Category: Communications

The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe) has shortlisted six out of nine bidders to build and manage a space-based earth observation (EO) system.

The selected entities include consortiums of SatSure, Pixxel, Dhruva Space and PierSight; Ananth Technologies, Solar Group and XDLINX; and Bharat Electronics Ltd and Sisir Radar.

Further, Tata Advanced Systems Ltd and Centum have also been shortlisted.

IN-SPACe has issued a draft request for proposal (RFP) to the selected applicants for the INR 1,500 Cr constellation of earth observation satellites project.

The final date to send in their financial bids as mentioned in the draft RFP is March 31.

IN-SPACe invited bids from Indian startups and companies in July last year to design, build and launch a constellation of satellites that will be equipped with advanced imaging technologies.

In December 2024, it was reported that IN-SPACe received bids from 30 entities to build the earth observation system.

To note, each consortium is limited to include only four members to jointly apply for the tender, where the government will reportedly offer a grant of up to INR 350 Cr to the winning consortium to build the system.

Further, the clutch of winning bidders will have to repay this grant amount over the operational period of the constellation.

This development comes weeks after IN-SPACe rolled out the Technology Adoption Fund (TAF) worth INR 500 Cr to financially support the nation’s space technology startups to refine their technologies, enhance production processes, and meet market demands both within India and abroad.

Notably, the Centre has taken a number of steps to promote private players in the space sector. In October last year, the Union Cabinet approved setting up a VC fund with a corpus of INR 1,000 Cr to boost the country’s space economy.

The VC fund would be operational in the first quarter of FY26.

The Centre’s measures have resulted in the emergence of a number of new spacetech startups in the last few years. As a result India’s space economy is poised for transformative growth in 2025 and is eyeing a market size of $44 Bn by 2030. Inc42

AT&T, forecast first-quarter adjusted profit in line with analysts’ estimates on Monday, signaling steady demand for its discounted premium plans combining 5G mobile with high-speed fiber data.

The U.S. telecom giant has been investing in its high-speed fiber internet offerings to help drive faster subscriber and revenue growth, at a time when the pool of potential new wireless customers shrinks in the United States.

On an adjusted basis, the company expects per-share earnings of 48 cents or higher excluding DIRECTV, compared with estimates of 49 cents, according to data compiled by LSEG.

AT&T, which acquired DirecTV in 2015, said last year in September that it would sell its entire 70% stake in satellite TV provider DirecTV to private equity firm TPG, exiting a business marked by declining distributions for the telecom operator. The deal is expected to close in mid-2025.

The company said on Monday it expects to receive about $1.4 billion to $1.5 billion of cash payments from DIRECTV related to this deal.

AT&T also reaffirmed its annual adjusted profit forecast in the range of $1.97 to $2.07 per share. Reuters

US President Donald Trump’s threats to hike tariffs aren’t all bad news for India’s economy. They’re driving the government to lower trade barriers, which will spur competition and growth.

That’s the view of Viral Acharya, a former central bank deputy governor, who says greater competition means Indian firms will be forced to raise their standards to take on global rivals. That, in turn, means higher quality jobs and a larger manufacturing base, he said.

Trump has threatened to impose reciprocal tariffs on countries from April 2, effectively raising taxes on imports to the US to the same level that a trading partner imposes on American goods. Economists estimate that India would be one of the worst hit by the reciprocal tariffs given the wide differential of about 10 percentage points in average import duties between the two countries.

India’s government has already taken steps to ease tariffs, making significant cuts in February, and discussing reducing import taxes on US goods ranging from cars to chemicals and electronics.

Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal was in the US last week to hold talks with his US counterpart Howard Lutnick and other Trump officials on a multi-sector trade deal. The US president said Friday India was ready to make deeper tariff cuts.

Acharya, who was a deputy governor at the Reserve Bank of India between 2017 and 2019, said large Indian firms that had benefited from the protectionist measures will initially lose some value, but the economy will benefit overall.

“In a competitive market, companies should not be making fat margins unless they are the most efficient provider of that service or good,” he said.

Indian businesses, not just the big firms, are capable of competing with the best globally but that will require investments in efficiency and productivity, he said.

“Unless we subject them to this competition, we will never see their best,” he added.

‘Big Five’ Firms
Acharya, now director of doctoral education at NYU Stern School of Business, has previously argued for breaking up India’s biggest conglomerates. In a paper in March 2023, he said India’s “Big 5” firms — Reliance Group, Tata Group, Aditya Birla Group, Adani Group and Bharti Telecom Ltd. — had grown at the expense of smaller local firms, while the government’s “sky-high tariffs” have shielded them from competition from foreign firms.

Indian firms are “smart enough to innovate if they are put under pressure. And they will regain some of their mojo thereafter,” Acharya said in the interview.

Opening the economy to foreign firms may not just result in direct competition, but “it may lead to substantial knowledge transfer as strategic partnerships are formed with foreign players,” he said. “Eventually, some global giants will emerge from that process.”

To minimize the impact on Indian industries, Acharya suggested lowering tariffs in phases with clear communication about the end goal. If the policy path is predictable, businesses will invest in efficiency, innovation, and focus on upskilling their workers, he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this week urged Indian businesses to take advantage of the changing global landscape to invest more, calling it a “big opportunity” for them.

Although governments use protectionist measures to support their domestic industries and workers, Acharya said concerns about job losses if trade barriers are taken down are not backed by evidence.

“There is no evidence that when we opened up in the 1990s, we killed jobs,” he said. “It was not true in the nineties, it was not true in the 2000s.”

Instead, greater competition will boost private capital spending and productivity, and spur growth. It will also result in more higher-skilled jobs and raise domestic consumption.

“And that is the transformational change India needs at the moment,” he said. “It is just a version of what worked for us in the 1990s and 2000s.” Bloomberg

Home broadband subscriptions for telecom companies are expected to increase 177 per cent to 111 million by FY2030 as opposed to 40 million in 2024, said HSBC Global Research.

“We expect home broadband to be the next big growth opportunity for telecom operators and expect TAM (Total Addressable Market) to expand to $7 billion as we forecast subs growing 2.75x to 111m by FY30e,” said HSBC, listing 5G fixed wireless access (FWA) service and fibre home passes as the key catalyst for TAM growth.

FWA adoption increased over the last nine months as equipment prices went down and operators strengthened their installation and distribution capabilities. Citing Reliance Industries’ recent 3QFY25 results, HSBC said that 70 per cent of the telco’s new AirFiber (FWA) connects are from beyond top 1,000 towns.

“[This] reinforces our view on demand for the home broadband service. Telcos are well placed to capture a share of household entertainment spend with their bundled home broadband plans, which come with a rich content offering,” said the report.

The report also expects Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel to be the key beneficiaries of this trend, predicting Jio to capture 50 per cent of the market share by FY30e and reaching 56 million subs and Airtel to reach 23 per cent of market share by FY30e, with 25 million subs.

In FY24, Jio recorded 11.3 million subs with a 35 per cent annual growth. HSBC expects Jio’s home broadband subs to surge by 51 per cent CAGR over FY24-27e to 38.8 million. Similarly, Airtel reported 7.6 million subs in FY24 with a 26 per cent annual growth. The telco’s home broadband subs will increase by 28 per cent CAGR over FY24-27e to 15.9 million. Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea reported 1,043 million subs in Q4FY24. The Hindu BusinessLine

SpaceX is lobbying the FCC to block iPhone satellite provider Globalstar from launching a new constellation of 48 low-Earth orbiting satellites.

Globalstar’s “C3” constellation promises to expand the satellite-powered features on future iPhones, funded in part by a $1 billion investment from Apple. However, SpaceX claims the FCC needs to dismiss the application because the C3 constellation will use radio spectrum in the 1.6GHz and 2.4GHz bands.

Those radio bands are facing scrutiny at the FCC, which is considering opening up the spectrum to all satellite players, following a request from SpaceX. As a result, the company is calling out Globalstar’s application as “premature,” and urging the FCC to first open up the radio bands for sharing among mobile satellite services.

“Doing so would be the fairest and most expeditious route to determine the appropriate regulatory regime to govern operations in a band that has not been examined in nearly 20 years,” SpaceX said in a letter to the FCC.

Globalstar didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. But the letter is the latest salvo in a brewing regulatory battle between the company and SpaceX for control of the 1.6GHz and 2.4GHz bands. Globalstar and Iridium were originally given exclusive access to the spectrum. But SpaceX has been lobbying for shared access so that it can bolster its own cellular Starlink system, which is currently relying on T-Mobile spectrum in the 1.9GHz bands for the US market.

Globalstar, on the other hand, claims that opening up the 1.6GHz and 2.4GHz bands to other companies risks generating interference with its own satellite systems, potentially degrading the satellite connectivity for iPhones. “There is no public interest justification for undermining the spectrum environment upon which Globalstar has relied,” the company’s lawyers told the FCC while meeting with new Chairman Brendan Carr.

But in Thursday’s letter to the FCC, SpaceX told the commission that opening up the radio bands to sharing “would ensure the most consistent treatment, efficient sharing, and robust competition between Globalstar and other next-generation satellite systems—including SpaceX—who have sought to finally make productive use of this long-fallow spectrum.”

In addition, SpaceX noted that a previous FCC ruling from a year ago said “the commission is currently not accepting applications for new MSS entrants in the 1.6/2.4 GHz and 2 GHz bands.” Hence, the Commission should deny Globalstar’s application.

Still, it’s possible the FCC meant it wasn’t accepting applications from new companies outside of Globalstar and Iridium. Nevertheless, SpaceX says its own petition to revise the 1.6/2.4GHz rules was filed before Globalstar’s application for the C3 constellation.

“Accepting Globalstar’s application for its new, higher-power system in the band would also fundamentally alter the spectrum environment in the 1.6/2.4 GHz band to the detriment of prospective competitors, such as SpaceX, whose applications predated Globalstar’s application and who have expressed an interest in efficiently sharing the band alongside other operators,” SpaceX added.

This comes as the FCC today SpaceX a waiver for “aggregate out-of-band emissions” in the US, which permits SpaceX to operate its cellular Starlink system beyond the normal radio limits, subject to certain conditions. Yahoo

The world’s first commercial space surveillance satellite, capable of tracking objects as small as 5 centimetres orbiting the Earth, was commissioned on Saturday as it captured images over South America, the Bengaluru-based start-up Digantara said.

Digantara had launched the space surveillance satellite SCOT (Space Camera for Object Tracking) on January 14 aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-12 rocket.

The satellite started operations on Saturday.

“Space just ran out of hiding spots,” the start-up said in a post on X.

In a statement, the company said the SCOT satellite achieved first light on Saturday and its inaugural image while passing over South America — a breathtaking view of Earth’s limb, with the city of Buenos Aires glowing against the planet’s curvature.

“SCOT’s first image is more than a technical milestone; it’s a symbol of our team’s resilience and unwavering commitment to safeguarding Earth’s orbits for generations to come,” said Digantara CEO Anirudh Sharma.

The satellite is designed to track and monitor objects as small as 5 centimetres, with a high revisit rate for frequent and precise observations of orbital activity.

As space becomes increasingly congested, this capability is essential for mitigating collision risks and promoting sustainable space operations by providing accurate and dependable data to satellite operators and regulatory bodies.

SCOT has been deployed in a sun-synchronous orbit that allows it to track objects in Low Earth Orbit with more efficiency than existing sensors, which are restricted by fields of view, weather conditions and geographic limitations. PTI

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday laid the foundation for the Microsoft India Development Centre in Sector-145, Noida. Calling it a landmark moment for the IT sector in Noida and North India, he said that Microsoft’s investment reinforces Uttar Pradesh’s position as a top investment destination.The chief minister also inaugurated the AI Engineering Centre of MAQ Software on Saturday.

Speaking on the occasion, he remarked: “I am told that Microsoft’s India Development Centre will be its largest research and development (R&D) hub outside its headquarters. With this new campus, Uttar Pradesh is set to become Microsoft’s next major base after Hyderabad.”

Extending his best wishes to Microsoft CEO and chairman Satya Nadella and his team, the chief minister praised the company’s strong presence in North India.He stated that Microsoft already has a presence in Uttar Pradesh, with ongoing programs in Noida and the new center, spread across 15 acres, will further establish Microsoft’s stronghold in both Uttar Pradesh and North India.

“Our government, under the guidance of Prime Minister Modi, has embraced the vision of a ‘New Uttar Pradesh for a New India’ over the past eight years,” Adityanath said. He highlighted that Noida IDC will not only strengthen India’s technical ecosystem through AI and cloud computing, but also help in effectively implementing PM Modi’s vision on the ground.“This center will serve as a hub for innovation in AI, cloud computing, and cybersecurity,” he added. He emphasised that Uttar Pradesh leads in electronic component production, contributing 55% nationwide.

“Noida and Greater Noida are rapidly emerging as hubs for electronic manufacturing,” he added.Expressing confidence in Microsoft’s Research & Development Center, he added, “This centre will not only emerge as a key innovation hub but will also help fulfill the dreams of youth in Uttar Pradesh and North India.”

The event was attended by Uttar Pradesh finance minister Suresh Khanna, industrial development minister Nand Gopal Gupta ‘Nandi’, IT and electronics minister Sunil Kumar Sharma and chief secretary Manoj Kumar Singh, along with Microsoft’s leadership team.As NTT and Yotta already have their data centres operational in Gautam Buddha Nagar district, the officials said that this district is on way to become the largest hub of the data centres in North India.

Yogi inaugurates Sify Data Centerin Gautam Buddh Nagar
Chief minister Yogi Adityanath inaugurated the Sify Data Center in Gautam Buddha Nagar’s Sector 132 on Saturday. Addressing the inauguration and launch ceremony, Adityanath mentioned that the state’s policies are being shaped in line with the demands of the modern era, the needs of the youth, and the evolving global landscape through research and development.

Inaugurating the data center, the chief minister also unveiled an image of Tirupati Balaji while listening to the hymns of Venkateshwara Swami. Adityanath commended Sify’s efforts in strengthening the state’s digital infrastructure.

Reaffirming Uttar Pradesh’s status as a leading investment destination, he noted that the state has achieved a major milestone in ease of doing business.

During his visit to the data centre, the chief minister toured various sections, reviewed operational processes, and assessed the facilities available to professionals working there. He also visited the command center and server room.

‘Gautam Buddha Nagar emerging as hub of health tourism’

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday said Gautam Buddha Nagar is emerging fast as a hub of health tourism. During his daylong visit, he inaugurated the newly developed Sharda Care-Health City in Greater Noida, praising it as a unique blend of service and investment.

He appreciated the private sector’s contribution, noting that the government has taken several steps to encourage investment in the health sector.

He also highlighted Sharda University as an important centre for education and health and stated that health tourism is a significant sector—with Gautam Buddha Nagar emerging as a major hub—making the state a focal point for global attention.

The chief minister pointed out that while only six AIIMS were established in India over 70 years, their number surged to 22 in the last 10 years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership.

In Uttar Pradesh, the number of medical colleges has surged from just 12 in 2017 to 40 new institutions in the past eight years, he said. Additionally, 37 private medical colleges have been established, including those in Maharajganj, Sambhal, and Shamli, along with three more through the public-private partnership model.

The chief minister described health tourism as a significant sector and asserted that India could emerge as a global leader in this field.

Uttar Pradesh industrial development minister Nand Gopal Gupta “Nandi”, Yogendra Upadhyay, Gautam Buddha Nagar MP Dr Mahesh Sharma, Surendra Nagar, MLA Dhirendra Singh, MLC Shrichand Sharma, chief secretary Manoj Kumar Singh, Sharda University Chancellor PK Gupta, Vice Chancellor YK Gupta, Prashant Gupta, Rishabh Gupta and others were present. Hindustan Times

Elon Musk reacted to an X user who said that Indian telecom companies Reliance Jio, Airtel and Vodafone Idea have sought ‘fair competition’ in the satellite telecommunications industry ahead of Starlink’s entry in India.

“Fair competition would be much appreciated,” Musk wrote in response to the X post. This comes as government is reportedly moving ahead with licensing and spectrum allocation for Starlink.

What did telecom firms say?
In a petition to the government, Indian telecom firms Reliance Jio, Airtel and Vodafone Idea accused Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) of failing to address competitive imbalance between terrestrial spectrum allocation (which the three companies operate in) and satellite spectrum allocation (which Starlink will operate in).

“Comparable spectrum pricing to terrestrial services should be enforced for competing satellite services in urban, semi-urban and rural areas for retail and enterprise customers,” the companies wrote in the letter.

They demanded that competitors entering the telecom market must adhere to the existing pricing models, regulatory levies and fees.

According to the Telecommunications Act 2023, satellite spectrums is allocated at the government’s discretion for a fee while terrestrial spectrums are auctioned. TRAI is still working on finalising exact pricing and allocation details.

Reliance Jio and Airtel also agued that low-earth orbit mega-constellations’ broadband speeds and capacity are comparable to terrestrial networks.

The three companies said the entry of new companies will bring oversupply in the sector and distort competition of terrestrial broadband, “especially in urban, semi-urban area serving retail and enterprise customers”.

The companies also said that satellite spectrum should be allocated administrately at reduced prices for non-competitive uses like government functions, disaster recovery, cellular backhaul etc. However commcercial satellite operators should not be offered preferential pricing. Hindustan Times

Europe’s new tech rule aims to keep digital markets open and is not targeted at US tech giants, EU antitrust and tech chiefs told U.S. congressmen, reminding them that US enforcers have in recent years also cracked down on these companies.

The comments by EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera and EU tech chief Henna Virkkunnen came after U.S. House Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan and Scott Fitzgerald, chairman of the subcommittee on the administrative state, regulatory reform and antitrust demanded clarifications on the Digital Markets Act (DMA).

“The DMA does not target U.S. companies,” Ribera and Virkkunnen wrote in a joint letter dated March 6 to Jordan and Fitzgerald seen by Reuters.

“It applies to all companies which fulfil the clearly defined criteria for being designated as a gatekeeper in the European Union irrespective of where they are headquartered,” they said.

Ribera and Virkkunnen also dismissed criticism that the DMA hinders innovation.

“By preventing gatekeepers from engaging in unfair practices vis-à-vis smaller companies, the DMA keeps the door open to the next wave of innovation in vital digital markets,” they said.

They pointed to similar concerns of unfair practices that led to U.S. antitrust investigations and lawsuits filed under the first Trump administration and other recent actions against Alphabet’s Google, Amazon, Apple and Meta Platforms.

Ribera and Virkkunnen also rejected claims that EU antitrust fines are a form of European tax on American companies. U.S. President Donald Trump in a memorandum last month threatened to impose tariffs against countries which impose fines on U.S. companies.

“The objective of DMA enforcement, as in any other piece of EU law, is to ensure compliance – not to issue fines. Possible sanctions, also common to U.S. laws and regulations, are not an end in themselves but a prerequisite for credible engagement,” they said. Reuters

The value of virtual card payments will grow 235% by 2029; rising from $5.2 trillion in 2025, according to Juniper Research.

This represents significant acceleration compared with 2021 to 2025, during which time virtual card transaction values grew by 175%. This acceleration will be fuelled by growth in the subscription economy in both B2B and consumer markets; driving a surge in demand for seamless recurring payment solutions that virtual cards are uniquely positioned to deliver.

Virtual Cards Simplify Subscription Management, Creating Opportunities
The report identified the rise in subscription-based services will drive the increased adoption of virtual cards, as businesses and consumers seek more efficient ways to manage recurring payments. Virtual cards are optimised for managing subscriptions via the ability to set limits, track payments in real-time, and assign virtual cards to specific subscriptions or companies. This will be especially valuable in B2B markets, as companies seek to balance automation with oversight when making high-value recurring payments.

The Emerging Markets Opportunity
The research also found that consumers in emerging markets are seeking convenient payment methods to access digital subscriptions from overseas companies; creating a lucrative opportunity for virtual card providers. To harness this and bypass the low level of banking penetration in emerging markets, virtual card providers should partner with telecoms companies to offer virtual cards to their vast customer bases.

Research author Lorien Carter commented “Collaborating with local telecoms companies is crucial for connecting financially excluded consumers to the international digital subscription market. To appeal to this group, virtual card providers should innovate their cross-border capabilities, particularly by improving their multi-currency functionalities.” Juniper Research