India is one of the fastest growing telecom markets in the world wherein the telecommunications sector has emerged

as a key propeller of social-economic development in an intensive, knowledge-driven global landscape. Introduction of National Telecom Policy-2012 has furthermore accelerated equitable and inclusive economic growth by laying special focus on providing affordable and quality telecommunication services in rural and remote areas. The sector's significant contribution to the economic development is clearly reflected in the unprecedented increase in teledensity and sharp decline in tariffs in the Indian telecom sector which accounts for almost 3 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP). Key Statistics Aligning their efforts with international trends, Indian service providers are exploring new ways to capture the markets. They are adopting new technologies like mobile Value Added Services (MVAS), cloud and data-center services, according to a report titled 'Indian Telecom Market Overview 2012'. India's telecom subscriber base stands at 935.18 million at the end of October 2012, according to data released by the sector regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) The tele-density, based on total number of mobile connections, has reached 74.21, according to TRAI Furthermore, a study by Bangalore-based Zinnov states that the wireless subscriber market stands at 933.7 million subscribers while the wireline stands at 31.4 million wherein Bharti dominates the wireless segment and BSNL dominates the wireline market Market Dynamics The Indian mobile phone market is highly competitive with more than 150 device manufacturers trying to woo the consumers with their offerings. Most of these producers focus their efforts on the low-cost feature phone market, which constitutes over 91 per cent of overall mobile phone sales, offering a huge scope for growth. Manufacturers like ZTE, Micromax, Karbonn Mobile, Huawei stood at sixth, seventh and twelfth positions respectively, in the Indian smartphone market in the first half of 2012. They are constantly enhancing their smartphone portfolio to compete with big global manufacturers like Samsung and Nokia, which held the first and second position respectively. Samsung's share grew from 15 per cent in the first quarter of 2011 to 49.8 per cent in the second quarter of 2012, owing to its brand strength and wide device portfolio. Industry experts believe that if Samsung continues to take advantage of the high growth opportunities in Indian market, it could end 2012 with more than 60 per cent of the market share. Telecommunication: Key Developments & Investments

RPG Group's KEC International Ltd has won orders worth Rs 868 crore (US$ 159.81 million) for supply and laying of transmission, power systems and telecom lines in India, Abu Dhabi, Tunisia and Philippines. These include Rs 227 crore (US$ 41.88 million)-order from Power Grid Corporation of India (PGCIL) for supply and erection of transmission lines in Jharkhand on turnkey basis and Rs 278 crore (US$ 51.18 million)-order for laying transmission line between Ruwais and Bab grid stations in Abu Dhabi on a similar basis, stated an official release Vodafone India has inked an agreement with ICICI Bank to launch a mobile payment service, m-pesa, which will take-off in Kolkata, West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand, and will then be rolled out to other parts of the country in a phased manner. The service will facilitate cash deposit and money transfer to any mobile phone in India, and cash withdraw from designated outlets. The service would also enable customers for mobile recharge, recharge for directto-home (DTH) services, utility bill payments and money transfer to any bank account in India and payments at shops Tech Mahindra, the software services provider, in which vehicle manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra holds about 48 per cent stake, has set up three laboratories for Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology in Delhi, Bangalore and Pune. The company plans to work along with companies preparing to launch the services in India. LTE, commonly called 4G, is a standard for high-speed data communication for mobile phones and data networks. Telecommunication: Government Initiatives The Indian Government intends to make India a teleport hub, enabling it to become an up-linking/down-linking centre, just like Hong Kong and Singapore. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B), in consultation with the industry, will explore modalities, challenges and finalise the road map for the same. The initiative is expected to facilitate foreign investments, better technology and sustainable employment opportunities in the country. The Government has recently given its nod to 74 per cent of foreign direct investment (FDI) in DTH, IPTV, and mobile TV. Meanwhile, in a bid to make International long distance calls cheaper and intensify competition in this segment, the telecom regulator TRAI has allowed telephone users of one operator to use calling cards issued by another operator. For instance, a Vodafone user would now be able to make calls to the US or UK using Reliance's global calling card. The new system is expected to open up markets for foreign giants such as BT, AT&T and Orange that would now sell their voice calling cards to retail and enterprise users in India. These multinational firms, at present are offering only data services to large corporates.

The telecom tower provider industry has been recently granted the 'infrastructure' status, a move that will make tower providers eligible for viability gap funding, higher limit on external commercial borrowings (ECBs), lower import duties and exemptions on excise duty on telecom infrastructure equipment. Tower providers will also get advantage of lower lending rates at 3-4 per cent on loan terms of 10-15 years as against the market borrowing rates of 12-13 per cent. Along with other multiple benefits, the companies will also be given a tax holiday under section 80-IA of the Income Tax Act. Industry body Tower and Infrastructure Provider's Association (TAIPA) will coordinate with the implementation committee to bring in commonality of interest to ensure rapid progression of the new development. The Government will also soon give a green signal to a three-way partnership between Russia's NIS Glonass (a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Russian public-private partnership company, Navigation-Information Systems), BSNL and MTNL for delivering satellite-based navigation services in India. A draft memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the entities involved is being considered. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued new guidelines according to which foreign entities can participate in the upcoming 2G auctions directly and obtain a licence. The initiative is expected to make the upcoming auctions more attractive to certain foreign players such as Telenor, which wanted to bid directly without an Indian partner in the auctions. The notice inviting applications (NIA) for the same have stated that the debut companies will have to pay Rs 1 crore (US$ 184, 059.68) for unified licence in a service area where they wish to operate. There will be a lock-in period of three years. Road Ahead Mobile device sales in India are projected to reach 251 million units in 2013, an increase of 13.5 per cent over the sales of 221 million units in 2012, according to a study by Gartner. The study further anticipates that the mobile handset market would witness a steady growth through 2016 when end-user sales will surpass 326 million units. Moreover, the data-center market is pegged at over US$ 4 billion currently and is expected to reach approximately US$ 6 billion by 2014, said the study by Zinnov. The players are increasingly getting inclined towards MVAS opportunities. Indian MVAS market, presently valued over US$ 5 billion, is expected to shift from the conventional SMS based services to internet based and application based services and reach well over US$ 6 billion by 2013.