operating company with immediate effect. Sigve Brekke will continue to be responsible for all of Telenor affairs in India as the Head of Telenor Group’s Asian Operations. Uninor is the Indian arm of Norwegian telecom major Telenor. Yogesh Malik joined Uninor in 2011 as the Chief Operating Officer. “He has played an instrumental role in establishing Uninor as the most affordable mobile operator. His focus on operational efficiency and innovations that benefit the mass market has contributed to making Uninor India’s fastest growing service provider,” Brekke said. 

He brings with him almost 20 years of extensive telecom experience.  He has previously held executive positions at Telenor Group headquarter in Norway, and he has served as Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of Telenor Group companies in Ukraine and Bangladesh. His extensive career in the telecom industry also includes experience from AT&T, Tata and Ericsson in India and Sweden and for the international mobile operator TIW (today known as Vodafone) in Canada, China, Brazil and the Czech Republic. The company had lost 22 licences following the verdict of the Supreme Court in February last year cancelling all the 122 2G licences allotted during the tenure of the former telecom minister A Raja. These licences were believed to be rigged. Uninor won spectrum only in six circles for about Rs 4,018 crore in the last auction in November. The company had 23.6 million subscribers at the end of the quarter.