Tag: vodafone

Crypto Wallets Grab Vodafone’s Attention as Telco Looks to Integrate Blockchain in Operations

The senior leadership at Vodafone is looking to integrate the blockchain technology with its operations. The concept of crypto wallets has also grabbed the attention of the UK-headquartered telecom giant in recent times. David Palmer, the lead of Blockchain initiatives at Vodafone spoke about some company plans during a recent interview with Yahoo Finance. Palmer hinted that blockchain networks, crypto wallets, smartphones, and SIM cards may all come together for a big Web3 twist to Vodafone’s services around the world.

In the next six years, Palmer sees billions of smartphones into circulation. In the same duration, the number of crypto wallets is also expected to see a big jump given that the sector is already heading towards regulated adoption in several nations.

“By 2030 we are expecting over eight billion mobile phones to be in operations, many of those being smartphones that act as the touch point for people to use apps, conduct businesses. Essentially, in those mobile phones will be SIM cards. So, we’ve focused on linking the sim card to digital identity, linking the sim card to blockchains, and using the cryptography we have in those sim cards for that integration,” Palmer said during his interview.

The Vodafone official has projected that by 2030, around 5.6 billion digital wallets will be operational, acting as gateways between people and financial services. They would also be used to hold digital IDs and other credentials.

“We think about linking digital wallets to the SIM cards, which has the hardware needed, so for example the hardware secure module, public-private key encryption, and a symmetric key inscription that are absolutely critical. Because the wallets expand and hold identity and financial credentials, they will be a target for hackers and others,” Palmer added.

As part of its plans to give its business a Web3 twist, Vodafone is considering the use of public blockchain like Ethereum and Avalanche as well as private blockchains like Ripple and Hyperledger. The former, however, appears more interesting to Palmer especially the Layer-2 chains supported atop popular mother chains like Ethereum itself.

Overall, Vodafone’s plans to have a pro-Web3 approach towards revamping its operations could end up making its services interoperable with Web2 as well as Web3. This could wire-in a large influx of capital in the company’s treasury – giving it a strong position to arrange for a big loan of a whopping $1.8 billion for its India subsidiary – Vodafone Idea. The company reportedly seeks the loan to turn around its loss-ridden operations in India.

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Vi Partners With Truecaller to Prevent Customer Service Fraud Calls

Vi (Vodafone Idea) India has collaborated with Truecaller to ensure safe and reliable communication for its users. The announcement was made on July 13. It aims to prevent users from customer service frauds and offer trusted communication. The number of customer service frauds have increased lately. Hence, the telecom company has partnered with Truecaller to help its users in identifying the spam calls. Additionally, Truecallers already offers Verified Business Solution which display brand identity and context about business calls to the users.

Vi has announced its partnership with Truecaller to help users in identifying fraud calls and spam messages. With this collaboration,Truecaller’s Verified Business Caller ID solution has been integrated with Vi’s customer service and sales team to bring in a secure customer communication experience. This will also help users in identifying genuine calls from Vi customer service platform as they will carry a green caller ID, an unalterable brand name and logo, a verified business badge, a category tag, and the reason for the call.

Additionally, Truecaller’s Verified Business Solution display brand identity and context about business calls. “This feature has already benefited over 2000+ active businesses across India and other global markets,” said the company in its statement.

India is among one of the biggest markets for Truecaller. The company claims to have over 350 million active users. It has been downloaded more than a billion times since launch and has identified and blocked nearly 50 billion unwanted calls in 2021.

Last month, the company reintroduced support for call recording on the app for smartphones. The feature was previously only available on Android smartphones. However, it was discontinued after Google cracked down on apps using an API designed for accessibility features to record calls. However, now the service has been rolled out on both an iPhone as well as an Android smartphone. 

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Delhi High Court Refuses to Refuses to Interfere With TRAI’s Rs 1,050 Crore Penalty on Vodafone

The Delhi High Court has refused to interfere with TRAI’s recommendation for imposing a penalty of Rs. 1,050 crore on two Vodafone companies for allegedly denying inter-connectivity to Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd (RJIL) under an Interconnection Agreement executed between them.

The high court noted that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (TRAI) October 21, 2016 recommendation, which has been challenged here is also under challenge before the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT), and tribunals are expert bodies constituted under statute to decide the disputes arising under that statute.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad, in its May 24 judgment, said the TDSAT has been empowered to deal with all disputes arising under the TRAI Act.

The Central government had passed an order on September 29, 2021 imposing a penalty on the petitioner companies for violation of the provisions of licence agreement and standards of Quality of Service (QOS) regulations of basic telephone service (wireline) and cellular mobile telephone service regulations, 2009.

“After the tribunal gives the conclusion that the order dated September 29, 2021 passed by the respondent no.2 (government) is not sustainable in law, then automatically the recommendation dated October 21, 2016 which is under challenge in the instant writ petitions would be set aside.

“This court finds considerable force in the arguments advanced by the senior counsel for the respondents that any observations made by this court in the instant writ petitions will have an adverse impact on the Telecom Petitions which have been filed before the TDSAT,” the bench said.

The high court disposed of the petitions filed by Vodafone Mobile Services and Vodafone Idea and made it clear that it has not made any observations on the merits of the case.

“It is always open for the tribunal to decide the issue on merits, including the recommendation dated October 21, 2016 which is under challenge in the instant petitions,” it said.

It also noted that the TDSAT has already stayed the September 2021 order.

On September 21, 2016, TRAI issued the a recommendation stating that the petitioners were at fault for not providing Point of Interconnections (POI) to RJIL, and recommended imposition of a penalty of Rs. 50 crore per circle for 21 Licensed Service Areas (LSA) where POI congestion exceeded the allowable limit of 0.5 percent.

The petitioners said they requested TRAI to withdraw the recommendation, but to no avail after which they moved the high court.

Vodafone has challenged the recommendation made by TRAI to the Secretary, Department of Telecommunication, for penal action, contending that the recommendation was contrary to law and deserved to be struck down.

TRAI opposed the petitions saying they are premature at this stage and non-maintainable.

Samsung Galaxy A34 5G was recently launched by the company in India alongside the more expensive Galaxy A54 5G smartphone. How does this phone fare against the Nothing Phone 1 and the iQoo Neo 7? We discuss this and more on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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Vi Rs. 99 Prepaid Recharge Plan With Access to 200MB Data Launched

Vi (Vodafone Idea) has rolled out a new entry-level, affordable prepaid recharge plan for users in India. The telecoms firm has introduced a Rs. 99 plan that offers 200MB of data and talktime worth Rs. 99. The pack will be valid for 28 days, according to Vi. The new recharge plan, which has effectively become Vi’s cheapest monthly recharge plan, does not offer unlimited calling and subscribers won’t have access to free SMS. Subscribers will also not be able to avail of Vi’s “Binge All Night” benefit that offers unlimited data between 12am to 6am at no extra cost.

Vi Rs. 99 prepaid recharge plan benefits

According to the telecom operator’s website, the Vi Rs. 99 prepaid plan comes with 200MB of data and talktime worth Rs. 99 for 28 days. The plan offers local and national calls at 2.5p/sec. There are no free SMS benefits and standard charges will be applicable.

Similarly priced Vi prepaid recharge plans

Vi’s similarly priced Rs. 98 prepaid plan comes with 200MB of data and unlimited voice calling. This pack is only valid for 14 days, unlike the Rs. 99 recharge. There are no free SMS benefits, and once the data quota has been exhausted, users will be charged at 50p/MB. Like the Rs. 99 plan, Vi doesn’t offer unlimited night data access as part of the Binge All Night benefit from 12 am to 6 am.

Meanwhile, the Vi Rs. 129 recharge plan offers the same benefits as Rs. 98 prepaid tariffs but comes with 18 days of validity. Users who want more data quota can go for prepaid plans priced at Rs. 149, Rs. 155, and Rs. 209. While the Rs. 149 and Rs. 155 plans offer 1GB of data for 21 days and 24 days respectively, the Rs. 209 plan offers 4GB of data with 28 days of validity.

These plans also offer unlimited calling and SMS benefits. Users can also get an additional 2GB of data with the Rs. 209 prepaid plan, if they recharge via the Vi app. The telecom operator has also announced benefits like binge all night, weekend data rollover, and Data Delight with Hero unlimited daily data recharge plans worth Rs. 299 and above.

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Vivo V27 Series Likely to See India Launch in February, Could be Similar to Vivo S16 Series: Report

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Vodafone Idea Stake to Be Acquired by Government When Share Price Reaches Rs. 10 or Higher: Report

The government will reportedly acquire a stake in telecom operator Vodafone Idea, after the company’s stock price has stabilised at Rs. 10 or higher, after the telco offered a stake at that price which was cleared by the finance ministry in July. Operators in the country were previously offered the ability to pay interest for four years of deferred spectrum instalments as well as adjusted gross revenue (AGR) by converting the net present value of the interest into equity. 

According to a report by PTI citing an official source, the Department of Telecom will clear the acquisition of shares in Vodafone Idea after the company’s shares stabilise at Rs. 10 or above, in accordance with a Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) norm that requires acquisitions to take place at par value. 

The telecom operator had offered the government a stake at the aforementioned price, and the proposal was cleared by the finance ministry in July, as per the report.  

Vodafone Idea had opted to convert nearly Rs. 16,000 crore worth of interest liability whuch is owes to the government. After the acquisition, the telecom operator’s promoters will reportedly have a 50 percent stake, down from from nearly 75 percent, while the government will have a 33 percent stake. 

However, according to the report, the government will only complete the acquisition of its stake in Vodafone Idea once the share price at Rs. 10 or higher. On Thursday, the operator’s shares were trading at Rs. 9.68  — it hasn’t crossed the threshold required for the acquisition since April 19, as per the report. 

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Department of Telecom Said to Receive Rs. 17,876 Crore From Operators as Upfront Payment for 5G Spectrum

The Department of Telecom (DoT) has received upfront payment of around Rs 17,876 crore from Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, Adani Data Networks and Vodafone Idea for spectrum they won in a recent auction, according to sources. While all telecom operators have opted to make payments in 20 annual installments, Bharti Airtel has paid Rs 8,312.4 crore equivalent to four annual installments.

Reliance Jio has made payment of Rs. 7,864.78 crore, Vodafone Idea Rs. 1,679.98 crore and Adani Data Networks Rs. 18.94 crore.

“DoT has received a total payment of around Rs. 17,876 crore. Only Bharti Airtel has paid for four annual installments at one go,” an official source said.

The country’s biggest-ever auction of telecom spectrum received a record Rs. 1.5 lakh crore worth of bids, with Mukesh Ambani’s Jio cornering nearly half of all airwaves sold with a Rs. 87,946.93 crore bid.

Gautam Adani’s group has placed bids worth Rs 211.86 crore for the 400 MHz in a band that is not used for offering public telephony services.

Telecom tycoon Sunil Bharti Mittal’s Bharti Airtel made a successful bid of Rs. 43,039.63 crore, while Vodafone Idea Ltd bought spectrum for Rs. 18,786.25 crore.

On Wednesday, telecom operator Airtel announced that it had paid Rs. 8,312.4 crore to the Department of Telecom towards dues for spectrum acquired in the recently concluded 5G auctions.

With the payment, Airtel has paid four years of 2022 spectrum dues upfront. The company had an option to pay Rs. 3,848.88 crore upfront and the rest in 19 annual instalments.

Airtel said it believes that this upfront payment, coupled with the moratorium on spectrum dues and AGR (adjusted gross revenue)-related payments for four years, will free up future cash flows and allow Airtel to dedicate resources to single-mindedly concentrate on the 5G rollout.

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