Convergence Plus Journal

POLICY/ REGULATION

TRAI issues “The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2011”
February 28

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) issued “The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference (Fourth Amendment) Regulations, 2011”.

Earlier TRAI had issued “The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2010” on 1st December 2010.

As per the provisions of regulations, the telemarketer’s registration has started from 15th January, 2011 and Customer preference registration has started from 10th February 2011. Other operational provisions were required to be implemented from 1st March, 2011.

“The Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulations, 2010” provides allocation of separate number series for telemarketers in schedule-III. DoT has communicated a fresh numbering series beginning with the number ‘140’ on 31st January, 2011.

This new number series allocated by DoT are only for mobile services of the licenses and levels for fixed network was to be allocated by DoT after resolving the issue of CLI for telemarketing operations using fixed line network. However, the number series for fixed network are still not allocated by DoT.

The matter has been taken up on urgent basis to allocate number series to telemarketers for fixed 2 network. Access Providers have indicated that it will not be possible to provide all the resources to call centres from mobile networks only due to high traffic originated from such call centres. It is expected that number series for telemarketing activities from fixed network will be allocated by DoT shortly.

This new series will be required to be implemented by all Access Providers before allocation of resources to telemarketer. For this purpose time will be required by Access Providers to change the configuration in their system and test the new series.

Accordingly, relevant clauses of The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2010 (6 of 2010) dated the 1st December, 2010 have been amended to change the date of implementation of operationalization of the ‘Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2010’ from 21st March, 2011.

Video monetization leader Vdopia names Mimmie Ong as Sales Head—South East Asia
February 24

Leading online and mobile video monetization leader Vdopia named Mimmie Ong, a 20-year telecom industry veteran, as its head of South East Asia sales.

Based in Singapore, Mimmie is tasked with growing the customer base and maintaining the company’s market momentum as the preferred digital media partner for publishers, advertisers and brands in the region. Mimmie joins Vdopia from PA Sport Singapore, where she held the position of Regional Head of sales.

On joining this new challenging venture, Ms. Mimmie Ong said, “It is such an exciting time to be part of Vdopia as they continue to break new grounds in technology and open up new markets worldwide. I am looking forward to working with this innovative and creative team and forge on ahead to new heights of success in the digital media arena.”

ON Semiconductor appoints Hans Stork to Chief Technology Officer
February 21

ON Semiconductor, a premier supplier of high performance silicon solutions for energy efficient electronics, has appointed Hans Stork to the position of Chief Technology Officer (CTO) and senior vice president.

Under Dr. Stork’s leadership, ON Semiconductor will focus its organic research and development (R&D) and technical innovation to further expand the company’s energy efficient product and solution offerings in key market segments including computing, consumer, LED lighting, smart grid, automotive and wireless applications.

Dr. Stork joins ON Semiconductor after three years with Applied Materials as Group Vice President of the Si Systems Group and six years with Texas Instruments as the company's CTO and Senior Vice President of Si Technology Development. He has close to three decades of experience in technology, product development and leadership management areas. During his career Dr. Stork has worked with some of the semiconductor industry’s leading innovators including Hewlett Packard and IBM Research.

Dr. Stork holds a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Stanford University, and an Electrical Engineering Ingenieur (Cum Laude) from Delft University in the Netherlands. He has authored numerous scientific articles and papers, and served as a board director for Sematech and the Semiconductor Research Corporation (SRC) and is a member of the Scientific Advisory Board for IMEC.

Huawei launches world’s first affordable Smartphone with Google Called IDEOS™ in India
February 22

Huawei Device launched IDEOS™ smartphone powered by the latest iteration of Android 2.2 in India. IDEOS™ redefines the "entry-level" concept by combining high-quality hardware and software with a high price-to-performance ratio and is available at Rs. 8499.

IDEOS™ embodies creativity and inspiration, the "ID" standing for inspiring industrial design, the "OS" represents the operating system and the "E" symbolizes the evolution to mobile internet.

The beautifully designed IDEOS™ offers superior internet experience with faster browsing, quick music and video downloads. It offer multiple ways to access the Internet - Mobile WiFi Router that allows users to share internet anywhere with upto eight devices, WiFi 802.11 n which is 6 times faster than 802.11g, 3G HSDPA 7.2 Mbps downloads which is 120 times faster than 2G and supports USB Modem functionality, thereby making it an all-in-one wireless internet solution.

IDEOS™ comes pre-loaded with a range of social networking, email and useful services like Google Talk™, Google Maps™, YouTube™ and GMail™. IDEOS™ also offers access to more than 100,000 applications available in the Android Market™, across multiple categories like gaming, communication, entertainment, office, and financial management applications. The latest Android 2.2 operating system offers to consumers the ability to run applications on the SD card.

Huawei has also introduced People-centric Innovation in IDEOS™ with Smart sensors like battery-conserving “Proximity sensor”, eyes-friendly “Ambient Light sensor” and better viewing experience with “Gravity sensor”.

IDEOS™ is available in multiple cities across India from Aircel, Tata DOCOMO stores.

Etisalat & Huawei Sign Agreement to Deliver the Middle East’s First LTE Network
February 17

Etisalat, Middle East and Africa’s leading telecom operator, and Huawei, a leader in providing next-generation telecommunications network solutions for operators around the world, announced the signing of a commercial LTE contract to commence deployment of the region’s widest LTE network in the UAE. Mr. Nasser bin Obood Acting/CEO Etisalat UAE, and Mr. Yi Xiang, President for Huawei Middle East, witnessed the signing ceremony at the Etisalat-Huawei Summit 2011 in Barcelona, Spain.

The advanced LTE technology, which has already been tested and deployed on the Etisalat network, enables the existing network to reach a download speed of 173 Mbps. LTE can accommodate multimedia applications such as video conferencing, high definition content transmission, high speed video downloads and social networks, giving Etisalat’s customers unbeatable mobile broadband.

Openwave collaborates with Amobee to enable a true end-to-end mobile advertising solution for operators
February 15

Openwave Systems Inc., a global software innovator delivering context-aware mediation and messaging solutions, announced a collaboration arrangement with Amobee Media Systems, the world’s largest mobile advertising platform in which the parties intend to develop an end-to-end advertising ecosystem solution for interested mobile operators. Openwave and Amobee intend to create this solution by combining Openwave’s Amplicity™ platform and Amobee’s carrier-grade mobile advertising platform.

Mobile advertisers benefit from the combination of Openwave’s Amplicity platform, which enables contextual data delivery, and Amobee’s platform, fostering seamless ad enablement. The joint solution will enable mobile operators to offer advertisements that are more relevant to the subscribers based on subscriber data. In addition, the joint solution will employ a complete end-to-end mobile advertising solution which will include a comprehensive set of mobile media services, enabling advertisers to manage brand building and seamlessly rollout highly-targeted mobile advertising campaigns.

Tata Docomo introduces unique cricket recharge vouchers to add to the excitement of the World Cup
February 17

Tata Docomo has introduced the Not Out’ Recharge Vouchers for cricket enthusiasts in India to enjoy the upcoming Cricket World Cup. It’s the first ever Recharge Voucher for cricket introduced by any telecom operator.

Tata Docomo is introducing these special vouchers which can be utilized by cricket enthusiasts to stay connected with the hot n happening in the Cricket World Cup and much more.

The two new Recharge Vouchers-57 Not Out and103 Not Out –are especially designed for the Cricket World Cup 2011 and offer subscribers a unique combination of exciting & easy to use VAS cricket content that includes games, goodies, alerts and trivia and bundled talktime.

RCV 57 and 103 Not Out: Both RCVs offer talk-time worth Rs 28 and Rs 51, respectively, which can be used to make voice calls and are valid for 30 days with a host of bundled offerings.

ConJoin changes name to Anthelio; launches World Class SEZ facility in Hyderabad
February 17

The ConJoin Group, which recently acquired PHNS, the leading independent provider of comprehensive healthcare information technology (“IT”) services and business process solutions in the U.S., announced that effective immediately it is changing its name to Anthelio.

The new name reflects the broadening of the company's services portfolio and a reinvigorated go-to-market strategy focused on providing hospitals with innovative ways to use technology and re-engineered business processes to improve patient care, streamline operations and achieve significant cost advantages.

Anthelio will leverage U.S. domain and clinical expertise converged with a truly integrated global delivery model to provide innovative, market leading, high value, low cost solutions to the provider market. This model will fundamentally transform the cost structure for hospitals, allowing them to allocate critical resources to improve patient care.

Concurrently, Anthelio announced that it has acquired a 50,000 square foot DLF-SEZ facility in a world-class Special Economic Zone in Gachibowli, Hyderabad. The facility is equipped with state of the art security and processing equipment, and will support aggressive hiring goals in India. Anthelio currently has approximately 50 people in Hyderabad and 250 people in Mumbai. The Company expects to ramp to more than 1000 people in India by end of the year 2011, more than 3,000 people by end of 2012, and up to 15,000 people by 2015. In the U.S., the Company expects to grow from 1,300 people currently, to between 3,000 and 5,000 people by 2015.

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Gartner identifies 10 consumer mobile applications to watch in 2012
February 15

Gartner, Inc. has identified what it believes will be the most important mobile applications in 2012. Focusing on high-end devices with an average selling price (ASP) of more than US$ 300 dollars, analysts have identified the top 10 cutting-edge technologies and trends for 2012.

Winning mobile apps will have unique features that cater to the mobile environment rather than act as a mobile extension of their online peers. Mobile apps themselves will not only generate good revenue ($15.9 billion in expected end-user spending in 2012) but will also drive hardware sales, advertising spending and technology innovation.

Gartner’s top 10 consumer applications to watch in 2012 include:

Nokia Siemens Networks and Juniper Networks reduce complexity of Carrier Ethernet Transport networks
February 22

Carrier Ethernet Solutions, the joint venture between Nokia Siemens Networks and Juniper Networks (NYSE, JNPR), has announced Carrier Ethernet Transport 2.0 (CET), which helps operators to balance capacity and cost in their networks.

CET 2.0 includes two new Ethernet access switches, which are Nokia Siemens Networks’ A-Series 1200 and 1210, offering higher capacity and lower cost to the Ethernet access network. It also includes new features for Nokia Siemens Networks’ ASPEN network management system.

Fixed and mobile service providers will be able to benefit from these improvements in terms of reduced operational costs, faster time to market for new services and advanced visibility into their network wide operations.

CET 2.0 is designed for operators that offer business and residential services as well as fiber mobile backhaul. It is a step towards fully integrated and managed end-to-end Carrier Ethernet Transport. Correspondingly, ASPEN adds Connection Analyzer, which tracks performance and enables fault isolation, enabling the service provider to monitor performance and availability according to the service level agreements. In addition, it features alarm management capabilities that are unique to the packet based networks.

By easing operational tasks, service providers can profit from reduced cost and a faster time to market for new services through comprehensive service provisioning and management capabilities. Simultaneously, CET 2.0 can improve customer satisfaction by detecting potential bottle necks and resolving problems more quickly.

Huawei Launches 5-Band 3-Mode 1-Cabinet Solution
February 15

Huawei, a leader in providing next-generation telecommunications network solutions for operators around the world, unveiled its 5-band 3-mode 1-cabinet solution at Mobile World Congress. This solution, which comprises one part of Huawei’s SingleRAN@Broad, supports five frequency bands and three radio access technologies (RATs) in a single cabinet, allowing for mobile operators around the world to deploy and operate a single network, converging GSM, UMTS, and LTE. This “one network, three features (GSM/UMTS/LTE)” concept represents an important trend in mobile network development.

Currently, mobile operators are increasingly burdened by the simultaneous operation of multiple networks such as GSM, UMTS, and LTE and the associated problems that can result, such as difficulty in site acquisition, high operation expenditure (OPEX), complex inter-network cooperation, a sudden rise in demand that taxes network capacity, and the existence of outdated equipment operating on the current network that makes network evolution more difficult.

Due to its support of multi-band and multi-mode in a single cabinet, Huawei’s 5-band 3-mode 1-cabinet solution offers a high degree of integration as well as high capacity and power. These unique features combine to effectively help mobile operators cope with the challenges of simultaneously operating multiple networks.

The benefits of Huawei’s innovative solution can best be seen in the following example: in the typical scenario of constructing a GSM, UMTS, and LTE convergent network, a single cabinet can be used to simultaneously implement wireless transmission at GSM 900 MHz and 1800 MHz, UMTS 2100 MHz, and LTE 800 MHz and 2600 MHz. Compared to the traditional mode of network construction, Huawei’s 1-cabinet solution allows for an unprecedented degree of integration, as it reduces the necessary equipment room space by at least two-thirds. This, in turn, enables a telecom operator to use its existing equipment rooms, instead of acquiring new sites, to deploy new equipment in order to introduce new RATs, thus significantly reducing its OPEX.