Singtel and Airtel to provide data connectivity to over 300 cities across the world

The combined resources of the two telco giants can provide high speed data connectivity to 325 cities across the world through 370 Points of Presence (PoP). This will form one of the largest Internet Protocol Virtual Private Networks (IP VPN) globall.
“With its wide coverage of cities in India, this network paves the way for our international customers to enter into one of the world’s most vibrant economies. Conversely, this partnership also opens the door for Indian companies to expand abroad, supported by Singtel’s high quality IP VPN network in major business cities in Asia, Europe and the US,” said Mr Lim Seng Kong, Managing Director of Global Enterprise Business at Singtel Group Enterprise.

Singtel and Airtel to provide data connectivity to over 300 cities across the world pic.twitter.com/XWzudhISp3

— Press Release Watch (@PrReleaseWatch) June 14, 2016

"This association will strongly enhance our value proposition for enterprise customers by offering them a wider global reach and the largest reach within India under a single platform. In particular, this will benefit companies in the pharmaceutical, IT and IT-enabled services as well as financial services segments, which are branching out to international locations rapidly,”  said Manish Prakash, Director for Strategic Ventures at BhartiAirtel.

Bharti @airtelindia to buy #Videocon 's six 1800 MHz circles for Rs 4,428 cr.

Bharti Airtel will buy 1,800 MHz band in Bihar, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh East and West, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat circles from Videocon Telecom for Rs 4,428 crore.

Bharti @airtelindia to buy #Videocon 's six 1800 MHz circles for Rs 4,428 cr. pic.twitter.com/kacN8Y3Gvn

— Press Release Watch (@PrReleaseWatch) March 17, 2016

Earlier Idea Cellular and Videocon Industries had terminated their November 2015 agreement in which Idea had acquired spectrum in Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh circles for Rs 3,310 crore. This year's Budget levied service tax on spectrum trading, which led to Idea's cost going up by Rs 500 crore and they decided to terminate the transaction, according telecom industry sources.

#Airtel ready for National mobile number portability starts from 3rd July

Bharti Airtel (“Airtel”) is fully geared up to launch nationwide mobile number portability (MNP) from July 3rd.Union government has fixed July 3rd as the deadline for a national roll out of MNP.

Ajai Puri, Director – Market Operations Bharti Airtel said, "With our complete readiness to launch National Mobile Number Portability, we aim to empower customers enabling them to retain this identity as they move across anywhere in the country. To facilitate a seamless transition we will also allow our customers to enjoy free incoming on roaming while their number portability request is being processed.”

Airtel customers can enjoy special offers like processing requests for porting within Airtel’s network within 24 hours and free incoming on roaming until the portability request is processed.

#Airtel opens 6 new stores in West Bengal, crosses 150 Company Owned outlets across India

@airtelindia opens 6 new stores in West Bengal, crosses 150 Company Owned outlets across India pic.twitter.com/tKdXPM1aPC
— Press Release Watch (@PrReleaseWatch) September 2, 2014

#Airtel posts 61 percent jump in net profit in Q1

Bharti Airtel, today reported a jump of 60.9 per cent in consolidated net profit to Rs 1,108 crore for the quarter ended June 2014.The company had reported a net profit of Rs 689 crore in the corresponding period of last fiscal,
Its total revenue rose 13.3 per cent to Rs 22,962 crore for the reported quarter as compared to Rs 20,264 crore in the corresponding period.
Mobile voice realisation in India improved to 38.08 paise per minute (up 1.49 p Y-o-Y). Mobile data revenues contribute to 12.4 per cent of Mobile India revenues vis-à-vis 8.2 per cent in the corresponding quarter last year.
“Our revenue momentum in India has been sustained during Q1 with a growth of 11.8 per cent. While the pace across all segments has been satisfying, mobile data and DTH stood out with growth of 68.2 per cent and 20.7 per cent, respectively,” Bharti Airtel MD and CEO (India and South Asia) Gopal Vittal said.

 Highlights for the first quarter ended June 30, 2014

~ Overall Customer base stands at 299.9 million across 20 countries, up 9.1% Y-o-Y.
~ Consolidated total revenues at Rs 22,962 crore, up by 13.3% Y-o-Y.
~ India & South Asia (India SA) up 11.8%; Africa up 17.5% (INR terms) Y-o-Y.
~ Consolidated Mobile Data revenue at Rs 2,204 crore, up by 73.9% Y-o-Y; growth across geographies
~ Consolidated EBITDA at Rs 7,720 crore, up by 18.0% Y-o-Y, EBITDA margin up 1.3% Y-o-Y.
~ India SA EBITDA margin at 37.2%, up by 3.0% Y-o-Y.
~ Net Income at Rs 1,108 crore, up by 60.9% Y-o-Y.

The new Smartphone Network ad campaign by #Airtel

Bharti Airtel has launched its ‘The Smartphone Network’ (TSN) advertising campaign.The campaign introduces a fresh design element as part of Airtel’s brand identity which has been created by Wolf Ollins, a leading global brand design and consultancy firm, and reinforces Text Box: Airtel’s new design element.‘The Smartphone Network’ campaign by Airtel drives this very message in a manner that is intrinsic with our brand positioning”, said Mohit Beotra, Chief Brand Officer – Bharti Airtel (India).Commenting on the new design, Zia Patel, Director – India, Wolf Ollins said, “Around the world,telcos have evolved rapidly to the smartphone revolution – and India too is now a market that is all about smartphones and data explosion on handheld devices. Airtel is one of India’s most loved brands and has been a clear leader in recognizing as well as driving this very potential of data in the country. The new design element in Airtel’s branding signals the aspirational data shift and depicts a refreshed approach to engage its customers”.

The Theme: Relationships often get strained due to professional demands. At such times, smartphones transcend their role of being a mere communicating device, and play cupid. Watch one such sweet story brought to life by airtel, the network made for smartphones.

Ready to accept your wife as your boss too? Kudos to this attempt! (watch video) http://t.co/IwRURdmSUs @airtelindia pic.twitter.com/eNgZbXNCl8
— India TV (@indiatvnews) July 30, 2014

Vocational training certificates for underprivileged students by #Aircel in Karnataka

Building on its commitment to the development of the youth in Karnataka, Aircel in association with Bangalore Oniyavara Seva Coota - BOSCO Mane Rehabilitation Centre organized a felicitation ceremony for underprivileged students of Aircel a+. The students who successfully completed the Customer Retail Service and Tally course were awarded with completion certificates which will empower them towards a sustainable future. This initiative is a part of Aircel a+ programme working towards bridging the digital divide in India to empower underprivileged youth with computer education and vocational training.

The felicitation was done by Mr. Kadhiravan K, Circle Business Head, Karnataka, Aircel, in presence of some prominent personalities Mr. B.V.Ganesh - BBMP Member/Corporater, Chamarajpet Ward, Bangalore,  Father PS George, Executive Director BOSCO Bangalore, Mr.Jaganath Rao,  Co-Fouder of Empower Pragathi.

Kadhiravan K, Circle Business Head, Karnataka, Aircel, said, “Aircel which is the fastest growing Telecom Operators in Karnataka has been contributing towards empowering the youth since 2010.  The youth i.e. below 18 years of age comprise a substantial 41% of India’s population and we want to channelize their energies into something meaningful. Unemployment is a big menace due to lack of impactful skill development programs. With the launch of the unique Aircel a+ initiative, Aircel hopes to contribute in a little way towards empowering our youth”.


He added, “Aircel is presently running 12 Aircel a+ centres across India. These centers have benefitted over 20000 students in the last 5 years. Our a+ centers enable education and vocational training to the underprivileged youth which empowers them to get employment opportunities.”



Aircel has partnered with various reputed and credible training partners to reach out to students and their parents. In Karnataka, Aircel has associated with the NGO  Bangalore Oniyavara Seva Coota -BOSCO Mane Rehabilitation Centre to run this centre

Airtel Africa innovates with Mobileum on Telco Big Data Analytics

Bharti Airtel (“Airtel”), a leading telecommunications services provider with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa and Mobileum, Inc. (formerly known as Roamware), a leading Telco Big Data Analytics company have announced the start of an innovative Analytics project which will enable a deeper understanding of their customer’s travel intentions, travel patterns and service usage habits while traveling. This will help Airtel create a more enjoyable travel and roaming experience for Airtel’s customers.

Mobileum will analyze Airtel Africa customer, network and commercial data to generate innovative insights on Airtel Africa’s traveling customer population like travel prediction, roamer detection and roamer segmentation, amongst others. These insights will enable Airtel Africa to create tailored travel and roaming experiences for their customers. Airtel Africa operates in 17 countries across Africa with a customer base of over 68 million across Africa.  Mobileum is a strategic partner to Airtel and has roaming solutions already installed in Airtel’s operations across Africa and Asia.

“Airtel is strongly invested in harnessing the power of technology to provide our customers with a better roaming experience. Analytics will help us use the data that we have on our customers, networks and operations to provide us with deeper insights on how we are running our business and how our customers are using our services to help us serve our roaming clients better.”, said Andre Beyers, Chief Marketing Officer, Airtel Africa.

“Airtel is a globally renowned operator and an early adopter of innovative technologies and business models. It is a privilege to work with them on Telco Big Data Analytics. We have provided a variety of innovative roaming solutions to Airtel and are best placed to help the Group leverage the power of data in their networks with our innovative Wisdom generating analytics portfolio. We look forward to starting a new chapter in our engagement with Airtel Africa with Telco Big Data Analytics”, said Ori Sasson, Chairman & CEO, Mobileum Inc.

About Airtel Africa
Airtel is driven by the vision of providing innovative mobile services to all. Airtel has operations across African in: Burkina Faso, Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia.

About Bharti Airtel
Bharti Airtel Limited is a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa. Headquartered in New Delhi, India, the company ranks amongst the top 4 mobile service providers globally in terms of subscribers. In India, the company's product offerings include 2G, 3G and 4G wireless services, mobile commerce, fixed line services, high speed DSL broadband, IPTV, DTH, enterprise services including national & international long distance services to carriers. In the rest of the geographies, it offers 2G, 3G wireless services and mobile commerce. Bharti Airtel had over 287 million customers across its operations at the end of December 2013.


About Mobileum
Mobileum is Wisdom, not merely intelligence or insight. Our Telco Big Data Analytics solutions promise mobile operators, Just Wisdom® from their biggest underutilized asset – Data. Mobileum’s Traveler Analytics, Customer Experience Management and Data Monetization solutions analyze petabytes of data daily to create revenue generating, experience enhancing Wisdom for 615+ operators across 168 countries. Mobileum’s Just Wisdom® promise is powered by Roamware’s rich brand heritage, leadership and proven innovation. Mobileum combines unmatched experience and judgment to unlock value from mobile operator data like never before. Get Just Wisdom® at www.mobileum.com

Festive season offers on Airtel Digital TV

This New Year, Airtel adds on to the season’s festive cheer with two special combo offers especially for its digital TV customers!

Entertainment Combo at a discount of over 40%
Ring in the New Year with movies, music and laughter with Airtel’s combo entertainment package priced at just Rs. 40/- . Customers can now enjoy non-stop Bollywood films with Airtel Digital TV's movie subscription service Star Gold HITZ and the usher in the New Year with foot-tapping numbers on iMusicSpace at the special price. Blockbusters hits like Rockstar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Bheja Fry etc will be aired on Star Gold HITZ this festive season from Dec 30 to Jan 7, 2013 and iMusicSpace will play a diverse genre of music ranging from retro party tracks, Bollywood, devotional and regional special offered across 12 radio stations which would ensure that the new year party’s tempo never dies down!
Customers can send an SMS ADD ENT to 54325 from their registered mobile number to activate this combo.

Interactive Services Combo at a value-for-money deal

Airtel digital TV customers can now also enjoy three popular interactive services- iKidsworld, iMusicSpace and iDarshan at just Rs. 3 per day chargeable @ Re 1 per service per day for 30 days!

While iKidsworld will help kids to catch up on fun learning sessions with games, hobby classes, quizzes etc and much more; the spiritualists amongst us can stay connected with the devotional side with feeds from revered shrines like Golden Temple, Vaishnodevi, Tirupati Balaji and Shirdi right in their home with iDarshan and music lovers can sway to the rhythm of eclectic music on iMusicSpace.

Customers can send an SMS ADD ITV to 54325 from their registered mobile number to activate this combo.

India has 55.48 crore mobile users and 14.32 crore internet users:JuxtConsult Research & Consulting

India has 55.48 crore mobile users in the country and 14.32 crore internet users, according to a study by research firm Juxt.

Study Highlights:-
India has 554.8 million mobile users
Those users actively use 643.4 million SIMs (Active SIMs)
That is 1.16 active SIMs per user
But they have as many as 773.9 million valid SIMs which they may or may not be actively using (Live SIMs)
That is 1.4 live SIMs per user
Mobile penetration in urban India is 70%; in rural India, it is 36%
There are 23.8 million users who use Internet on their mobile phone using any data connection such as GPRS/EDGE/3G
As many as 110.8 million use services like music/games/video download/bill pay etc using operators’ portals.
95% of all active connections are pre-paid
93% of those are on GSM networks; 7% are on CDMA
9% of the 554.8 million mobile users use multiple SIMs
Rural India has already overtaken urban India in mobile usage. 54% of the users are in villages
298 million mobile users in rural India, using 346.7 million active SIMs
256.2 million mobile users in urban India, using 296.7 million active SIMs
64% of the mobile users are male
Gender  divide clearly visible: 55% penetration among male; 37% among female
More than 65% of the mobile users are below 35.
Penetration is highest (75%) among 19-24 age group
Still fairly low (44%) among teens and in 46-55 age group (44%)
Students (33%) and housewives (22%) together account for bulk (55%) of total mobile users
Mobile has clearly become a mass market product with fairly secular penetration across socio-economic categories, both in urban and rural India
Rule of Three is clearly visible
Top three (Airtel, Vodafone, Idea) accounting for 69% of the user base
Airtel leads with 30% of the user base
With 24% of its customers in top three urban socio-economic categories, Vodafone has the best distributed portfolio
However, if ‘data’ and ‘rural’ are the next opportunities, Airtel clearly leads others
61% of Airtel users in villages
It accounts for 38% of all mobile data connection users
In the other potential segment, Youth, Idea leads, with 41% of its users being in the 13-24 age group
Airtel has a better gender ratio among the top three

Study Methodology:-
A large-scale land survey was conducted to profile and estimate the Indian mobile users. The survey covered ‘towns’ and ‘villages’ of all population strata in all the mainland states and union territories in India (covering all the key, and 80 of the total 88 regions in India as classified by NSSO) – all 23 telecom circles were covered extensively
Though the selection of towns and villages was ‘purposive’, the sampling within the towns was done on ‘2-stage random’ basis (firstly a random selection of polling booths, and then a random selection of households from the electoral list within each of these randomly selected polling booths); within villages sampling was done on ‘systematic random’ basis (selection of every nth house in the village)
To estimate the mobile user-ship correctly and to make the findings representative of all mobile users in India (and not just of those surveyed), telecom circle-wise, urban town/village class and SEC combination level ‘household representation weights’ as derived from authentic ‘Govt. of India’ base-level population statistics (NSSO/Census 20111) were applied to the survey data