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India’s two most well-known telcos are preparing to launch <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">Voice over LTE</a> (VoLTE) tech on their networks, with some help from <keyword id="6354716" type="CITY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Nokia">Nokia</keyword>. This is primarily to take on <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Reliance+Jio">Reliance Jio</a>, which will use this technology as a base for its services. Idea Cellular is also in ‘active talks’ with Nokia to launch <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a> soon. 
 
While the exact contract amounts for the deals are unknown, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Reliance+Jio">Jio</a> offered $100 million to <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Nokia">Nokia</a> last year to roll out VoLTE across the country. 
 
BI India decodes the hullabaloo with <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a>. 
 
What is this new VoLTE thing, and what’s it good for? 
Easy, Soldier! <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a>, or <keyword id="1494391" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="voice-over-LTE">Voice over LTE</keyword> is an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) network that uses LTE to deliver call and data services. 
 
What is LTE? What is IMS? God, you sound like the IT guy in our office! *Bangs head* 
LTE stands for Long-Term Evolution. It’s basically 4G. Simple. 
 
IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) is a standard framework that allows voice and data services over IP. Several apps and services already allow alternate methods (<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Skype">Skype</a>, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Viber">Viber</a>, etc). However, they have never been standardized across the industry. IMS can provide such standardization. That makes it safer and hopefully better. 
 
How will this help me? 
You can use more bandwidth to make 4G phone calls. This allows higher audio quality both ways. When you call someone who has VoLTE, you will immediately notice the difference. The calls connect faster if you are calling someone near you, and that’s cool. 
 
Do I pay more for good calls now? <keyword id="15491" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="Airtel">Airtel</keyword> will use <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a> as a complimentary service to its existing voice offering. 
 
“Wherever <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Airtel">Airtel</a> has LTE network, subscribers will be able to do <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a> call, once it launches <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a>”, an official has apparently said. 
 
Why do telcos want to invest in better calls? 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a> is extremely important for Indian telcos as they have to overcome stiff competition from <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=VoIP">VoIP</a> (voice over internet protocol) and OTT (Over-The-Top, or apps). 
 
While <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=VoIP">VoIP</a> both use IP, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a> has huge advantages over <keyword id="54765" type="TECHNOLOGY" weightage="100" keywordseo="VoIP">VoIP</keyword>. In embracing <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a>, telcos will make themselves future-proof. 
 
Great! Now I can use my 4G phone. When will this roll out? 
An Airtel spokesperson has said, “We currently have no plans to launch <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Voice+over+LTE">VoLTE</a> services as the device ecosystem supporting it is too nascent.” 
 
<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Vodafone+India">Vodafone India</a> and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Nokia">Nokia</a> has declined to comment. 
 
Looks like we will have to wait a few more months for formal announcements. 
 
Image credit: Indiatimes

This is how Bharti, Vodafone will revolutionize Indian telecom with VoLTE

<keyword id="1494390" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="VoLTE">VoLTE</keyword> or Voice over LTE services have been launched by 100 operators all over the world, in India Reliance <keyword id="2003276" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Jio">Jio</keyword> is the first and only telecom operator to launch VoLTE services. Other telecom operators like <keyword id="15491" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Airtel">Airtel</keyword>, Vodafone too are at various stages of launching their VoLTE services. Simply put, VoLTE means your voice call too is treated like data and a VoLTE enabled phone can handle calling and other data-based activities simultaneously. VoLTE is seen as a promising technology as it helps in optimal use of data along with HD call quality. Ericsson estimates the VoLTE subscriber base in India will reach 370 Million by 2022. Even though the VoLTE device ecosystem has grown rapidly in the last 2-3years, there is still a dearth in availability of entry level VoLTE phones in India. Newest telecom operator in the country, Reliance Jio has also launched its own VoLTE enabled <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Jio-phone-to-be-a-single-sim-feature-phone-and-existing-customers-can-shift-to-it/articleshow/59776367.cms">Jio phone</a> priced under an “effectively free” scheme targeting the ‘2G’ or feature phone market of India. It means the technology will now be experienced by not just high end or mid range smartphone users but entry level mobile phone customers too will be using the technology. So I sat down with Rahul Karnik, Engagement Director, Global Performance Partnerships at Ericsson to get a complete lowdown on VoLTE technology around the world and started by asking how mature is the VoLTE technology for deployment in India? 
 
The overall ecosystem for VoLTE has matured over the past five years. This includes the handsets, radio networks, packet core and IMS networks used by operators. Most VoLTE deployments involve equipment components from multiple vendors. Standardization of interfaces, between these components used for VoLTE, has helped in reducing deployment times as well as increasing the reliability of these networks. Learnings from early deployments are allowing vendors to help operators with their VoLTE deployments. In general, VoLTE continues to mature and this can be seen from the improvement in the key performance indicators that are tracked by operators. 
 
Also Read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/TRAI-sources-Free-Basics-was-a-problem-Zero-Rating-was-a-problem-Jio-Phone-is-not-a-problem/articleshow/59847112.cms">Is Jio phone flouting the principles of Net Neutrality?</a> 
 
What are the benefits of VoLTE to customers? 
 
The main benefits of VoLTE to customers are: High-definition voice, Faster call setup times, Improved battery consumption compared to OTT voice, Interoperability with voice over Wi-Fi, and the potential to add video as well as messaging, location sharing, whiteboarding, etc. VoLTE calls are more efficient than regular voice over IP calls and help customers by consuming lesser data for voice calls. Finally, VoLTE offers the same “green button” promise that customers have relied upon for a long time. VoLTE is a telecom grade service and provides higher Accessibility, Retainability, and Integrity as compared to over the top voice services. 
 
At the global level, wherever VoLTE has been launched, how has been the uptake? 
 
Overall, the VoLTE uptake has been strong, Network measurements show uneven uptake across regions. In the US, Japan, South Korea and Canada, VoLTE uptake was very strong in 2016, with most networks having more than 60 percent of voice calls on LTE smartphones provisioned using VoLTE. In some networks this figure was close to 80 percent. In Europe, the service is used by relatively fewer people, as many launched networks still require subscribers to configure VoLTE themselves in the device settings, or to buy a special VoLTE subscription. Past launches of the service demonstrate that for VoLTE usage to take off, automatic operator provisioning is necessary. In these circumstances, the VoLTE penetration then quickly rises to the percentage of LTE smartphones that are VoLTE-enabled. 
 
How are operators in other markets charging for VoLTE calls ? 
 
Pricing for telecom services is regulated by the appropriate regulatory bodies for each country. Initial deployments for VoLTE were not allowed to charge separately for VoLTE calls as they were considered to be part of the all-inclusive data plans offered by operators. Since then things have changed and most operators who have launched VoLTE either provide it under “unlimited talk” plan or continue to use a “minutes” based tariff for subscribers who are not part of the plan. 
 
What are the capabilities of a VoLTE call ? 
 
As part of the GSMA IR.92 document, a list of supplementary services which are expected to be supported by VoLTE calls have been defined. These include Ad-Hoc Multi Party Conference, Communication Forwarding (Unconditional, Busy, Not Reachable, Etc.), Barring, Etc. 
 
What are the pre -requisites/factors to be considered ahead of launching VoLTE? 
 
If operators have already launched LTE, the primary factors to be considered are Deployment of the IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), Integration of IMS with the other network components, Enabling VoLTE related features in the Radio Access Network (RAN) and other network domains, Implementing Quality of Service (QoS), and performing Device and Application verification. After the network components have been deployed and integrated, operators need to tune and optimize the VoLTE service to ensure a high-quality experience to their customers. 
 
What kind of investment would be needed? 
 
In addition to the Network Readiness activities listed in the previous questions, operators who desire to launch VoLTE services need to consider Operational Readiness and Organizational Readiness. Operational Readiness (People/processes/tools/data to support all operational aspects of VoLTE are in place e.g. Ordering, Fulfilment/Provisioning, Billing, Support, Cancellations, Etc.), and Organizational Readiness (Goes beyond the Network and IT organizations and must identify impact on Marketing/Sales/Customer, Legal, Vendor Partnerships, Etc.) are other considerations that would need investments from the operator. 
 
What is the significance of VoLTE from a 5G perspective? Is it critical for 5G deployment? 
 
Operators have a large amount of spectrum currently allocated for 2G and 3G technologies. As operators move towards 5G and IoT deployments, they will need more spectrum which can be achieved by freeing up what they already have or acquiring more spectrum. One of the reasons that operators still have the 2G/3G networks is that voice is primarily carried over those technologies. VoLTE, due to its spectral efficiency, can help operators in freeing up spectrum currently being used for 2G/3G voice calls. Going to VoLTE can speed up the process of switching off the older technologies, which also helps from an opex/capex perspective. 
 
As far as the spectrum is concerned what will be the requirements VoLTE has? Will VoLTE need more spectrum? 
 
VoLTE has a better spectral efficiency than its predecessors for audio calls. VoLTE can carry, for the same spectrum, between 3 to 6 time more audio calls as compared to 3G or 2G technologies. This is one of the benefits that VoLTE offers to operators. Operators can leverage VoLTE to efficiently use their available spectrum. Over time, we will see the 2G/3G spectrum being re-farmed to LTE. 
 
What is the roadmap beyond VoLTE ? 
 
In order for operators to start offering VoLTE services, they need to deploy IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem). IMS will then allow for additional services to be offered for both, consumers, and businesses. These services include Video Calling, Voice over Wi-Fi, RCS (Rich Communication Services) which includes Messaging, File/Location Sharing, Presence, Group Conversations, Etc. for consumers. For businesses, the offerings could include Corporate Video Services, Fixed Network Integration, Integrating IP communications within existing business processes, Etc.

Ten key questions about VoLTE - technology of the future - answered

<keyword id="6354287" type="CITY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Bharti-Airtel">Bharti Airtel</keyword> and Vodafone, which are India's top two telecom operators, have decided to take on <keyword id="6354504" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Reliance-Jio">Reliance Jio</keyword> Infocomm, the upcoming mobile telephony, broadband services, and digital services provider so that they can maintain their top spot while taking care of their customers’ demand. 
 
In their bid to do so, they are preparing to deploy Voice over LTE (VoLTE) technology on their networks, so that they are well-prepared to battle Jio, which is expected to start its operations soon. The deployment would be done in association with Finnish telecom gear maker Nokia. 
 <keyword id="6354924" type="PERSON" weightage="100" keywordseo="Idea-Cellular">Idea cellular</keyword>, which happens to be at the third position, is also in "active talks" with Nokia for a similar deal, sources close to ET confirmed. 
 
<a href="http://photos.outlookindia.com/images/gallery/20101217/sunil_mukesh_20101227.jpg">Image source</a>

The Mukesh Ambani vs Sunil Bharti Mittal battle is really heating up!

<ul><li>Reliance Jio is asking TRAI to either reduce or remove Interconnect Usage Charges (IUC). </li><li>TRAI had initially planned to remove IUC charges from January 1, 2020 under the Bill and Keep (BAK) regime. </li><li>Airtel and Vodafone Idea were against the move, citing huge costs involved in allowing incoming calls from the Jio network.</li></ul> Reliance Jio approached the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to either reduce or remove Interconnect Usage Charges (IUC). Currently, IUC is charged at 6 paise per minute by the operator on whose network the calls terminate. In October, Reliance Jio announced that it will start charging 6 paise per minute for calls that are made to other networks. This change was made on packs which promised complete free calling earlier. Jio-to-Jio calls however continued to remain free. At the time, Jio noted that this charge would be levied until TRAI removes IUC charges. TRAI had initially planned to remove IUC charges from January 1, 2020 under the Bill and Keep (BAK) regime. However, incumbent operators Airtel and Vodafone Idea were against the move, citing huge costs involved in allowing incoming calls from the Jio network. Last week, TRAI held an open discussion on “Review of Interconnection Usage Charges”. Jio’s representative at the discussion held that since voice calling symmetry has been achieved between Jio and the incumbent operators, there was no need to levy IUC charges anymore. The company <a href="https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/jio-urges-trai-for-removal-or-reduction-of-iuc-charges-4645571.html">held</a> that the BAK regime should be implemented as planned from January 1, 2020. The implementation of this regime would bring down IUC charges to zero. Airtel and Vodafone Idea opposed this argument and demanded that IUC charges of 6 paise per minute should be levied for the next three years at least. Reliance Jio alleged that Airtel and Vodafone Idea were diverting their incoming voice call traffic to 2G or 3G networks to inflate their voice call costs. This could hold some merit as we’ve experienced that incoming voice calls on Airtel’s network are routed via 2G, which puts the Jio 4G network on pause temporarily even on a compatible dual 4G VoLTE smartphone. Airtel however denied these allegations. Vodafone Idea, on its part, did not expressly deny this and stated that subscribers were free to port out of their network. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/mukesh-ambanis-jio-faces-backlash-for-tariff-increase/articleshow/71573757.cms">Reliance Jio is paying the price for being the ‘second SIM’ of choice</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/reliance-jio-airtel-and-vodafone-idea-may-raise-tariff-soon/articleshow/71757089.cms">Whether you use Jio, Airtel, Vodafone-Idea, get ready to pay more for mobile services— sooner than later</a>

Reliance Jio asks TRAI to either reduce or remove IUC charges

<ul><li>Reliance Jio is working on bringing affordable 4G smartphones below ₹3,000 in the country. </li><li>The company wants to speed up its acquisition of existing 2G subscribers from other telcos. </li></ul>Reliance Jio is reportedly in talks with various smartphone makers to introduce budget 4G smartphones in bulk and retail them at around ₹2,000-₹3000. According to a report in <a href="https://www.business-standard.com/article/companies/reliance-jio-s-new-big-idea-4g-smartphones-at-rs-3000-to-migrate-2g-users-120022601633_1.html">Business Standard</a>, Reliance Jio has approached Lava Mobiles to make these affordable phones. Jio is looking to expand the ecosystem of 4G services by reducing the existing phone prices by half - which now hover between ₹5,000-₹6,000. Reliance wants to repeat its JioPhone success These ‘starter phones’ will help Jio chase its 500 million subscriber target and it’s currently at 370 million. At the same time, Jio has been trying to bring high spenders into its ecosystem, making the shift from 2G to 4G essential. In India which has over a billion mobile users, around over 550 million customers are still on 2G/3G. And, it is not the first time that Jio tried to peddle handsets to ease the transition. In 2017, it introduced its 4G feature phone, which was priced at ₹1,500. The company has sold over 100 million JioPhones since its launch due to the low-cost and 4G support. And they continue to bring in business, even now. Of the 6-9 million subscribers that Jio has been adding every month, over 3 million come from the sale of the JioPhone. The phone is offered for ₹501 when a user exchanges a 2G phone, or at a flat ₹1095 which comes bundled with six months of free calling and data. Jio might cut corners for the smartphone While the ₹1,500 JioPhone helped the telco gain users, its user experience is low with overall build quality and lack of memory. The upcoming budget 4G smartphones may face the same fate if the company cuts corners to cut costs and bring down the price. The phone may have a sub-standard display and poor battery quality. A decent 4G smartphone still costs more than ₹7,000, so it remains to be seen if Jio can bring that price down to under ₹3,000 without any major quality compromises. Not the first time Jio has introduced budget 4G smartphones In December 2015, Jio had introduced its Lyf series of budget 4G VoLTE smartphones as there were limited options in the market that supported 4G VoLTE. Soon after, Jio’s LYF brand entered the top-five smartphone makers in the country. After seeing the success of Lyf smartphones and Jio’s increasing subscribers, other smartphone makers started introducing VoLTE compatible smartphones. Now, 4G VoLTE has become a basic feature of any smartphone launched in the country. While Reliance Jio did scaled up its Lyf brand and hasn’t introduced a new smartphone in a while. But it looks like it will make a comeback in a swankier avatar in 2020. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/mukesh-ambanis-reliance-jio-becomes-the-largest-telco-by-revenue-and-subscribers-as-industry-shows-signs-of-recovery/articleshow/73667566.cms">Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance Jio becomes the largest telco by revenue and subscribers - as industry shows signs of recovery</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/panicking-vodafone-idea-users-are-porting-to-airtel-and-reliance-jio-but-that-might-not-be-the-solution-theyre-looking-for/articleshow/73425737.cms">Panicking Vodafone-Idea users are porting to Airtel and Reliance Jio — but that might not be the solution they're looking for</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/as-the-rest-of-the-world-flies-high-on-5g-most-of-india-will-still-be-on-a-4g-network-in-2025/articleshow/72225998.cms">As the rest of the world flies high on 5G, most of India will still be on a 4G network in 2025</a>

Mukesh Ambani plans to offer ₹3,000 smartphone to hit his 500 million subscriber target

With Reliance <keyword id="2003276" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Jio">Jio</keyword> rolling out scheme of ‘free’ 4G feature phone, the rivals including <keyword id="6354287" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Bharti-Airtel">Bharti Airtel</keyword>, Vodafone India and <keyword id="6354924" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Idea-Cellular">Idea Cellular</keyword> fear a major dent in their market share. However experts feel that <keyword id="3820" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mukesh-Ambani">Mukesh Ambani</keyword>’s telecommunication company could win much market share with this freebie. Earlier Jio has grabbed up their market share by offering low cost data plans, which has affected the rival brands as well. Experts also feel, in India, people from Tier 2 and Tier 3 markets where the free phone will have the maximum takers don’t tend to stick one operator for long. These aren’t loyal customers that a telco can depend upon. As per the new scheme of free phone, Jio subscribers would need to pay Rs 1500 (fully refundable) and get a VoLTE feature phone. However the customer would need to stay signed on for 36 months to get a refund by returning the used 4G device. Prashant Singhal, global telecom leader at EY, told <keyword id="77091" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="The-Economic-Times">The Economic Times</keyword> that while the new device brings down the handset price barrier and is an innovative scheme, the target segment may not be able to afford the ARPU of Rs 153 a month. He said the target customer for Jio is currently spending about Rs 50-60 a month, so it will be a challenge for them to double that budget overnight.

Jio’s ‘free phone’ offer would let 2G customers upgrade to 4G quickly

Chinese mobile chip maker <keyword id="2503529" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="Spreadtrum-Communications">Spreadtrum Communications</keyword> is said to be in the process of manufacturing a 4G-enabled feature phone that would cost around Rs 1500 in the Indian market, half from the current starting prices of 4G phones from Indian brands like Lava and <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/topic/Micromax">Micromax</a>. "We are working on a technology that makes a Rs 1,500 4G feature phone viable. We have already started concept promotions to our partners," Spreadtrum Communications' country head Neeraj Sharma told <a href="http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/hardware/you-could-soon-buy-a-4g-feature-phone-at-just-rs-1500/articleshow/58467323.cms">ET</a>. This has prompted both Lava and <keyword id="71696" type="COMPANY" weightage="100" keywordseo="Micromax">Micromax</keyword>, along with Karbonn, to reduce prices of their entry level feature phones. Other than Spreadtrum, <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/small-business/companies/reliance-is-pumping-2-8-billion-more-in-jio-after-registering-profits/articleshow/58355844.cms">Reliance Jio Infocomm</a> is also said to be planning an affordable range of 4G VoLTE feature phones priced under Rs 1,500. Subscribers can only use 4G enabled phones to make use of Jio services. Also read: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/dhan-dhana-dhan-tariffs-submitted-to-trai/articleshow/58260455.cms">Reliance Jio submits Dhan Dhana Dhan tariffs with TRAI</a> Spreadtrum Communications has also partnered with Reliance Industries to power its inexpensive range of <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/Reliance-4G-smartphones-under-Rs-3000/articleshow/53116090.cms">LYF</a> Flame 5 smartphone. With Lava, it had partnered for Lava M14G-enabled feature phone, available to customers for Rs 3,599. Due to the rising popularity of Jio’s high-speed 4G data plans that are <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/small-business/companies/jio-to-continue-with-attractive-offers/articleshow/58374710.cms">aggressively priced</a> to take on rivals like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/airtel-cries-foul-says-jio-took-too-much-time-to-comply-with-trai-order/articleshow/58104896.cms">Airtel</a>, Vodafone and Idea, handset makers have shown increasing focus towards low-cost 4G feature phones.

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