L to R: Sanjay Joglekar, Mumbai Port Authority, Anil Tandan, BIF, Sanjay Sharma, PowerTel, Anil N. Dhanorkar, BSNL, Shashi Dharan, BE, Gulshan Khurana, Voda Idea, Rajeev Saluja, Reliance Jio

Brig. Anil Tandan (Retd.), Director General, Broadband India Forum in his inaugural address quoted, “Lets view Private 5G as a transformative enabler—bringing ultra-reliable, low-latency connectivity to enterprises, campuses, factories, ports, airports, and critical infrastructure. It is not a replacement for public networks, but a powerful complement that unlocks productivity, efficiency, and Industry 4.0 outcomes. India stands at a unique inflection point. We have progressive policy intent, a strong technology ecosystem, and enterprises ready to adopt advanced digital infrastructure. What we now need is clarity, speed, and collaboration across government, industry, and innovators.”

Dr. Sanjay Joglekar, Chief Technology Officer, Mumbai Port Authority, said, “Mumbai, India’s gateway port and a city that has always played a pivotal role in the nation’s trade and connectivity. As ports evolve from traditional infrastructure into complex digital ecosystems, the need for reliable, secure, and real-time communication has become more critical than ever. Modern port operations involve high-volume cargo handling, logistics coordination, safety management, and round-the-clock activity. To manage this scale and complexity efficiently, advanced digital infrastructure is essential. Private 5G offers ultra-reliable, low-latency connectivity that can support automation of port operations, real-time asset and cargo tracking, smart surveillance, and enhanced worker safety, significantly improving operational efficiency and turnaround times.”

Mr. Rajeev Saluja, Vice President, 5G Radio, Reliance Jio said, “2026 is the smartphone moment for technology. Private 5G is not merely a technology upgrade; it is a platform for reimagining operations through automation, real-time analytics, AI, and Industry 4.0 applications. By combining indigenous technology, strong partnerships, and a deep understanding of enterprise needs, Jio is enabling organizations to move beyond pilots to full-scale production environments that deliver measurable business outcomes. As India accelerates toward a digitally empowered economy, Private 5G will play a vital role in enhancing productivity, competitiveness, and sustainability. Reliance Jio remains committed to collaborating with enterprises, system integrators, and policymakers to build secure, interoperable, and resilient Private 5G networks that support national priorities such as Digital India, Make in India, and Atmanirbhar Bharat.”

Mr. Gulshan Khurana, EVP (Technology), Vodafone Idea quoted, “As India embraces the digital future, private 5G will be the cornerstone of industrial transformation. Vodafone Idea’s commitment to investment and innovation is a powerful signal that India is ready to lead in this space. Together, let us harness private 5G to build smarter factories, connected healthcare, intelligent cities, and resilient enterprises. The future is not just connected—it is intelligently connected.”

Shri Sanjay Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, Powergrid Teleservices Limited said, “As India embraces the digital revolution, private 5G will be the cornerstone of industrial growth and national competitiveness. Powergrid Teleservices Limited, with its unmatched infrastructure and regulatory backing, is ready to lead this transformation. Together, let us harness private 5G to build smarter factories, connected healthcare, intelligent cities, and resilient enterprises. The future is not just connected—it is intelligently connected.”

Shri Anil N Dhanolkar, CGM CNTX (West), Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. Stated, “As India embraces the era of Industry 4.0 and beyond, private 5G will be the cornerstone of industrial growth and national competitiveness. BSNL’s commitment to innovation and its unmatched reach across the country make it a vital player in this journey. Together, let us harness private 5G to build smarter factories, connected healthcare, intelligent cities, and resilient enterprises. The future is not just connected—it is intelligently connected.”

Mr. Sachin Mehta, Senior Vice President - Product Management & Global Head - Presales at 6D Technologies, Mr. Kedar Kulkarni, General Manager – Presales, Airspan Networks, Mr. Sumit K. Gehani, Vice President Sales, Druid Software Ltd., Shri Rajiv Singh, General Manager (E&T)/HoD, Western Coalfields Ltd, Nagpur, Mr. Bhaskar Choudhuri, Executive Director - Technology Consulting, PwC India, Ms. Harmanpreet Pall, Senior Manager, Cybersecurity & SMR Telecom Security Consulting, EY India, Shri Satyam Singh, ADG (S), DoT, Mumbai LSA, Mr. Shiv Putcha, Director (Research & Consulting) APAC, GSMA Intelligence, Shri Vinay V. Jambhali, Director (C), DoT, Mumbai LSA, Mr. Dhiraj Sharma, Founder & Chief Architect, ImBizo Technologies, Mr. Nitin Tevatia, Delivery Head- M&T (Operator & Enterprise), L&T Technology Services Ltd., Lt. Col. Abhishek Kumar (Retd.), Joint Director, Ministry of Defence  and Mr. Debashish Bhattacharya, Additional Director General, BIF were some of the other distinguished speakers throughout the day.

The highly ancipated summit was partnered by 6D Technologies, C-DoT, Airspan Networks, Druid Software, Huber+Suhner, COMMSCOPE, SAARTEK, Communications Today, Broadband India Forum, Digital Infrastructure Providers Association (DIPA) and ITU-APT Foundation of India. 

At HUAWEI CONNECT 2025, Jason Li, President of Global Marketing & Solutions from Huawei's Electric Power Digitalization Business Unit, gave a statement.

"In the power industry, there are three key trends on the distribution side. Firstly, a massive amount of new energy will be integrated into the grid. Taking China as an example, by 2030, the installed capacity of distributed PV will reach approximately 1,000 GW. Secondly, the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) is expected to grow rapidly, with around 110 million EVs and approximately 55 million charging piles projected by 2030. This poses significant challenges for power distribution. Thirdly, digitalization is accelerating. AI has gone from a 'nice-to-have' to a 'must-have.' Power systems cannot achieve effective protection, automation, or digitization without high-quality data and reliable communication. In medium-voltage grids, we rely on private wireless networks to achieve reliable backhaul and support endpoint control. I believe 450 MHz is the optimal solution. As the lowest band within 3GPP standards, it offers wide coverage, supports vast amounts of connections, and provides highly reliable network performance, all at a low cost. Moreover, it benefits from a mature ecosystem. This makes it perhaps the best solution for power companies undergoing digital transformation."

At Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, Huawei will showcase more success stories in private wireless networks and 450 MHz applications, along with innovative solutions for intelligent power distribution, substations, and power plant inspections. To explore successful digital transformation in the power sector, visit the Huawei booth at stand 1H50, Fira Gran Via Hall 1.

For more information, please visit e.huawei.com/en/industries/grid.

Sundeep Kathuria, BIF, Manoj Singh, DIPA, Anil Tandan, BIF, Shashi Dharan, Bharat Exhibitions, Manish Sinha, DoT, A Robert J Ravi, BSNL, Tejinder Pal Singh Jaggi, Altius

Mr. Shashi Dharan, Managing Director, Bharat Exhibitions exclaimed in his welcome address, “Today's conversation is not just about laying down more fiber or deploying more towers. It's about building a holistic, resilient, and robust digital backbone that can support the ambitions of a Viksit Bharat. It's about bridging the urban-rural divide and ensuring that the promise of a digital economy reaches every village and every citizen.”

Brig. Anil Tandan, Director General, Broadband India Forum in his introductory speech said, “The BIF's work is inextricably linked with the development of digital infrastructure in India. They operate under the belief that a robust digital infrastructure is the foundational layer for a truly digital and inclusive economy. The summit is very well timed as the country is moving forward in technological advancement in unprecented pace. The concept of 'Viksit Bharat' by 2047 is deeply intertwined with the development and expansion of digital infrastructure.”

Chief Guest, Shri Manish Sinha, Member (Finance), - Digital Communications Commission, Department of Telecommunications, Ministry of Communications in his speech said, “The DoT's contribution to Viksit Bharat is multi-faceted, focusing on both foundational infrastructure and citizen-centric services. It is our duty to formulate policies and regulations for India's telecom sector. We are looking ahead to drive the digital infrastructure required to achieve the vision of 'Viksit Bharat' by 2047. The DoT's strategy focuses on creating a secure, ubiquitous, and future-ready digital ecosystem that is inclusive for all citizens. Right from facilitating the 5G rollout, including spectrum auctions and streamlining Right of Way (RoW) rules to expedite infrastructure deployment. It's also leading the Bharat 6G Vision, with the goal of making India a global leader in 6G technology by 2030.”

Guest of Honour, Shri A. Robert J. Ravi, ITS, Chairman & Managing Director, Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. stated, “We at BSNL is tasked with laying an extensive fiber network to provide last-mile connectivity to millions of households and institutions, ensuring that even the most remote communities can access e-governan ce, e-health, and e-education services. We are working tirelessly for taking the digital infra of India to new heights.” He highlighted the role of operators’ role in formulating 56 and furthermore 6G in the country. He also stressed upon the adoption of technologies like AI, cloud services, and blockchain is creating new opportunities and driving efficiency across various sectors, from healthcare to logistics. The government is actively working on creating a favourable policy environment to support this digital transformation, with a focus on areas like AI, quantum computing, and cyber security. India's journey is a global benchmark for how technology can be leveraged to drive inclusive growth and governance. He also mentioned that BSNL is coming up with its own indigenous technology this September to be inaugurated by Prime Minister Modi.

The Summit also witnessed the Release of White Paper titled ‘Digital Infrastructure for Viksit Bharat: A 2047 Roadmap’ for Inclusive Growth authored by Shri Sundeep Kathuria, Advisor, Broadband India Forum.

Mr. Manoj Kumar Singh, Director General, Digital Infrastructure Providers Association said in his address, “For Viksit Bharat to become a reality, India's infrastructure must be future-ready. DIPA's members are at the forefront of deploying the passive infrastructure required for 5G and beyond. They are working on fiberizing tower sites, a crucial step for handling the massive data traffic that comes with 5G. The association also promotes the adoption of smart infrastructure like small cells and in-building solutions to ensure seamless connectivity in urban areas, supporting the vision of smart cities and a digital-first economy.”

Smt. Padma Jaiswal, IAS, Secretary to Government to the state & Union Territories and Secretary, Government of Puducherry, Mr. Nijamuddin, ITS, Director (NBM), Department of Telecommunications, Mr. Puneet Anand, Head of Product Management & Development Wireless Connectivity RF, HUBER+SUHNER, Shri Jitendra Garg, ITS, PGM (BTCL) Head, BSNL Corporate Office, Shri Sharad Singh, Ex Vice President, National Highways Logistics Management Ltd., Shri Vivek Dua, ITS, Principal General Manager (CNP), BSNL, Mr. Priyabrata Das, Managing Director | One Consulting : TMT, PwC India, CA Manoj Misra, Director - Regulatory Affairs, Indus Towers Limited, Mr. Santanu Das, Head – Regulatory, ALTIUS, Shri Ashok Kumar, Director (LP-A), Department of Telecommunications, Shri Umang Das, Chairman Standing Committee of Chairs in BIF were other eminent speakers of the Summit.

The highly ancipated summit was partnered by Department of Telecomunnications, Ministry of Communications, BSNL, ALTIUS, Pratap Technocrats, HUBER+SUHNER, Quadgen Wireless Solutions, LMES iConnectWe, Spectra Televentures, Shaildhar Telecom Services, SAARTEK, Communications Today, The Marcom Avenue, Digital Infrastructure Providers Association, ITU-APT Foundation of India and Broadband India Forum.

By integrating Mypinpad’s PCI MPoC and scheme-certified SoftPOS solution, Worldline will enable contactless payments acceptance on Android devices—supporting Visa, Mastercard, and RuPay—without extra hardware. The solution is designed to scale across South Asia, targeting markets with high Android smartphone use but limited access to traditional payments infrastructure.

The joint initiative aims to significantly expand SoftPOS adoption in the region by removing cost and complexity barriers for businesses of all sizes. It also sets the foundation for a broader roadmap of advanced use cases that leverage not only merchants’ but also consumers’ devices, including Tap to Add, Tap to Pay on Own Device and Tap to Verify, which allow consumers to securely provision cards, verify credentials, or pay—all through their own mobile devices.

Ramesh Narasimhan, Chief Executive Officer, Worldline India, said, “By integrating Mypinpad’s SoftPOS solution, we’re empowering merchants with a secure, cost-effective, and frictionless way to accept card payments directly on Android devices. This innovation not only boosts scalability but also reinforces our commitment to delivering future-ready digital payment solutions that align with evolving market needs and regulatory frameworks.”

Barry Levett, Chief Executive Officer, Mypinpad, said, “This collaboration builds on a long-standing relationship between our two companies and reflects a shared goal to expand financial inclusion and accelerate market access. Worldline’s brand, market access, and regulatory trust enable rapid rollout of our mobile-first technology in key markets where they already operate.”

By putting intuitive, secure, compliant, and affordable payment tools in the hands of merchants and consumers, Worldline and Mypinpad are helping shape a more inclusive, secure, and connected future of commerce.

About Worldline

Worldline (Euronext: WLN) helps businesses of all shapes and sizes to accelerate their growth journey – quickly, simply, and securely. With advanced payments technology, local expertise and solutions customised for hundreds of markets and industries, Worldline powers the growth of over one million businesses around the world. Worldline generated a 4.6 billion euros revenue in 2024. worldline.com

In India, Worldline is a leading Omnichannel payments technology player building a robust payment ecosystem for over 26 years. Worldline is the preferred partner for over 30 leading public and private sector banks, leading sectors like NBFCs, insurance companies, e-commerce businesses, startups, retail brands, hotel chains and many more. www.worldline.com/india

About Mypinpad

Mypinpad is a UK-headquartered B2B SaaS business with customers and employees in over 20 countries. Mypinpad strives to be the solution of choice for money on the move — making mobile transactions safe, easy and enjoyable. Its certified and patented technology is built on cloud-based open systems designed to be bank-grade secure and ready to scale, providing customers with the tools to grow and future-proof its business. By working together with partners, Mypinpad aims to drive financial inclusion for the benefit of millions globally.

To find out more, visit its website: www.mypinpad.com

In today's fast-paced technology landscape, IT vendors are under immense pressure to scale their sales, technical support and other operations quickly and efficiently to meet market demands and stay ahead of the competition. GTDC's latest report illustrates how a well-designed channel program can create an accelerated path to achieving these goals, particularly if the organization leverages two-tier distribution to cost-effectively expand their reach, enhance customer engagement and drive net new sales. This valuable industry resource emphasizes the importance of initial engagements. The investments vendors make and the best practices they put into place prior to beginning the onboarding process with new distributors are both crucial to the success of these vital partnerships. Aligning sales, marketing and channel-related resources helps reduce the learning curve and creates a stronger and more optimized ecosystem for vendors, distributors, solution providers and the organizations and individual users they support.

"Successful navigation of the distribution onboarding process increases the value of these relationships across the channel, ensuring quicker and higher returns on investments for vendors and their partner communities," says Frank Vitagliano, CEO of GTDC. "These mission-critical alliances benefit greatly from a solid foundation and continual nurturing, and early adoption of these industry best practices minimizes the chances of making costly mistakes or, worse, failing to capitalize on major business opportunities."

The onboarding process is critical for technology vendors looking to establish new relationships with distributors and gain the most leverage from the IT channel. The report highlights several critical steps for ensuring suppliers' success through this journey, including:

1. Complete a market coverage evaluation to identify gaps and opportunities for expansion.

2. Optimize products and services for channel partners/distribution.

3. Align sales and technical competencies to ensure the respective teams can collaborate and help manage lead generation, pipelines and partner support.

4. Establish clear rules of engagement to avoid misunderstandings and partner conflicts.

5. Ensure offerings are "channel-ready" to speed adoption and simplify partner management.

6. Invest in marketing resources and programs to better engage the channel community.

7. Provide technical resources to train and support distributor teams and integration projects.

8. Create clearly defined goals and metrics to track future progress.

9. Fully commit to prospective distribution partners and provide needed/valued resources.

IT distribution offers technology vendors an accelerated path to the channel ecosystem and also provides the tools, expertise, and networks to expand their reach up and downstream, enhance partner engagement and generate incremental sales. Successful navigation of the onboarding process increases the value of these relationships across the ecosystem.

To access the complete report, visit the GTDC Knowledge Hub.

About the GTDC
The Global Technology Distribution Council is the industry consortium representing the world's leading tech distributors. GTDC members drive an estimated $170 billion in annual worldwide sales of products, services and solutions through diverse business channels. GTDC conferences support the development and expansion of strategic supply-chain partnerships that continually address the fast-changing marketplace needs of vendors, end customers and distributors. GTDC members include AB S.A (WSE: ABPL), Arrow Electronics (NYSE: ARW), CMS Distribution, Computer Gross Italia (MI: SES), D&H Distributing, ELKO, Esprinet (PRT.MI), Exclusive Networks (EPA: EXN), Exertis, Infinigate, Ingram Micro (NYSE: INGM), Intcomex, Logicom (CSE: LOG), Mindware, ​​Redington Limited (BSE/NSE: Redington), Siewert & Kau, SiS Technologies (HKSE:0529), Tarsus, TD SYNNEX (NYSE: SNX), TIM AG, VSTECS Holdings and Westcon-Comstor.

Truecaller launches AI Powdered Message IDs

Truecaller, the leading global communications platform, just rolled out a game-changing solution: AI-powered Message IDs. And it’s not just another tech update-it’s a leap toward smarter, stress-free communication.

Smarter Messages, Powered by AI
Now live in India and 30 other countries, Message IDs are here to decode the chaos. Using advanced artificial intelligence and Large Language Models (LLMs), this new feature scans your SMS inbox right on your device (yes, your data stays private), and instantly identifies important business messages.

From bank alerts and OTPs to delivery updates, flight itineraries, and payment reminders-Message IDs catch the signals in the noise. They summarize key details, highlight what matters, and help you take action quickly.

No more missed messages. No more guessing games.

Built for Everyone, Everywhere
This isn’t just for Premium users or English speakers. Whether you're in Mumbai or Miami, whether your messages are in Hindi, Swahili, or Spanish-Truecaller’s Message IDs are designed for you.

Just give the app two simple permissions-Read SMS and Display Over Other Apps-and voilà, you're set. Get real-time notifications for critical updates and skip the clutter without lifting a finger.

Look for the Green Tick
In a world full of scams and spoofed messages, Truecaller has added another layer of trust: Green Message IDs. These come with a verified tick, confirming that the message is from a legitimate, verified business. Think of it as a digital thumbs-up from Truecaller saying, “Hey, you can trust this.”

John Joseph, Product Director, Insights at Truecaller sums it up perfectly, “With the integration of AI in Message IDs for both premium and non-premium users, we’re providing people with a smarter, more secure way to manage their important SMS messages. Our mission is to make communication safer and more efficient, and this innovation represents the next step in our journey.”

The Future Is Clear(er)
As Truecaller continues to evolve, AI-powered Message IDs represent a bold step toward a future defined by clarity, control, and confidence in every conversation. It’s no longer just about identifying calls-it’s about simplifying your entire digital communication experience.

With the latest AI integration, Message IDs are no longer limited to transactional messages, OTPs, or delivery updates. Truecaller can now intelligently detect and highlight any important message, regardless of its category. Even if it’s an informational update that falls outside conventional SMS types, you’ll still receive a relevant Message ID. In short, Truecaller ensures you never miss what matters-no matter the message or the format.

About Truecaller
Truecaller is an essential part of everyday communication for over 450 million active users, with more than a billion downloads since launch and close to 56 billion unwanted calls identified and blocked in 2024 alone. The company has been headquartered in Stockholm since 2009 and has been publicly listed on Nasdaq Stockholm since October 2021.

Visit www.truecaller.com for more information

Embedded directly within the Truecaller app, Scamfeed is a dynamic user-generated content stream where users can report, discuss, and stay informed about the latest scams as they unfold. More than just a feed, it’s a digital support network for anyone who has encountered fraud or narrowly avoided becoming a victim. Additional detailed information on how to spot scams, how to protect yourself and how to report scams can also be accessed via the dedicated website: www.truecaller.com/scam-alert.

Scamfeed serves as an early warning system powered by the very people scammers target. It allows users to quickly check if others have reported similar suspicious messages or calls, learn the red flags associated with new fraud types, and gain confidence in identifying and ignoring malicious attempts.

Truecaller introduces Scamfeed

“The power of community is paramount in the fight against scams," said Tonmoy Goswami, Product Director of New Initiatives at Truecaller. "Scamfeed harnesses the collective vigilance of millions of Truecaller users in India. By providing a safe space to share real experiences and warnings, we empower people to stay ahead of fraudsters, learn from each other, and ultimately protect themselves and their loved ones. It embodies our commitment to making communication smarter, safer and more efficient."

Whether it’s phishing attempts, impersonation, dating app scams, or financial fraud, Scamfeed welcomes all stories. Users can post anonymously if they like and engage through threaded comments, rich media, and seamless sharing to external platforms like WhatsApp. It’s the fastest, most authentic source for real-time scam updates powered entirely by the community.

Scamfeed also brings long-term strategic value to Truecaller. By nurturing a tight-knit, trust-based community around safety and transparency, Truecaller is fostering brand loyalty, user advocacy, and sustained engagement.

In a time when digital threats are constantly evolving, Truecaller is taking a bold step forward by turning its millions of users into its greatest line of defense. Scamfeed isn’t just a feature; it’s a movement. Scamfeed is now live on the Truecaller app and available to users in India, to be rolled out globally in the months to come.

About Truecaller
Truecaller is an essential part of everyday communication for over 450 million active users, with more than a billion downloads since launch and close to 56 billion unwanted calls identified and blocked in 2024 alone. The company is headquartered in Stockholm since 2009 and has been publicly listed on Nasdaq Stockholm since October 2021.

For more information, visit www.truecaller.com.

IMC 2024 Awards

The award ceremony was graced by esteemed Ministers and Industry leaders, including Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Hon'ble MoSC, Govt. of India who felicitated the award winners. The award jury included Shri Anil Kumar Bhardwaj - DDG (SE), DoT; Lt. Gen. Dr. S.P. Kochhar, DG, COAI; Ms. Vishakha Saigal, VP & Head Strategic Initiatives, Regulatory Policy & Research, Jio; Mr. Rahul Vatts, CRO (India & South Asia), Bharti Airtel; and Mr. Rochkar Kapur, EVP, Vodafone Idea.

Felicitating the award winners at the ceremony, Dr. Pemmasani Chandra Sekhar, Hon'ble MoSC, Govt. of India said, “These award showcases and represents the continuous hard work, passion, resilience of the industry. We are proud to see the hard work and wish the winners to achieve more success in future and make India proud by delivering world class products and services.”

Some of the distinguished awards honored during the ceremony were: Most innovative 5G case deployed for the year, Best MSME in telecom ecosystem, Best made in India telecom innovation, Best Connected Consumer Device & Application, Sustainable growth award for organization in telecom ecosystem, Most innovative telecom software, Best Enterprise Digital Transformation of the Year, Best Security, Privacy & Authentication Driven Solution of the Year, Best Indian IPR of the Year in Telecom, Best Glocal (Local to Global) Startup of the Year, Biggest Indian telecom technology exporter of the year and many more.

List of Winners at IMC 2024 Awards

Best Made in India Telecom Innovation - Rakuten Symphony

Most Innovative Telecom Software - Tata Elxsi

Best Security, Privacy and Authentication Driven Solution of the Year - Fortinet Technologies India Pvt Ltd

Best Connected Consumer Device and Application - AjnaLens

Best MSME in Telecom System - Lekha Wireless Solutions Pvt. Ltd.

Best Enterprise Digital Transformation of the Year - 6D Technologies

Best Glocal (Local-Global) Startup of the Year - Dhruva Space

Most Innovative 5G Case Deployed for the Year - Nayan India Science and Technologies Private Limited

Sustainable Growth Awards for Organization in Telecom System - Tata Communications Ltd.

Best Indian IPR of the Year in Telecom - HFCL Limited

Biggest Indian Telecom Technology Exporter of the Year - Rakuten Symphony

Biggest Telecom Technology Exporter of the Year - Nokia Solutions and Networks India Pvt. Ltd.

Best On-Campus Startup of the Year - Dronearch Systems And Technologies Private Limited

Best Education Institute Exhibit of the Year (1/2) - IIT Hyderabad- Smart City Living Lab

Best Education Institute Exhibit of the Year (2/2) - IIIT Kottayam- Crime Scene Recreation In Metaverse

Best Ministry Exhibit of the Year (1/2) - Amtron- Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region

Best Ministry Exhibit of the Year (2/2) - Department of Science & Technology

Best Exhibit Design of the Year - Qualcomm

Best Interactive Exhibitor of the Year - Tata Consultancy Services & Tejas Networks

The ceremony showcased the brightest stars of innovation and excellence in the telecom industry, featuring a distinguished panel of esteemed technology experts and industry leaders. They gathered to honor remarkable businesses, groundbreaking innovations, and leading institutions in the field.

Ramakrishna P., CEO, India Mobile Congress said, “We are really thankful to the incredible participation from all our exhibitors and for the IMC 2024 awards we received record 150 entries. As a mark of excellence every year we announce IMC awards and this year we are privileged to recognize some of the cutting-edge work and contributions done by some excellent startups, MSMEs, institutes and corporates in making India proud with their work in the country and around the world.”

The IMC Awards celebrate technological breakthroughs, transformative achievements and outstanding contributions across the telecom ecosystem. The awards recognize those who push boundaries and set new benchmarks each year, inspiring further advancements and driving industry progress. With distinct categories, the awards spotlight excellence across various segments of the telecom sector.

International 6G Symposium

During the second day of IMC 2024, Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Hon’ble Minister of Communications and Development of Northeastern Region, interacted with prominent CEOs from leading global companies on the theme ‘Leading in the Moment: The Future is Now’. The second day also saw the inauguration of International 6G Symposium, Launch of Telecom Smart Cities Index by Opensignal and Workshop with Academicians of 5G Test Labs.

India Mobile Congress 2024

The third day of IMC 2024 witnessed a panel of industry trailblazers on 'Revolutionizing Content Creation in India: Leveraging AI and Digital Platforms to Reach the Next Billion Users', with Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, Hon’ble Minister for Communications and Development of North Eastern Region, Government of India, Rajiv Makhni, Sahiba Bali, Naman Deshmukh and Mehak Kasbekar. The discussion saw a deep dive into the future of digital content and innovative strategies to engage a growing audience.

Further demonstrating this year's theme of "The Future is Now", the third day also saw the breakfast meeting of Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, Minister of State for Communications and Rural Development, with prominent CTOs from leading global companies on the theme ‘Technology's next frontier: Leadership for a connected tomorrow’. The CTO Breakfast meeting witnessed thought provoking discussions addressing ways to develop new age technologies and foster last mile connectivity across India. The CTOs shared ideas and best practices from across the world that can redefine and refine the telecom landscape of India.

Quotes from key industry leaders during India Mobile Congress 2024:

Dr. Neeraj Mittal, Secretary, DoT said, “India is becoming a focal point for global innovation in technologies. The IMC and the ITU-WTSA is playing crucial roles in showcasing products, setting standards, and driving collaboration. As a leader in the 6G Alliance, India aims to collaborate with partners to advance research, standardization, and public-private partnerships. Joint research efforts, policy harmonization, and the development of skilled manpower are key priorities. Through these initiatives, India seeks to position itself as a global leader in 6G technology and drive innovation and development.”

Shri D Sridhar Babu, IT Minister, Telangana said, “Telangana stands as a beacon of innovation, boasting impressive statistics that highlight our state's technological and academic prowess. We have 1.5 lakh engineers, 1 lakh STEM graduates, and a total of 2.5 lakh graduates fuelling our dynamic workforce. Telangana is uniquely positioned to harness this growth. Our approach to becoming an AI powerhouse is not only visionary but meticulously executed.  We are developing an AI-ready ecosystem characterized by state-of-the-art compute capacity, unified AI services, and substantial funding for AI startups.  At the core of this vision is the Telangana AI Mission, built upon seven foundational pillars designed to drive our AI strategy forward. These pillars include the Young India Skill Development University, AI Capacity, Trust in AI, AI City, CoEs for key industries, AI for Grassroots, and AI in Governance.”

Lt. Gen. Dr. S.P. Kochhar, DG, COAI said, “As technology advances at an unprecedented pace, policies and regulations must adapt rapidly to keep up. The growing complexity of network boundaries, data sovereignty, and the integration of man-machine interfaces in 5G and beyond call for a seamless blend of public-private partnerships. By leveraging the private sector's expertise and integrating cutting-edge technologies like AI and blockchain, we can build policies that are dynamic, interactive, and future-ready. Technologies like quantum computing and blockchain will play a key role in enforcing these policies, but they also bring challenges such as data sovereignty and Global Personal Taxation Regimes (GPTR), which are not inherently supported by technology. These concepts are alien to the digital infrastructure, yet legislation continues to enforce policies that don’t align with the technical capabilities of the systems in place.”

Lt. Gen. AK Bhatt (Retd.), DG, ISpA said, “We must address the fact that 40% of India's population, which remains offline, is nearly twice the population of the United States. The digital divide is most pronounced in our rural areas, where traditional infrastructure faces significant challenges. Fiber optic cables and mobile towers, the backbone of our current internet infrastructure, are costly and often impractical to implement in remote and rugged terrains. Communication will continue to be the largest revenue source, with new constellations expanding the reach of satellite communications, particularly for mobility in remote areas, and reducing traditional demands for a much larger number of satellites. Several constellations, including Eutelsat OneWeb, SpaceX, and Amazon's Kuiper, are already in place, and more are expected to emerge soon. This market will accelerate with the availability of broadband connectivity. The satellite market in India is poised for explosive growth, with the number of satellite internet users expected to increase six-fold by 2025, reaching about two million.”

Tarun Chhabra, Sr. Vice President & Country Head, Nokia India said, “There is a huge change occurring in the device ecosystem, especially in the smartphone vertical. India has made commendable progress in 5G and going ahead, we need to create future-ready networks which can support even more advanced devices and new age technologies like AI. We are also working on boosting the sensing capacity of networks, which can facilitate enhanced and autonomous use cases. The future will be driven by robust collaboration between the customer and partner ecosystem, opening up of networks for innovation and interoperability. The next techade will witness the fusion of digital and physical worlds, augmenting human capabilities with AI-enhanced networks that sense, think and act being vital for this evolution.”

Anku Jain, Managing Director, MediaTek India said, "India has a content generation economy and 5G FWA is allowing 5G connectivity in remote areas. Further, AI chipsets are optimising bandwidth, increasing reliability and advancing the edge computing, speeding up response times, enabling providers to offer efficient, real-time data services and monitoring solutions. MediaTek is extensively focusing on Edge AI to locally facilitate the large computations required by Large Language Model (LLM), thereby enhancing efficiency and user privacy."

Concurrent to IMC 2024, India is also hosting the prestigious international conferences - World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly New Delhi 2024 (WTSA 2024) and Global Standards Symposium (GSS 2024) from 14-24 October 2024 at Pragati Maidan itself.

India Mobile Congress, Asia’s largest digital technology forum, has become a well-known platform across the globe for showcasing innovative solutions, services and state-of-the-art use cases for industry, government, academics, startups and other key stakeholders in the technology and telecom ecosystem. The India Mobile Congress 2024 is hosting over 400 exhibitors, about 900 startups and participation from over 120 countries. The event is also showcasing more than 900 technology use case scenarios, hosting more than 100 sessions with over 600 global and Indian speakers.

David Hoelscher, VP Business Development & Chief Product Officer, Pegatron 5G and and S. Radhakrishnan, Founder & Managing Director, Flexsol Infra – Solutions at Flexsol Pegatron signing

“We have selected Flexsol as our infrastructure partner due to their extensive experience exceeding two decades in providing world- class deployment solutions to global telecom OEM’s, tower companies and enterprises,” said David Hoelscher, VP Business Development & Chief Product Officer, Pegatron 5G. “This partnership will empower us to deliver Make in India private 5G solutions across various sectors, including mining, intelligent villages, manufacturing and educational campuses. Importantly, this collaboration extends beyond India to global customers.” 

“We are excited to partner with Pegatron 5G for the deployment of Make in India private 5G private networks. Flexsol’s vast experience and diverse product offerings- including poles, enclosures, and smart city infrastructure – when combined with Pegatron 5G’s network equipment, can facilitate the introduction of private 5G solutions across numerous new sectors. We look forward to future collaborations with Pegatron 5G, in areas such as Edge computing including On Prem Smart Factory, Smart city, Edge server deployments and Edge data centers,” said S. Radhakrishnan, Founder & Managing Director, Flexsol Infra – Solutions. 

About Pegatron 5G

Pegatron 5G is a dedicated business unit of Pegatron Corporation, a global leader in electronics manufacturing services. Leveraging Pegatron’s extensive product development and manufacturing expertise, Pegatron 5G delivers end-to-end O-RAN compliant solutions for 5G networks. These solutions include 5G radios, servers, networking equipment, and CPE devices. Pegatron 5G also offers edge computing and network management solutions tailored for private networks, addressing the diverse needs of industrial transformation. 5g.pegatroncorp.com

About Flexsol Infra - Solutions

Flexsol Infra-Solutions is a Delhi-based company with over 2 decades of experience in designing and supplying smart infrastructure solutions for telecom and IT applications. Its products are deployed all over the world with leading NEPs, telcos, towercos and IT players. The portfolio consists of various smart solutions for dense-urban as well as rural deployments, powered by IOT and 4G/5G technologies. The latest products include modular Edge Data Centres, Smart cabinets and Battery charging and swapping solutions. www.flexsol.in

OPPO India recently unveiled the F27 Series featuring the OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G and OPPO F27 5G under the motto “Dare to Flaunt”. Both smartphones showcase a durable and sleek design, equipped with Gen AI features for flawless yet fun photos without complex image editing.

OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G

The OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G comes in Dusk Pink and Midnight Navy, priced at INR 27,999 for the 8GB+128GB variant and INR 29,999 for the 8GB+256GB variant. While the OPPO F27 5G is available in Amber Orange and Emerald Green and retails at INR 22,999 with 8GB+128GB storage, and INR 24,999 for the 8GB+256GB variant. Both the devices are available for purchase across mainline retail outlets, OPPO Store, Amazon and Flipkart.

Customers can take advantage of no-cost EMI options for up to 6 months and consumer loans for up to 8 months without any down payment through leading partners. Additionally, they can receive a flat 10% instant cashback on credit and debit card purchases with HDFC Bank and SBI cards (T&C apply). For those purchasing the F27 Pro+ between September 1st and September 15th, 2024, a one-time screen replacement for accidental damage is available within 180 days.

Here’s everything you need to know about the OPPO F27 series:

Durability Uncompromised by Design

OPPO has engineered the F27 Series for exceptional everyday durability – the OPPO F27 5G features a proprietary Armour Body with AGC Dragontrail Star 2 for superior toughness in display and OPPO's High-strength Alloy Framework for added internal protection. While the OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G is designed with a 360-degree Armour Body and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2, offering advanced protection. It also holds MIL-STD-810H Method 516.8 certification, proving its toughness to various shocks, including functional, transportation, and crash impacts. And both the models are certified with a 5-star SGS Performance Multi-Scene Protection

In terms of Ingress Protection (IP) rating, the OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G is the first OPPO smartphone to have IP66, IP68, and IP69 ratings, setting a new standard for dust and water resistance. It withstands high-pressure, high-temperature water jets and can endure submersion for up to 30 minutes. The device features a waterproof screen, waterproofing on openings like the microphone, speaker, SIM card slot, and USB port and a waterproof breathable film for the microphone and earphone speakers to repel water while ensuring clear audio. Similarly, a silicone sealing ring for the USB port.

Whereas, the OPPO F27 5G comes with IP64 water and dust resistance, capable of handling everyday wear, including drops, scratches, and splashes. Both models are equipped with OPPO's Splash Touch technology, ensuring the screen remains fully responsive even when wet.

Experience stunning visuals

With its Full HD+ AMOLED display, the OPPO F27 5G provides a smooth 120Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 2100 nits for brilliant, crisp visuals.

While the OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G comes with a 3D Curved AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh rate, ultra-narrow bezels, and a 93% screen-to-body ratio for an immersive, near-borderless experience. Its 10-bit panel and 950 nits of peak brightness deliver excellent multimedia visuals with vibrant color accuracy.

Party-Ready Features

The OPPO F27 5G sports an upgraded Cosmos Ring design from the OPPO F27 Pro+ that runs around its camera module but now comes with a dynamic Halo Light that pulsates to the beat of the music setting the perfect party mood. This Halo Light can be configured to silently notify you of messages and updates when the phone is placed face-down on the surface.

With the Music Party app on the OPPO F27, friends with the same device can enjoy music together in sync. Multiple users can join "parties" by scanning code from any device to enable collaborative song selection and simultaneous play across devices, perfect for silent discos when paired with earbuds, and intimate house parties.

AI-Powered Fun with Photos and Videos

For shutterbug, the OPPO F27 Pro+ features a 64MP main camera, a 2MP depth camera, and an 8MP selfie camera, allowing for detailed landscape shots and natural-looking portraits. The OPPO F27, on the other hand, comes with a 50MP main camera, a 2MP portrait camera, and a 32MP selfie camera, offering impressive photo quality.

But the OPPO F27 series true camera prowess goes beyond hardware specifications:

• OPPO's AI Eraser 2.0 is a one-click feature that removes background distractions like trash cans, lamp posts or photobombers with AI trained on billions of images for 98% accuracy.

• The AI Portrait Retouching feature delivers vivid, natural enhancements.

• The AI Studio transforms portraits into fun digital avatars, ranging from cowboys to cyberpunk heroes.

• AI Smart Image Matting 2.0 allows to crop multiple subjects or objects from a single picture. These cutouts can be saved as stickers and added to photos to create fun memes.

Assistance Powered by Generative AI

OPPO's proprietary AI Linkboost on the OPPO F27 series enables efficient network usage for messages, photos and videos. This series also includes BeaconLink technology which ensures reliable communication during network outages. It allows seamless one-to-one voice calls via Bluetooth in non-network environments such as underground garages, music festivals, and other such locations.

An added AI feature with OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G is AI Clear Voice which uses advanced algorithms to reduce background noise and enhance human voices. This ensures clear conversations on standard, WhatsApp and Zoom calls, even in noisy places.

For improving everyday productivity, the OPPO F27 5G smartphone comes with AI Toolbox which includes several useful features such as AI Writer which offers sentence suggestions, AI Summary which provides concise summaries and key highlights of length reports and online articles, AI Speak converts text into natural-sounding speech and AI Recording Summary saves time by summarizing meetings. These tools are designed to streamline and boost productivity on daily tasks.

Smooth Performance

Under the hood, OPPO F27 5G is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 6300 platform to deliver smooth performance. Meanwhile, the OPPO F27 Pro+ 5G packs an octa-core MediaTek 7050 SoC for performance combined with ARM Cortex-A78 cores clocked at up to 2.6GHz, and Cortex-A55 for multitasking, rapid app response, smoother multimedia experience, enhanced FPS in games and efficient power management.

The F27 series is backed by a robust 5,000mAh battery, with the OPPO F27 Pro+ supporting 67W SUPERVOOC_TM Flash Charge and the OPPO F27 featuring 45W SUPERVOOC_TM Flash Charge, both offering rapid full charges in just minutes.

Customers can avail of the following offers:

• Customers can get a one-time screen replacement for accidental damage within 180 days on F27 Pro+ purchases made between September 1st and September 15th, 2024.

• Avail no-cost EMI for up to 6 months and consumer loans for up to 8 months without any down payment with leading partners.

• OPPO India is offering flat 10% instant cashback on credit and debit cards with leading banks including HDFC Bank, and SBI (T&C apply)

About OPPO Mobiles India Pvt. Ltd.

OPPO is a leading global smart device brand. Since the launch of its first mobile phone—“Smiley Face”—in 2008, OPPO has been in relentless pursuit of the perfect synergy of aesthetic satisfaction and innovative technology. Today, OPPO provides a wide range of smart devices spearheaded by the Find and Reno series. Beyond devices, OPPO provides its users with the ColorOS operating system and internet services like OPPO Cloud and OPPO+. OPPO operates in more than 50 countries and regions with more than 40,000 of OPPO’s employees dedicated to creating a better life for customers around the world.

SquadStack Felicitated with CX Leader of the Year 2024 Award

Rishabh Ladha, Co-founder & CBO, SquadStack, delivered a keynote session on "Transforming Sales with Better CX in 2024”. His insights highlighted how SquadStack leverages cutting-edge technology to revolutionize telecalling. From predictive analytics to real-time customer insights, the team enables sales professionals to deepen customer connections, boosting conversions and satisfaction.

Rishabh shares, "In the evolving BFSI landscape, SquadStack drives CX and business growth with personalized telecalling experiences. Our commitment to the space is rooted in a fundamental truth: 'Better CX drives better results’. By prioritizing actionable insights and delivering exceptional experiences, we empower sales professionals to achieve improved conversions, lower customer acquisition costs (CAC), higher customer lifetime value (LTV), and elevated Net Promoter Scores (NPS)."

“Ours is a growing business, and scalability is critical for us. This is where SquadStack stepped in; working with them has been amazing so far! We have seen a more structured approach to our calling and a lot of discipline in our ways of calling users or talking to them. The fundamental shift has created a lot of other cascading benefits for us,” shares an elated customer, Manoj Kumar Dronadula, Product & Partnerships at MoneyView.

As SquadStack continues to shape the future of customer experience and business growth, it remains committed to leveraging cutting-edge technology and data-driven insights to deliver unparalleled telecalling experience. With a focus on innovation and collaboration, SquadStack is primed to lead the industry toward new heights of excellence.

About SquadStack

SquadStack is a rapidly growing Indian startup that is revolutionizing the telecalling industry. By leveraging our tech-enabled telecallers, industry-leading connectivity rates, cutting-edge analytics, and unique usage-based cost models, we enable businesses across industries like BFSI, Ecommerce, Health & Wellness, and Edtech. Catering to SMEs and enterprises alike, we deliver customized solutions that meet their unique needs and provide optimal results and exceptional customer experiences. We work with the growing sales talent in the country to improve sales conversions and funnel efficiency. Founded by Apurv Agrawal, Kanika Jain, Rishabh Ladha, and Vikas Gulati, SquadStack’s community of sales experts sell to 200K leads daily on behalf of top brands, including Upstox, Razorpay, ZestMoney, Edelweiss, Delhivery, and Classplus.

To learn more, visit - SquadStack.

L to R - Saurabh Mittal (Airtel), Ambassador of Finland to India H.E. Kimmo Lahdevirta, Harkaran Sachdev (Ekaga), Lalit Chowdhary (Lightstorm) & Vijayanand Choudhary (STL)

Finland is considered to be the technology superpower and it has always been on the forefront of being the global technology leader. The Finnish Ambassador to India, Honorable Ambassador Kimmo Lahdevirta, opened the event with an overview of Finland's status as a leader in technology innovation and Finnish companies’ partnerships with global players to drive growth and reinvention. The Ambassador also highlighted opportunities for collaboration and trade between the two countries, and expressed his enthusiasm for the event. He stated that, ‘The collaboration between Finland and India is a testament to our shared commitment to innovation and growth. As we look to the future, the role of system integrators in driving international growth for Finnish companies will be instrumental for their success.’

Leaders from some of the prominent Indian companies like Airtel, Sterlite Technologies, Lightstorm, PowerTel, TCS, Hexaware Technologies, Spectra among others were in attendance. Eminent industry experts Mr.Saurabh Mittal (VP & Head, Standards and Tech Ecosystem, Airtel), Mr.Vijayanand Choudhary (Global Head - SCM, STL), Mr.Lalit Chowdhary (CTIO, Lightstorm) participated in the panel discussion which was moderated by Mr.Harkaran Sachdev (Founder & Group CEO, Ekaga). 

The Industry Panel and the industry leaders present at the event had a common consensus that Cloud is the way forward and both existing as well as upcoming organizations are aligned to the Digital First approach for operational efficiency as well as faster time to market. A very interesting fact also came into limelight; when it comes to asset value creation, the enterprises will still opt for large OEMs, however when it comes to innovation, the ‘Size of the company’ does not matter, instead ‘Solution is the key’. Furthermore, as the world becomes more connected and networks continue to evolve, Enterprise Data Security has taken a drivers seat. Every organization is diving a little deeper into the security foundations and are looking at these platform deployments to prevent various kinds of cyber threats.

Ms.Gitta Perez, Country Director - Business Finland added, ‘Our partnership with India mirrors our collective aspiration for innovation and progress. As we gaze into the future, the pivotal role of system integrators in accelerating the global growth of Finnish firms is undeniable.’

The Business Finland Team provided an overview of their efforts in supporting the global expansion of Finnish companies. They also highlighted investment opportunities available in Finland and how Indian entities can leverage them to their benefit. The event served as a catalyst for collaborative efforts that will drive innovation and global partnerships, said Robin Singh, leader of SI program at Business Finland. 

About Business Finland
Business Finland identifies business opportunities for Finnish companies in India and globally. They also advise and guide Finnish SMEs in their internationalization plans, actions and possible challenges in the Indian market.

About Ekaga
Ekaga is a services company exploiting the paths for global innovators by assisting them in every aspect for their international market needs in the emerging markets. Market Entry & Consulting, Managed Services, Project Monitoring as a service and setting up Centers of Collaboration for large enterprises are among their key services.

Website: www.ekaga.com.

Feng Ying, Chief Intellectual Property Officer at OPPO, stated, "We are pleased to have reached this global patent cross-license agreement with Nokia, which includes cross-licensing for 5G standard-essential patents. This agreement reflects the mutual recognition and respect for each other's intellectual property and lays the foundation for future collaboration between OPPO and Nokia. OPPO continues to advocate for reasonable royalty fees and a long-term approach to intellectual property that supports the resolution of disputes through amicable negotiations and mutual respect for the value of all intellectual property."
 

Jenni Lukander, President of Nokia Technologies, said, "We are delighted to have reached a cross-license agreement with OPPO that reflects the mutual respect for each other's intellectual property and Nokia's investments in R&D and contributions to open standards. OPPO is one of the leading companies in the global smartphone market and we look forward to working together to bring further innovation to their users around the world. The new agreement - along with the other major smartphone agreements we have concluded over the past year - will provide long-term financial stability to our licensing business."

As a key rights holder of 5G standard-essential patents and a global leader in smart device innovation, OPPO is both an innovation and implementor of technology standards. As of December 31, 2023, OPPO has deployed 5G communication standard patents in over 40 countries and regions, with a total of more than 5,900 patent families globally, over 3,300 5G standard patents declared to ETSI, and more than 11,000 standard documents submitted to 3GPP. According to the 2023 5G report published by the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology (CAICT) and a report from IPlytics published in October 2023, OPPO ranks among the top companies globally in terms of 5G standard-essential patent strength.

About OPPO

OPPO is a leading global smart device brand. Since the launch of its first mobile phone - “Smiley Face” - in 2008, OPPO has been in relentless pursuit of the perfect synergy of aesthetic satisfaction and innovative technology. Today, OPPO provides a wide range of smart devices spearheaded by the Find and Reno series. Beyond devices, OPPO also provides its users with ColorOS operating system and internet services such as OPPO Cloud and OPPO+. OPPO has footprints in more than 60 countries and regions, with more than 40,000 employees dedicated to creating a better life for customers around the world.

Shashi Dharan, MD, Bharat Exhibitions, C.S Rao, Chairman, QuadGen, RK Pathak, DG, Bharat 6G Alliance, A. Robert J. Ravi, DDG (S-R-I), DoT, Tri Hoang, Chairman, Ai20x, Nguyen Tien Long, Head of Sales, VHT

The conference held on the 9th of January at the Le-Meridian, New Delhi, was focussed on accomplishing this very objective of reliable, affordable, and always available 5G broadband services to rural and sub-urban segments of India. The Bharat 5G Mission event was focussed on the articulation of the techno-commercial value of the available end to end industry standard 5G solutions to cater to Rural 5G broadband & 5G Private Networks for manufacturing, agriculture, university campus, mining & transportation sectors.
 

“From the government side, we are coming out with different policies and enabling policies. We recently started rolling around 100 5G use-case labs across the country. These labs could be slowly expanded into what we call ecosystem labs,” said Shri A. Robert Jerard Ravi, DDG (Standards – R&D Innovation, DoT, Ministry of Communications.

By 2026, we might have a lot of product line in place The other growth area that we are looking at is small captive networks of non-public networks, that is also growing in a big way – like mining. What is the effect? There we will see a sensing communication network. That will be the steppingstone for 6G sensing networks,” he further added.

The driving force behind Bharat 5G Mission was the commitment to provide affordable 5G services without compromising on the Quality of Experience (QoE) and Service Level Agreement (SLA) norms. This visionary initiative recognizes the importance of inclusive digital access, especially in rural and suburban areas, and strives to make advanced connectivity accessible to all.

"We are excited to embark on this journey with Viettel High Tech (VHT) and Ai20X. This partnership represents a significant milestone in our commitment to delivering excellence and innovation to our customers. Together, we will shape the future of 5G/4G Telco Product & Services Portfolio," said Dr C.S. Rao Chairman & Co-founder of QuadGen.

The mission's core focus is on deploying state-of-the-art technology across the entire spectrum, ensuring robust and reliable connectivity. The end-to-end solutions not only promise blazing fast internet speeds but also aim to address the unique challenges of rural and suburban landscapes.

"Viettel High Tech is thrilled to join forces with QuadGen and Ai20X. This partnership aligns with our vision to continuously evolve and provide Telecom Equipment Products & Solutions. Together, we will create a winning combination that benefits our customers and stakeholders," said Nguyen Tien Long, Head of Global Sales, VHT.

A key highlight of Bharat 5G Mission 2024 is its emphasis on affordability. The mission seeks to make 5G services accessible to the masses by providing cost-effective solutions. This includes a strategic pricing model for equipment and services, making it economically viable for the Rural and Sub-Urban strata of the subscriber landscape.

“Ai20X is proud of being part of the QuadGen and Viettel partnership that brings innovations to communication infrastructure and services. Ai20X plans to help elevate this partnership not only for delivering innovative solutions, but also bringing in additional partners and extending the services to other markets,” said Tri Hoang, Chairman and CEO of Ai20X.

The event witnessed industry leaders, policymakers, and technology experts coming together to applaud this bold initiative. As India prepares to embrace the era of 5G, Bharat 5G Mission 2024 stands as a testament to the nation's commitment to technological inclusivity and ensuring that every citizen can reap the benefits of a connected and empowered future.

The new Super Saver Plans are all set to take the market by storm and the customers can enjoy lightning-fast internet speed of 10 Mbps, along with free voice calling. The plans are available at different price points - Rs. 198, Rs. 298, Rs. 398 & Rs. 498. The Rs. 198 plan offers customers 10 Mbps speed and free voice calling. The Rs. 298, 398, 498 are bundled offers & comes with Unlimited internet, Live TV Channels, voice calling and Free premium OTT Apps.

Commenting on the launch Mr. Gurdeep Singh, Chairman & Founder of Netplus & fastway said, "We are excited to introduce our new Super Saver Bundle Plans, Offering unbeatable value for money to our customers. This is a value proposition with almost 50% savings as compared to the market offerings. We have launched one of the most affordable plans for our valued users. Our Idea Behind this initiative is to provide access to unlimited streaming at highly competitive prices.”

Since we are investing heavily in rural areas and hence forth we want to ensure services being enjoyed by from all strata of the society. We strive to provide the Digital citizens of modern India with the best possible internet experience, The initial response to this is very encouraging and lot of people want to join the connectivity band wagon. Additionally, the introduction of content packaging is expected to foster the adoption of a convergent digital ecosystem, potentially unlocking new revenue opportunities in the days ahead.

About Netplus Broadband
Netplus Broadband, the ICT – (Information, Communication & Technology) business of Jujhar Group spearheaded by CMD S. Gurdeep Singh. The group has a legacy of over 32 years of business excellence. Jujhar Group of companies operates across verticals – Logistics, Hospitality, Real Estate, Digital Entertainment, and next-generation services.

For more information, please visit www.netplus.co.in.

1. Objectives of Govt. of India/CVC and overview of Vigilance Awareness Week 2023 by Sh. Naresh Khanna, Addl. DGT Punjab LSA, Deptt. of Telecom.

2. DOT HQs views on Vigilance from Sh. Aditya Singh, Dir (VM), followed by a

3. Lecture by Ms Nitika Asstt. Dir. Genl. (Compliance) from Punjab LSA on EMF awareness to dispel the myths on radiation from Telecom Towers and lastly,

4. Lecture from Sh. Vaibhav Jain, Asstt. Dir. Genl. (Security) from Punjab LSA on Cyber Crime/Frauds and Cyber Hygiene Awareness.

5. Lecture from Dr Prem Ojha On Role of technology evolution in progress of country.

There was an audience of more than 100 persons including students and faculty from Guru Nanak Dev Engineering College, Ludhiana, employees of M/s NetPlus, ISP and Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) of Punjab viz. M/s Airtel, Jio and BSNL.

The objective of Vigilance Awareness Week is to sensitize the public against the menace of corruption and reaffirm our commitment to fight corruption at all levels and from all walks of life.

Vi partners with Truecaller for safe communication

Amid the rising number of customer service frauds, it is imperative to ensure that the customer interactions are safe and secure through trusted and verified communication from customer-centric businesses.

As a part of this collaboration, Truecaller, through its Verified Business Caller ID solution, has enabled Vi’s customer service and sales team to deliver a secure and enhanced customer communication experience. Vi customers can instantly recognize authentic calls from Vi through Truecaller’s trustworthy call indicators such as the green caller id, tamper-proof brand name and logo, a verified business badge, a category tag, and call reason.

Speaking about the collaboration, Priyam Bose, Global Head, GTM at Truecaller said, “Truecaller is committed to empowering businesses by enhancing customer communication and verification, which is particularly critical in the fast-paced, customer-centric telecom sector. Our Verified Business solution has become integral to the industry's effort to build a more secure and trusted communication environment. Our collaboration with Vi marks a significant step in this direction, helping one of the telecom industry's giants to strengthen customer interactions and reinforce trust in its services.”

Speaking about the partnership, Ashish Sharma, EVP - Customer Service, Vi said, “We understand that customers dislike unwarranted calls and feel safe communicating via verified customer care channels only. We are happy to partner with Truecaller - one of the most trusted caller ID service providers, to offer more secure and verified communication to our customers. We continue to stay committed to deliver top-notch customer support experience, enhance calling efficiency, and deliver timely services to our users.”

Truecaller Verified Business Solution empowers business calls with brand identity and context, fostering reliable customer communication. So far, over 2000+ active businesses across India and other prominent global markets have benefitted from the Verified Business Caller ID and other advanced communication capabilities. Besides bringing down call-related frauds and scam, the solution improves business call efficiency and safety in business communications.

About Truecaller

Truecaller enables safe and relevant conversations between people and make it efficient for businesses to connect with consumers. Fraud and unwanted communication are endemic to digital economies, especially in emerging markets. We are on a mission to build trust in communication. Truecaller is an essential part of everyday communication for over 350 million active users, with more than a billion downloads since launch and close to 50 billion unwanted calls identified and blocked in 2021. Headquartered in Stockholm since 2009, we are a Co-founder-led, entrepreneurial company with a highly experienced management team. Truecaller has been listed on Nasdaq Stockholm since 8 October 2021.

For more information, please visit: business.truecaller.com.

About Vodafone Idea Limited

Vodafone Idea Limited is an Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Group partnership. It is amongst India’s leading telecom service provider. The company provides pan India Voice and Data services ac]ross 2G, 3G and 4G platforms. Company holds large spectrum portfolio including mid band 5G spectrum in 17 circles and mmWave 5G spectrum in 16 circles. To support the growing demand for data and voice, the company is committed to deliver delightful customer experiences and contribute towards creating a truly ‘Digital India’ by enabling millions of citizens to connect and build a better tomorrow. The company is developing infrastructure to introduce newer and smarter technologies, making both retail and enterprise customers future ready with innovative offerings, conveniently accessible through an ecosystem of digital channels as well as extensive on-ground presence. The company’s equity share are listed on National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the BSE in India.

The company offers products and services to its customers in India under the TM Brand name “Vi”. 

For more information, please visit: www.MyVi.in.

Officials from Reliance Jio & Chitkara University at the launch event
 

Jio's groundbreaking 5G services will revolutionize the campus, empowering students and staff with unparalleled connectivity and paving the way for advancements in various fields. Sr. Vice President (CEO - Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd.) Punjab Sh TPS Walia, along with Hon'ble Dr. Ashok K Chitkara, Chancellor of Chitkara, Hon’ble Dr. Madhu Chitkara, Pro-Chancellor of Chitkara University, and Dr. Archana Mantri, Vice-Chancellor of Chitkara University, graced the launch event.
 

Jio is the first and only operator to roll out 5G services at the university’s campus, covering every corner of the university, including all its blocks, departments, halls, hostels, eating joints, classrooms, fun zones, sports facilities, training centres, R&D centres, medical setups, markets, etc. Overall, more than 22000 students and staff members at the university will benefit from Jio True 5G services.
 

On the occasion, Dr. Ashok Chitkara, Chancellor, Chitkara University, said, "With the Jio True 5G services being rolled out at the campus of Chitkara University, our students and staff will have access to revolutionary Jio 5G technology. It will make the teaching-learning process smoother as it’ll equip them with innumerable opportunities in terms of learning and research in emerging areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality, gaming, automation, e-governance, healthcare, IT and others.”
 

“At Chitkara University, we always believe in doing the best for our staff and students to keep them updated and at par with the global standards. We continuously strive to provide our students with the best learning environment and all the requisite tools,” added Dr. Madhu Chitkara, Pro Chancellor, Chitkara University.
 

About Chitkara University

Chitkara University, situated near Chandigarh, has emerged as the most vibrant and high-ranking University in North India. It is ranked among the top 5% of higher education institutions in India. The University is awarded NAAC A+ accreditation and has also been ranked by NIRF (National Institute Ranking Framework).
 

The University offers courses in Engineering and Technology, Business, Planning; Architecture, Art & Design, Mass Communication, Sales and Marketing, Hospitality Management, Pharmacy, Health Sciences, and Education. Students studying at Chitkara get the best start-up support, world-class research excellence, and many internationally renowned opportunities.
 

For more information, please visit www.chitkara.edu.in.

TAC Security’s 10th Anniversary Logo

Serving more than 600+ governments and enterprises globally, TAC Security has paved its way in being a leader in the Risk and Vulnerability management domain. Today, it empowers with its CyberScore feature that will be the industry defacto by 2025.

Founded by its CEO, Trishneet Arora at a mere age of 19 years old, the company has kept Its youth essence with the majority of its workforce being under the age of 30 years old.

“It feels surreal to be celebrating a decade of TAC Security already. I remember reading a report that said India needs 77,000 ethical hackers every year to match the requirement and thinking this could be a business opportunity to protecting and empowering organizations, we have come a long way and are yet at the beginning of the road ahead,” said, Trishneet Arora, Founder and CEO.

Below are some of the milestones the company has garnered over the years -

• 2013 - TAC Security was founded by Trishneet Arora at the age of 19 and trained the world’s largest refinery, Reliance

• 2014 - At the age of 20, Trishneet Arora became the youngest Indian to receive the State Award, from the former Chief Minister of Punjab on Republic Day and received its first clients for services

• 2015 - TAC Security was getting recognised at various platforms for training law enforcement officers and entrepreneurship. This was also the year he received a Punjab Youth Icon award with eminent personalities

• 2016 - Big Bull, Vijay Kedia became the first and the only investor of TAC Security

• 2017 - TAC Security became CERT-IN Empanelled and Founder was recognized as a “50 Most Influential Young Indian’s” by GQ Magazine

• The National Payments Corporation of India also signed the company to provide a Vulnerability Assessment service for BHIM & UPI Applications launched by the Hon'ble Prime Minister of India

• 2018 - TAC Security launched its product Enterprise Security in One Framework, its first step in being the Google of CyberSecurity. The founder was also listed in Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 List and many more

• 2019 - TAC Security grew rapidly both revenue and client wise, while its Founder, Trishneet Arora became the youngest to be listed on Fortune’s 40 Under 40 List.

• 2020 - TAC Security bagged its first of many Fortune 500 clients while its founder won Entrepreneur Magazines “Entrepreneur of the Year” award and was listed in Forbes “Top 100 Great People Manager” by GMI.

• 2021- Despite the pandemic, TAC Security tripled its Risk and Vulnerability Management Business and got featured on NASDAQ for its success, being the first Indian Cyber Security company to do so. It also partnered with TechMahindra, Deloitte, Ingram Micro, IBM to scale to UK, Europe and SAARC market, in total added 20 partners from 9 countries in FY 21-22. While its founder was listed in Fortune’s 40 Under 40 List and Forbes “Top 100 Great People Manager” by GMI, again.

• 2022 - TAC Security being chosen to become cyber security partners for vulnerability management for Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) - Asia’s largest.

“It is humbling to see the trust and support we have received from not only our clients but our eminent partners and dedicated team. I believe everyone has played an important role and contributed majorly to make TAC Security what it is today and would continue to ensure the faith is maintained,” said, Trishneet Arora, Founder, and CEO. “Over the years, we have advanced our technology ten folds, offering our clients the next–generation ability but that does not change our relationship for us. Long-term relationships are built on human experience and we believe it is important for us to listen as much as share. We are aiming to become the largest player in Vulnerability Management, which is a $20 Billion market globally. We are also planning for IPO by 2025.”

In spreading its wings to secure a global presence, and carving a new niche for itself in the promising industry segments, TAC Security represents a failproof and pioneering brand ethos.

The company has launched a plethora of products over the years under its suite ESOF that help protect the organizations of the treat they haven’t even faced yet.

Its suite product ESOF, allows an organization to maintain its entire IT infrastructure on a single platform with abilities to prioritize the vulnerabilities, share a tailored remediation and predict the future vulnerabilities amongst some of the features it offers. It also generates a cyberscore that helps you share your exact, current cyber security levels of the organization across any department, a feature the foresee being the industry level defacto by 2025.

The company believes it is still at the beginning of its global journey and sees an immense potential in their journey ahead with the cybersecurity industry boom, specially post pandemic.

About TAC Security

TAC Security headquartered in San Francisco is a global leader in Vulnerability Management that protects Fortune 500 companies, leading enterprises, and governments around the world. TAC Security manages 5+ Million vulnerabilities through its Artificial Intelligence (AI) based Vulnerability Management Platform ESOF (Enterprise Security in One Framework). TAC Security has established strategic partnerships with leading cloud providers and managed service providers and consulting organizations including Tech Mahindra, IBM, KDDI Japan, and distributors including Dataguard Technologies LLC and Ingram Micro. For more information, visit here.

Ajay Batheja, MD, iAcuity Telco
 

iAcuity Telco products and solutions are designed with years of research, innovation, and expertise, using advanced techniques for collecting, filtering, curating, and analyzing vast amounts of data. This enables communication service providers to make informed decisions and improve operational efficiency, reduce fraud, comply with regulatory security requirements, provide secured connectivity and maximize revenue.

iAcuity Telco will showcase a range of products and solutions redefining the future of technology like 5G-ready scalable, secure interception, log management solutions and advanced carrier grade SD-WAN platform to help comply customer service providers with regulatory provisions. iAcuity will be at Booth No.:12, Stand 5A83 (India Pavilion), Hall No. 5.

Ajay Batheja, Managing Director, iAcuity Telco said, “With cyber-frauds in the telecom sector increasing it is imperative that the authorities, CSPs are equipped with rightful solutions to tackle this rapidly growing issue. We are elated to participate in the MWC Barcelona 2023 for the first time and would like to keep the momentum going in coming years as well.” 

MWC Barcelona is the largest and the most influential annual event for the connectivity ecosystem. Its participants include all leading global mobile operators, device manufacturers, technology providers, vendors. This year it will focus on the upcoming trends and themes of the connectivity industry like 5G Acceleration, Reality+ (Immersive technology), OpenNet, FinTech, Digital Everything (expansion of Digital Technology). The event attracts people representing the top global companies, international governments and trailblazing tech businesses every year. 

Lovely Professional University (LPU) becomes the only University in India to have Jio True 5G services on its campus. To announce this news to the students, the top leadership team of Jio visited the campus in a glittering ceremony organised at Shanti Devi Mittal Auditorium of the university.

LPU Chancellor Dr. Ashok Kumar Mittal, Pro Chancellor Mrs Rashmi Mittal, Vice President Dr. Aman Mittal and Sr. Vice President of Jio TPS Walia inaugurating Jio True 5G services firstly at LPU campus in India

Announcing the information to all the Sr. Vice President of Jio, Mr. TPS Walia mentioned that LPU and Jio have a long association: “India’s first 4G enabled university was LPU and I am happy that the revolutionary 5G technology is also being first rolled out from LPU. Across India, it is IIT Mumbai and LPU as the only university campuses that have 5G facilities. However, in terms of complete coverage, it is only the LPU campus which has that wide coverage. Mr. Walia also announced that all the users at LPU Campus will get free unlimited 5G data with up to 1Gbps speeds."

Jio has covered every corner of the LPU campus including all its blocks, departments, halls, hostels, eating joints, classrooms, fun zones, sports facilities, training centres, R&D centres, medical setups, and markets.

LPU Chancellor Dr. Ashok Kumar Mittal shares, “With the launch of this 5G service in LPU campus, thousands of aspiring students, who study here from across all Indian states and 50+ countries, will be benefitted. Dr. Mittal added that LPU students will now be equipped with infinite growth opportunities in various fields like advanced studies, artificial intelligence (AI), gaming, virtual reality, automation, e-governance, healthcare, agriculture, tourism, IT and ITeS, and many other research works."

Illustrative, Jio True 5G has a three-fold advantage that makes it the only TRUE 5G network in India. It is a stand-alone 5G architecture with zero dependencies on 4G networks. It is the largest and the best mix of 5G spectrum across 700 MHz, 3500 MHz, and 26 GHz bands.

MediaTek, the world’s leading fabless semiconductor company, powering nearly 2 billion connected devices a year, hosted 11th Chapter of MediaTek Technology Diaries themed ‘Brilliant Technology the World Relies On’, focusing on the latest technology trends from MediaTek in smartphones and smart devices market in India. The company showcased its latest portfolio of cutting-edge technology and an innovation-based line-up of 5G chipsets, including the latest MediaTek Dimensity 9200, 8200 and 1080 and other chipsets like MediaTek Helio G99, Pentonic 1000, Kompanio 520 and 528, Filogic 880 and 380, T800 5G Modem Solutions among others.

Panel Discussion 1
 

“As India enters its watershed moment of 5G adoption in 2023, MediaTek is well on track to drive 5G adoption with our increased commitment towards working with global as well as Indian OEMs and expanding our R&D facilities in India. We are playing a vision-led pivotal by creating brilliant experiences through flagship and premium solutions for everyone, basis their diverse and changing demands. Today, we can proudly say that MediaTek is becoming ubiquitous in the entire smartphones and smart devices ecosystem,” said Anku Jain, Managing Director, MediaTek India.
 

Key technologies showcased during the event include:

• MediaTek Dimensity 9200: First smartphone chip to integrate an Arm Cortex X3 with operating speeds over 3GHz, and the first featuring the Arm Immortalis-G715 GPU, MediaTek’s HyperEngine 6.0 Gaming Technology, MediaTek MiraVision 890 enabling intelligent power efficiency, all-day gaming, ultra-sharp image capturing and support for both mmWave 5G and sub-6GHz connectivity.

• MediaTek Dimensity 8200: Integrated with an octa-core CPU with four Arm Cortex-A78 cores operating at up to 3.1 GHz, and powerful Mali-G610 graphics engine, the chip offers cutting-edge gaming, display, connectivity and picture quality features in ultra power-efficient 4nm class chip production process.

• MediaTek T800: The superfast and power-efficient 5G thin modem solution with high-performance 4nm process node delivers ultra-fast 5G speeds for sub-6GHz and mmWave 5G networks to maximize the battery life.

• MediaTek Pentonic 1000: The latest flagship smart TV system-on-chip (SoC) designed for 4K 120Hz displays, integrates Wi-Fi 6/6E support, MEMC for smoother video, a powerful AI processor, Dolby Vision IQ with Precision Detail.

• MediaTek Kompanio 520 and Kompanio 528: These chipsets integrate two premium Arm Cortex-A76 CPU cores within an octa-core CPU taking performance for entry Chromebooks to the next level.

• MediaTek Filogic 880 and Filogic 380: Advanced hardware network, full off-load engine on both Wi-Fi and Ethernet interface.

Panel Discussion 2
 

The event saw participation from industry leaders bringing insightful interactions around the key topics:
 

• Panel 1: ‘Turning India’s 5G Dream into Reality: Joining the League of Extraordinary’ with panellists including Prabhu Ram (Cybermedia Research), Tarun Pathak (Counterpoint Research), Advait Vaidya (Reliance Digital), Sudeep Sahu (Xiaomi India), moderated by Anuj Sidharth (MediaTek India) where they shared inspiring and compelling views about the rollout of 5G and 5G enabled devices in India.

• Panel 2: ‘Chasing the Next Billion: Role of Technology in Driving Faster Adoption of Smart Devices’ with panellists including Faisal Kawoosa (TechArc), Kartik Vasudevan (Gfk), Chitranshu Mahant (PrimeOS), Anku Jain (MediaTek India), moderated by Tech Celebrity - Rajiv Makhni where they spoke about the latest technologies, insights from the industry and recent consumer trends.

Speaking at the event, Tarun Pathak, Research Director, Counterpoint Research said, “5G smartphones have gained a good mind share in India, thanks to the continuous efforts of the smartphone value chain especially chipset players. Now with the networks rolling out, we expect this mind share to increase further and people eventually use 5G services. This will uncover a variety of features, some of which, we might be unaware of as of now. These features will further diffuse in the mass market segment faster, driving the overall consumer experience and expectations. Chipset players will continue to play a major role in driving this trend.”
 

Sharing key highlights from the ‘TECHARC INDIA CONNECTED CONSUMER REPORT 2023’, Faisal Kawoosa- Techarc, said, “5G is expected to be the bedrock technology of innovation driven by advanced computational capabilities driven by AI and ML that will be powered by sophisticated processors in smart devices. The Indian connected consumer is excited about the advent of 5G in the smart devices ecosystem that will elate the overall experience. Albeit it comes with concerns around privacy and limited interoperability. The market is slowly moving beyond entertainment segment, and we are expecting to see more of comfort and convenience devices forming the demand in 2023 and beyond.”

According to Prabhu Ram, Head, Industry Intelligence Group, Cybermedia Research (CMR), “India today has a strong ecosystem of 5G capable smartphones. As 5G gets rapidly democratized beyond value for money and into affordable smartphone segments, it will be truly transformative for India and India’s digital economy. 5G smartphones will break down the geographic, social and economic barriers, enabling citizens to get access to quality education, healthcare, financial services, and public citizen services, amongst others.”

Kartik Vasudevan, Director, Strategic Accounts, GfK said, “With the launch of 5G services in October’22 in India, more than 50 cities have 5G network coverage today. As per GfK’s Market Intelligence insights, 5G handset sales contribute to 21% of total smartphone sales in offline by volume for Jan-Oct’22 (YTD) period, while during the Diwali month this went up to 27%." “5G is further democratizing as devices below USD 200 become available. We believe that the Industry will see a 3X growth of 5G devices by end of next year,’’ says Kartik Vasudevan, Director Sales-GfK India. 5G is the tailwind which will propel the us towards the next billion connected devices. Whether it is handsets, tablets, smart watches, Gaming or Home entertainment - 5G will play a key role in changing lifestyle of Indian Consumer. As per GfK’s Consumer Life Report which measures consumer lifestyle trends - 62% of Indian Consumers wants technology which knows them and can make recommendations. Convenience and experience is what the consumer will look at while switching between retail channels, while marketeers will have to look at unified experience across different channels.

Chitranshu Mahant, Co-founder at PrimeOS, “It was in the late 2020s that a new colossal user base emerged for PCs, i.e. students, partly accelerated because of the COVID pandemic. The user and use cases define the performance of a PC - school students, test prep, job prep, and college students want their favourite apps and faster internet speed. To provide the learners with the PC they want, we built our own made-in-India Android-based OS for Laptops - PrimeOS - Loved by 3 million people in 140 countries. We collaborated with MediaTek and Launched a 4G enabled Primebook with PrimeOS. The combination of MediaTek and PrimeOS will help give the students an amazing price-to-performance ratio, value for money and good performance. The next billion device sales in India will come from Tier 2 and 3 cities, and high performance and affordability will be the key to reaching tier 2/3 customers.”

The MediaTek Technology Diaries is an interactive, informative series aimed at demystifying the newest technologies transforming our daily lives. The series is in tune with MediaTek’s philosophy of making great technology available to help consumers connect seamlessly with the things that shape our daily lives by enhancing, enriching, and making us smarter and healthier.

For more information, please visit

• i.mediatek.com/technology-diaries

• i.mediatek.com/mediatek-5g

About MediaTek Inc.

MediaTek Incorporated (TWSE: 2454) is a global fabless semiconductor company that enables nearly 2 billion connected devices a year. We are a market leader in developing innovative systems-on-chip (SoC) for mobile device, home entertainment, connectivity and IoT products. Our dedication to innovation has positioned us as a driving market force in several key technology areas, including highly power-efficient mobile technologies, automotive solutions and a broad range of advanced multimedia products such as smartphones, tablets, digital televisions, 5G, Voice Assistant Devices (VAD) and wearables. MediaTek empowers and inspires people to expand their horizons and achieve their goals through smart technology, more easily and efficiently than ever before. We work with the brands you love to make great technology accessible to everyone, and it drives everything we do.

Visit www.mediatek.com for more information. 

Jagdish Mitra, Chief Strategy Officer and Head of Growth of Tech Mahindra says, “Powered by India's promising growth roadmap, 2023 has the potential to provide the impetus required for India to become digitally ready and lead technological advancements for the rest of the world to follow. I believe in 2023, we will see significant progress in autonomous systems, 5G, and green technology, as well as a quantum leap in technological skilling to digital transformation-related skilling.”

Roll out of 5G services also mean greater innovation and adoption of new-age technology as well. Anku Jain, Managing Director, MediaTek India says his company will expand 5G portfolio to 5G Thin Modem, redcap & wearables, automotive telematics and industrial M2M/IoT, and focus on emerging trends like Metaverse, Wi-Fi 7, and power management applications in Computing & Storage of the future. Whereas going beyond 5G Nokia India Spokesperson said “2023 is expected to witness wider adoption of private networks by enterprises and businesses for enhanced efficiency and security and further, we hope to support India’s full and equal participation in the evolution of 6G standards in the next few years as our R&D engineers based here continue to contribute to the collaborative global effort.”

With 5G becoming a great enabler for innovation and new models of connectivity for enterprises, companies involved in enterprise solutions believe next year can be a game changer. Rajiv Bhalla, Managing Director, India & Vice President APAC, at Barco says, “We foresee technologies like AL/ML, cloud computing, 5G, IoT and automation to drive sustainable solutions and new use cases across sectors, industries, governance and citizen services.”

Rahul Tandon, Senior Vice President of IDEMIA India believes that as India ushers in 5G connectivity it opens up many new capabilities to enhance productivity and safety of not only online transactions but Machine2Machine (M2M) transactions as well. “The network technologies 5G, 5Gi, 4G and under Low power Wide Area Networks (LPWAN) such as Narrow Band IoT (NB-IoT), LTE-M, Long Range Radio (LoRa), ZigBee and SigFox are creating new business opportunities around these technologies. Indeed, the magical combination of these technologies will change the contours of connectivity, security and analytics.”

Adding another dimension of Enterprise connectivity, Agendra Kumar, MD, Esri India comments, “Moving ahead, technology trends like the integration of various types of data in GIS systems, data portals to enable easy sharing of data, and Geo-Hubs to create more collaborative working environments and increase community engagement, are going to transform the way geospatial technologies are being consumed.”

With such a transformational year ahead, this will mean a new approach and the creation of suitable manpower. Arvind Bali, CEO of Telecom Sector Skill Council says, “Over the next 3 years, we will be training over 1 lac budding youth in these technologies and many more. We plan to add 10 CoEs and the 1 lac training is being done with DoT oversight. We are going to add 100 new courses to our roster for use cases in both legacy and new technologies. The rollout of 5G will help accelerate advancement in skilling and telecom.”

With the expansion of technology dimensions, the Indian government has put a lot of focus on creating technology and products within the country and it is showing results on ground A. Gururaj, Managing Director of Optiemus Electronics, a homegrown electronics manufacturer which is on an expansion mode says, “We are actively expanding our capabilities in 5G telecom equipment and have partnered with leading companies to supply 5G products. We also aim to strengthen the IT Hardware segment by expanding laptop manufacturing and starting new categories like mini pc, etc. Adding on to that, we have plans to enter emerging categories like IoT and EV as India adopts new technologies. Optiemus is all set to open its 3rd state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Noida with a capacity for high-volume manufacturing.”

With a lot going in for transforming India’s technology landscape, 2023 can be a rewarding year for the tech industry and its consumers in India.

These are some of the key inferences shared by IDEMIA, a global leader in Augmented Identity solutions in its whitepaper on IoT/M2M Security Essentials and Trusted Framework unveiled today.
 

Today, we expect almost everything to have IoT/M2M capabilities including consumer products, for example, automotive, home appliances, security cameras and commercial devices such as smart meters, smart grid, smart water management, traffic signals. Network evolution and rapid technical growth are propagating Industries and cities for increasingly embracing the IoT/M2M. The build in static or dynamic applications allows enterprises to gain access to the device data that can be visualised and explored to run advanced analytics so they can respond in real-time.
 

Matthew Foxton, President, IDEMIA India & Executive Vice-President, Communications & Branding for the Group, "Here at IDEMIA, we believe that Identity is at the heart of a connected world and at the centre of everything we do. We are very enthused that the digital movement is focusing on identity and data security within the regulatory framework, as security becomes even more vital thanks to expanding use cases with 5G rollout. We are very proud that IDEMIA, as a world leader in identity technologies, is helping to create next-generation use cases for Payment, Connectivity, Access Control, Travel and Public Security based on substantial investments in R&D and our teams of experts in India and across the world."
 

The network technologies 5G, 5Gi, 4G and under Low power Wide Area Networks (LPWAN) such as Narrow Band IoT (NB-IoT), LTE-M, Long Range Radio (LoRa), ZigBee and SigFox are creating new business opportunities around these technologies. Indeed, the magical combination of these technologies will change the contours for connectivity, security and analytics.
 

Even as this vision is getting closer to reality there are several issues that need careful attention. These include:

• Fragmented market & use cases

• Security

• Evolving need for continuous upgrade and use cases

• Interoperable architecture to secure connected ecosystem

The IoT/M2M industry is highly fragmented with a large number of use cases belonging to critical connected infrastructure, automotive, health energy and other business segments. The need is to collaborate for greater good and best outcomes. The fragmented market will complicate the IoT/M2M adoption. The need is for vendors to come together to create device standardization, secure integration and deployment. The quality of services will depend on how such collaborations work to enable seamless transfer of IoT/M2M data to take actions instead of being confined to silos where it will be of little use.

Besides overcoming the challenge of fragmented markets, the IoT/M2M technologies must ensure security. There’s a need to create robust devices, secure connectivity and networks for various industry verticals by implementing connected solutions, including utilities, connected vehicles, agriculture, healthcare, transportation, and security for businesses and homes. This will help drive new opportunities for innovation - solving problems and addressing the pain points for enterprises and users alike.
 

Enterprises and government agencies are leveraging IoT/M2M technology to maximize efficiency to reduce operating expenses and improve service delivery to their constituents. In parallel consumers for connected technology expect to establish synergies among multiple devices, multiple use cases, including interoperability and trust.
 

Such a transformation can be possible only if we work towards faster digitization with top-most security infrastructure. Security challenges are the major concern largely for networks, devices, connectivity and applications. The industry must address these challenges to usher in a truly connected, automated era.

Unitac Plans Major Investment for 5G Towers

Mr. Santhosh Eappen is confident of achieving more turnover and profit by securing untapped business volume and entering into 5G network operation. This would place Unitac a major player in the Active and Passive side with the above operators, Mr. Santhosh Eappen said.

The confidence gained through efficient installation and maintenance of 4G sites with its dedicated 1000 plus trained service professionals, Unitac is in the process of entering western and northern part of India as a part of its PAN INDIA initiative, Mr. Santhosh Eappen said.

The energy control team has been monitoring on a 24/7 basis by conducting frequent audit and check the uninterrupted functioning of tower transmission by frequently visiting site to monitor electricity power, battery, and diesel level to provide uninterrupted connectivity for mobile users. This facilitated to become a leader in Telecom Contractors and improve higher business volume and profits according to Mr. Santhosh Eappen.

With encouragement from telecom partners in the India industry, Unitac is in the process of installing additional 4G active work in Western and Northern India as a part of its pan India initiative and Unitac is in the top position among the IME’s in India, Mr. Santhosh Eappen said.

Unitac is also planning in a major way to enter 5G tower market. As more towers need to be installed in a short distance, Unitac can achieve further growth in business in about two years. As parts of this initiative, Unitac is in the process of installing 5G sites in about a year time, Mr. Santhosh Eappen revealed. It plans to execute 5G site initially in Delhi NCR and Gujarat and in major cities in Tamilnadu, Andhra, and Kerala, and Karnataka later.

Designed for better hybrid meetings

The frequency and number of meetings has been steadily increasing over the years, making starting and hosting effective meetings a business priority for many companies. Barco recognizes this need and is launching a simplified ClickShare user experience for Button and App that makes running hybrid meetings from the laptop as simple as making a phone call.

With a revolutionary set of features for a better meeting flow, ClickShare answers the call for more meeting inclusion and brings more confidence to meeting hosts and users. Our intent-based technology makes meetings smarter and more intuitive, reducing stress for participants, solving four of the most frequently encountered hybrid meeting challenges: powering up the meeting room, connecting the laptop to room audio and video devices, joining a meeting from a calendar, and keeping track of contents and people while hosting a hybrid meeting from the meeting room.

Meet with confidence and equity

ClickShare smart meeting flows feature PresentSense, HostFlow, One-Click-Join and ConferenceView to fully automate and enrich the meeting flow for users in the room, making any hybrid meeting a highly intuitive, stress-free experience.

As users walk into the meeting room with their laptop, ClickShare automatically connects to the meeting room using the PresentSense ultrasound proximity detection. With HostFlow users can start a conference from their laptop with ease, as the ClickShare App automatically guides them as meeting host or participant. And with just a single click (One-Click-Join), users can start the meeting from their personal calendar.

Finally, the new ConferenceView function solves the biggest pain of today’s hybrid meetings: keeping the overview as the meeting host. With ConferenceView you can host the meeting from the laptop, share your presentation and keep track of both contents and participants’ video on the meeting room display, side by side, without the need for a dual-screen setup.

What’s more, as the meeting host you can choose to share full screen or just an application window, while keeping your laptop screen private for note taking. So, when you decide to Bring Your Own Device, your laptop is not solely used for hosting video calls and as a host you enjoy the flexibility to work as you prefer.

A wealth of integration options

Barco enriches integration capabilities for ClickShare with digital signage, offering companies an easy-to-use and affordable solution to broadcast general or customized information to guests and employees in the workplace such as welcome messages, news, social feeds, customized and branded content. With ClickShare signage integration customers can maximize their meeting room technology investment and increase the ROI of their meeting spaces. Over the past weeks, digital signage partners Signagelive, Seenspire and Korbyt have joined the ClickShare alliance program bringing additional integration capabilities.

MediaTek Days on Amazon

“MediaTek has always envisioned a future enabled by technology democratisation and our consistent efforts are aimed towards fulfilling this ambition. With MediaTek Days, we plan to boost awareness around innovative devices powered by MediaTek while also supporting the incredible OEMs we collaborate with. Today, people are eager to try new things and explore novel offerings. MediaTek Days is focused on the new generation of consumers, who are open to buying devices capable of powering splendid experiences,” said Anuj Sidharth, Deputy Director, Marketing & Communications, MediaTek.

“Many a times, our customers do not know much about the technology that goes into their devices. Amazon Ads along with MediaTek is building “MediaTek Days”, an initiative to help educate customers and help them understand their devices better. This campaign will ensure that MediaTek reaches to relevant audiences for their wide range of smart devices across consumer segments and price points. MediaTek Days on Amazon is sure to grab eyeballs and create buzz for MediaTek, Amazon, and our OEM partners,” said Ajay Sharma, Head of Ad-sales (Smartphones, Consumer electronics & Large appliances).

MediaTek Days at Amazon will showcase devices from some of the popular brands powered by MediaTek. The campaign will also help people discover new devices and best-fit solutions for their technology requirements.

Know More About MediaTek Days: amzn.to/39PtyxW.

Industry Leaders at the 5th Annual India Leadership Summit 2022
 

5G network rollout is expected to add USD 450 billion to the Indian economy, increasing the pace of development and creating jobs. Reiterating this sentiment Hon. Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently said that 5G technology will bring positive change in the governance of the country, ease of living, and ease of doing business especially newer opportunities for the B2B businesses

“5G is not just speed and connectivity, it is the differentiator that will enable technological advancements, interoperability and newer opportunities and globally connected ecosystems. With 5G deployment almost at our doorstep, India has an exciting future to look forward to, and the onus is now on the telecom industry. We must collaborate and capitalize on our underlying capabilities to enable seamless 5G deployment and pave the way for unprecedented connectivity. 5G will disrupt the way we lead our lives, with the digital ecosystem poised to facilitate capacity and innovation beyond our expectations,” said Anku Jain, Managing Director, MediaTek India. “India’s infrastructure is readying itself for the upcoming revolution and MediaTek, the 4th largest global fabless semiconductor company and a frontrunner in the 5G technology, is prepared to lead from the front towards a smarter sustainable future.”

Lt. Gen Dr. S.P Kochhar, Director General, COAI said, “We are delighted to be a part of 5G Leadership Summit as it brings forth the ideas and recommendations of the industry on the role of 5G and how it will digitally transform each sector. With the Prime Minister’s inauguration of the 5G testbeds, the industry is on the pathway towards indigenization of 5G and it opens up opportunities for various other new-age technologies such as big data analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), etc. which will drive major innovations across industries - Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Healthcare, Transportation and bring us closer towards our vision i.e. Digital India. Some of the challenges such as robust infrastructure and RoW policies are being discussed at length among the regulatory bodies and the Gati Shakti Sanchar Portal launch is another welcome milestone for the telecom sector. We are happy that work on 6G has started and committees are being made, which COAI is a part of. We look forward to working closely with the regulatory bodies and service providers to navigate through the challenges and further amplify the initiatives launched by the Government of India.”

Mr. Amit Khatri, Co-founder, NOISE, said, “We are ushering into the next era of innovation, where wearables and 5G can come together to do wonders. The new generation of connected wearables will be able to transform user experience massively when it comes to health, sports, fitness, and holistic wellness. We are glad to be a part of this revolution.”

Tarun Pathak, Research Director, Counterpoint said, “Devices are an integral part of the entire 5G ecosystem through which end users and enterprises will realize the value add and transformational power of this new G and this time it will expand far beyond just consumer devices. In such a scenario a strong 5G device ecosystem both on consumer and enterprise side is a must and 5G India Leadership Summit touched upon some of the important aspects related to the same.”

Rahul Sindhwani, CEO, Konnect Worldwide Business Media, added, “Industry has realized the importance of Physical in Person Meets in the Pandemic. The 5th edition of 5G India Leadership Summit further cemented our resolve in designing quality platforms to empower industry leaders in terms of interacting, connecting and exchanging ideas - thereby leading to a positive change. This year witnessed participation of 100 plus participants from marquee telecom ecosystem. It was highlighted in this year’s edition India aims to roll out 6G telecom network by end of decade. We are thankful to the industry for the overwhelming support to 5G Leadership Summit."

At MediaTek event 

MediaTek also reiterated its commitment to deliver customized, power-efficient and innovative 5G experiences, powered by the innovative Dimensity 5G Open Resource Architecture, which offers OEMs closer-to-metal access on 5G chips. The company is also keen on enabling disruptive technologies and boosting R&D capabilities to further expand its India footprint over the next few years. With 5G likely to be deployed soon, MediaTek is upbeat on 5G prospects in India and is offering solutions aimed at enabling the entire smart device ecosystem. The streamlined vision was announced on the sidelines of the 10^th Chapter of MediaTek Technology Diaries- “Rise to Incredible with MediaTek Flagship”, focused on the latest technology trends from MediaTek and the smartphones/smart devices market in India.

Panel discussion in progress

“Auto-connectivity & 5G are driving new-age technology adoption across the eco-system. This is not only making electronic devices more interesting but also enabling seamless experiences for customers. With a comprehensive portfolio including gaming, automobiles, connectivity, smartphones, tablets, optical drives, AR/VR solutions, Chromebooks and cloud computing, India is one of the biggest growth markets today. We are collaborating closely with our OEMs to create incredible experiences and flagship solutions basis the diverse and changing customer demands and requirements,” said Anku Jain, Managing Director, MediaTek India.

“MediaTek Dimensity 5G chips are leading the global technology domain and MediaTek Dimensity 9000 is the world's first 4nm TSMC 5G Mobile SoC, taking 5G experiences to the next level. With innovative technology now easily accessible, customization is the need of the hour, with OEMs spending countless hours to create personalized smartphone experiences. As a brand that listens to its customers’ demands and tailors smartphone features without wasting precious time in the go-to-market journey,” said Rituparna Mandal, General Manager, MediaTek Bangalore.

“With closer-to-metal access to customize features for cameras, displays, graphics, artificial intelligence (AI) processing units (APUs), sensors and connectivity sub-systems, the platform enables unmatched personalization, permitting OEMs to create differentiated smartphones which can then be marketed to their preferred consumer segments.”

The event saw insightful interactions around current topics including

• Flagship experiences - MediaTek Flagship chips promise a rise to the incredible - Dimensity 9000 5G smartphone chip for next-generation smartphones. MediaTek Dimensity 8100 and Dimensity 8000 system-on-chips (SoCs) that bring flagship level technology – connectivity, displays, gaming, multimedia and imaging features – to premium 5G smartphones.

• MediaTek Dimensity 5G Open Resource Architecture - This will enable OEMs to create more customized consumer experiences, with closer-to-metal access to unlock customized consumer experiences that differentiate flagship 5G smartphones.

• Rise to Incredible - MediaTek is a leader in 5G technology, powering innovative smartphones and enabling ultra-fast, near-zero-latent 5G network. MediaTek is also enabling incredible performances across 5G modems for PCs, Wi-Fi hotspots, broadband customer premise equipment (CPE), industrial IoT applications, and more.

• Smart Devices - MediaTek remains a market leader in digital TVs, voice assistant devices, Wi-Fi routers and other smart home products with a portfolio that caters to a wide range of customers across smartphones, smart homes, automotive, IoT and home/enterprise connectivity segment.

• Wi-Fi 7 - MediaTek has the broadest Wi-Fi portfolio and is the No. 1 Wi-Fi supplier across broadband, retail routers, consumer electronics devices and gaming. It is also the first company to showcase the real potential of the forthcoming MediaTek Wi-Fi 7 Filogic connectivity portfolio in live demonstrations for key customers and industry collaborators.

• MediaTek Pentonic - MediaTek unveiled its new Pentonic smart TV family with the introduction of the Pentonic 2000, which will power next generation flagship 8K TVs. The MediaTek Pentonic smart TV series is built on MediaTek’s innovative technologies in display, audio, AI, broadcasting and connectivity.

Speaking at the event, Navnit Nakra, India CEO and Head of India Region, OnePlus India, said, "At OnePlus, we are committed to creating user-centric technology that provides the best possible experience for our community, a vision that is shared by our friends at MediaTek. We are taking a major step forward in this regard with our latest collaboration for the upcoming ‘R’ series product. It was a wonderful experience to be part of MediaTek Technology Diaries and we would like to congratulate the MediaTek team on a successful event."

Talking about the relevance of Metaverse, Upasana Joshi, Principal Analyst, Mobile Phones, IDC India said, “Metaverse can be considered as a 'digital reality' or more specifically a shared virtual environment that will combine some aspects of AR,VR, Social Media, Cryptocurrency, Online Gaming and more. And once the high speed 5G spectrum is available in India, the use cases like virtual events, gaming, fashion shows and digital commerce is likely get more immersive.”

Tarun Pathak, Research Director, Counterpoint Research said, “Technology has the potential to disrupt various segments but we need a very strong foundation for that, which 5G can offer us. If you look at existing smartphone features like the camera and graphics, we have followed a very different way of positioning it, when it comes to consumer experiences. Going ahead, AI will play a big role in these features, followed by the silicon behind it.”

According to Prabhu Ram, Head, Industry Intelligence Group, Cybermedia Research (CMR), “Over the course of the pandemic, there has been a 31 percent increase in game time among serious gamers. Today’s passionate gamers seek enhanced and consistently rich AI-powered gaming experiences, with responsive touchscreens, and ultra-reliable connectivity, amongst others. Going ahead, the smartphones and smart devices will become our access points for everything innovative, from unprecedented gaming experiences to the metaverse. For the consumer, peak performance made possible by powerful processors is what will count.”

Kartik Vasudevan, Director for Strategic Accounts - India, GfK said, “As per GfK Consumer life, 62% of surveyed urban Indian consumers, especially the millennials and Gen Z, look for devices that offer meaningful experiences and this is where 5G is poised to disrupt the Indian smartphone market. Consumers want to future proof their purchases with 5G enabled handsets and thus, we expect 5G contribution to be between 30-40% in 2022 with disruptions in mid-tier price bands."

The Technology Diaries series is an interactive and informative event aimed at demystifying the newest technologies set to transform peoples’ daily lives.

For more information, please visit:

• i.mediatek.com/technology-diaries.
• i.mediatek.com/mediatek-5g.

NetRack NSTR Series empowers the 5G telecom revolution
 

Positive change

The offering of 5G is much more than just an upgraded replacement for 4G LTE since it, in a way, evolved and improved the modern communication system. This has, in turn, led to the improvement of infrastructure to host such a change with flexibility and scalability.
 

The following are the changes commonly observed with the advent of 5G.

• High-speed internet

• Reduced latency

• Energy saving

• Cost reduction

• Improved coverage
   

However, what’s noteworthy is the implication of 5G power in the telecom industries. Its ultra-lean design played a significant role in decreasing network energy consumption compared to 4G LTE or the ones before that. The objective of telecommunication companies is to optimize energy usage with a combined deployment of 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G so that a good load-dependency can be established between served traffic and the energy consumed. This is an essential aspect of high-performance networks and low energy consumption. So, the concern looms large if 5G genuinely consumes less power than the ones before that, even with the traffic growing exponentially. Considering the traffic patterns and the power consumption in the 5G network, one cannot ignore its standard of signal synchronization and bandwidth.

Durable server rack solutions
Bearing in mind the importance of the impact of the 5G network, any downtime in the infrastructure can cost the telecommunication companies heavily. Hence an efficient telecom rack is a necessity. The server and network rack solutions are robust and made up of steel sheets to ensure the enhanced capability of the equipment and wiring that help run the 5G network.

To cater to this growing market of server racks, NetRack designed the NSTR series. These are racks of various configurations that telecommunication companies can use. These racks have a vented top cover with a fan installed. Also, it has a perforated metal door and plain side panels with a lock and critical facility.
 

Benefits of NSTR series

1. Confirms to ETSI-21 Standard

2. 600, 700, and 800 width configurations are available

3. 100% assured compatibility

4. Integrated with cable management 50mm, 100mm, and 150mm

5. Powdered coated for durability and smooth finish

6. Inbuilt grounding and bonding options

7. Mount fan module for ventilation and airflow management

8. Glass or perforated front door

9. Locking features

10. Inbuilt vertical cable organizer

Air Comm, an award-winning wireless communications and solutions provider, deployed Hiver - a Gmail-based customer service solution. With Hiver, the Air Comm team significantly improved the efficiency of its customer service team with better visibility, along with a 25% improvement in the response rate to queries, driving a faster and superior customer service experience.

At Air Comm, the support team works on requests to help its field sales team reach out to customers, or execute admin work like adding leads to the CRM.  As the team grew, it was difficult to keep track of the emails. There was no visibility into emails in the queue or issues that had not been resolved yet - significantly reducing accountability and efficiency of the team.

With a larger team, email management became a nightmare. Team members had to forward entire email threads to collaborate on customer conversations while keeping teammates in Cc - not the most convenient way to discuss a support query. The team managed over 4000 support requests every month through a cluttered @support inbox - one that had no visibility, hazy accountability, and reduced efficiency.

With Hiver, Air Comm has turned their email lists into Shared Inboxes within Gmail. This implementation helps the team stay on the same page. Hiver’s Automations have made the process of email assignments time-efficient and effortless. Everyone in the Air Comm team has access to all customer conversations without any manual interventions.

Since implementing Hiver, Air Comm’s support team has seen a 25% improvement in the response rate to queries, fostering a culture where every customer gets faster responses and top-notch service, further saving them 195 hours every month.

In addition to improving the team’s efficiency, Hiver also gives the team’s manager complete visibility into the ownership of emails, their status, and how workload is distributed within the team - fostering accountability and avoiding duplicate responses to the same customer. Whenever a support team member needs help with a query, they can just tag a teammate with @mention and write a Note to that person. This feature helps the team collaborate on emails without having to forward them internally, saving time with faster collaborations among team members.

Tai Roach, Support Team Manager, Air Comm, said, “Gmail without Hiver makes going through your inbox a frustrating affair. Just reading through 150 emails a day is very time-consuming, even if other people have handled a good chunk of it”. She further added, “Hiver can keep things structured and get things done on time.”

Niraj Ranjan Rout, Co-founder and CEO of Hiver, said, “We’re glad that Hiver has helped Air Comm manage faster customer service efficiently and productively. For companies to garner lasting partner relationships and goodwill, timely responses are critical. At the same time, it is essential to have crystal clear accountability and visibility into the team's workflow for smooth and efficient internal and external functioning. Hiver gives customer service teams the tools they need to manage operational challenges of sharing team emails successfully.”

About Hiver

Hiver is a Gmail-based customer service solution that helps teams across the organization collaborate on shared inboxes like services@, orders@, support@.

To know more, please visit: hiverhq.com.

Mavenir’s collaboration with AWS allows Communications Service Providers (CSPs) to deploy Mavenir’s market leading 4G and 5G products and applications with AWS’s computing infrastructure, state of the art container deployment and management technologies, and big data analytics services. The solution is designed to scale and leverages the same tools and technologies offered by AWS to enterprise applications today. These tools are the backbone for visibility and automation for any AWS-based offering and generally referred to as Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS). This translates to offloading some of the telco application business to cloud functions, reducing complexity and putting service providers at par with organizations enjoying cost savings from cloud migrations without losing insight, performance, and control on their networks.

Another key element from this collaboration is the enablement of Private Networks and Edge deployments on AWS, powered by Mavenir’s Digital Enablement platform. With a digital app store for enterprise and various industry 4.0 applications such as IVA, AR/VR, IIoT and Robotics control, Mavenir’s Edge AI application suite is empowering an ecosystem of developers, service providers, partners, and enterprises to create and deploy applications in AWS to power digitalization and industry 4.0 with 5G.

This collaboration also lowers the network deployment time and cost for MNOs and enterprises equally fulfilling use cases of either adding 5G and edge capabilities to an existing network or a greenfield 4G/5G network launch leveraging public clouds.

“The collaboration with Mavenir and AWS allows us to build out our 5G network and messaging platforms in a true cloud-native manner, harnessing the speed and agility that the AWS cloud brings along with Mavenir’s expertise in deploying and operating cloud-native network functions,” said Sidd Chenumolu, Vice President of Technology Development, DISH.

“Together, we will enable our customers to take full advantage of the potential of 5G, reimagining wireless connectivity and giving our customers the ability to customize their network experience.”

“Working with AWS enables us to bring new customer-focused 5G use cases and 5G deployments to the market faster and with unique capabilities to realize true 5G potential,” said Bejoy Pankajakshan, Mavenir’s Chief Strategy Officer. “Mavenir’s solutions are designed to support full public cloud as well as hybrid cloud deployments.”

“We’re delighted to collaborate with Mavenir to offer voice and messaging solutions for core network and RAN customers along with AI/ML solutions for orchestration and observability,” said Amir Rao, General Manager Telco Solution Portfolio and Tech Alliances, AWS. “Together, we are providing true cloud native benefits to CSP customers, combining Mavenir’s expertise in the NFV market with the global scale of the AWS infrastructure to meet industry challenges of agility, scaling, slicing, and resiliency.”

Mavenir’s 4G and 5G deployments on AWS provides unique capabilities, including:

1. Integration of Mavenir’s cloud-native Open RAN (vDU, vCU-CP, vCU-UP), Converged 4G/5G Packet Core, IMS, and Messaging with Amazon Elastic Kubernetes Service (Amazon EKS) anywhere supporting AWS Outposts.

2. Use of AWS platform services and tools to deploy and manage cloud native network functions.

3. Options for existing deployments to migrate Mavenir’s IMS core, voice, and messaging solutions to Amazon EKS and Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) infrastructure.

4. Mavenir’s Orchestration and Network Slicing solutions to manage hybrid cloud workloads running on AWS.

5. Adoption of AWS for centrally managed telco workloads on far-edge, network edge and core simultaneously.

6. Deployment of Mavenir’s standards compliant observability framework, RIC, NWDAF, AIOps and Analytics platform in AWS to collect the data from various AWS nodes in a centrally managed data lake and process the data using AI/ML for network wide insights and optimization.

7. Integration of Mavenir’s telecom adaptation layer (Telco PaaS) as a common open source-based platform adaptation layer designed for telco specific workloads to support various carrier grade requirements on top of Amazon EKS and AWS PaaS functions.

About Mavenir

Mavenir is building the future of networks and pioneering advanced technology, focusing on the vision of a single, software-based automated network that runs on any cloud. As the industry's only end-to-end, cloud-native network software provider, Mavenir is focused on transforming the way the world connects, accelerating software network transformation for 250+ Communications Service Providers in over 120 countries, which serve more than 50% of the world’s subscribers.

For more information, please visit www.mavenir.com.

VideoMeet Virtual Background

Since its inception, VideoMeet has always been the go-to option for video conferencing for its large and committed user base.

Corporates, Schools and other institutions use the Made-in-India application due to its ease of logging in the meeting and other user-friendly features.

VideoMeet comes with an intelligent system to detect and auto increase/decrease the bandwidth requirement of video call as per the quality of internet available on endpoints. The virtual backgrounds get automatically applied and adjusted according to the user/host preference and provide an almost live experience to all the participants. This is very useful considering people are having meeting from all kind of places and background need to be more professional looking.

Captioning being one of the resourceful features, help to build smoother communication between people from diverse backgrounds. VideoMeet is the only application to roll out this feature with Hindi and English captions and plans to introduce all Indian regional languages with future app updates.

The purpose behind introducing this feature was to reduce the intensity of disturbing elements in the meeting and uphold a convenient communication channel between participants.

The application was conceptualized last year as a result of MeitY’s 'Made in India Videoconferencing Challenge’ where it received acclaim and appreciation. With a capacity of holding virtual conferences of almost 2000 people, VideoMeet is capable of replacing other foreign alternatives when data privacy is of utmost importance. Data breaching has become a common practice, servers of multinational companies are being hacked, and with the usage of homegrown apps, Indian corporations can control this.

Elaborating upon the same, Dr. Ajay Data, Founder of VideoMeet, said, “India is riding on a digital wave with a user base of 500 million people. However, this unprecedented growth has come in the absence of strong legal frameworks amid a pandemic, so protecting data and users' privacy is vital. Therefore, there is an ardent need for local IT players to design and build apps that not only offer end-to-end encryption but also promise information and meetings hosted are on local servers to ensure the safety of sensitive business and trade information.”

2020 saw a meteoric rise in the adoption of digital technologies across all business functions including stakeholder engagement. As the hybrid workplace becomes a reality, India Inc. feels it is essential to embrace virtual as a virtue to fortify trust and deepen engagement with stakeholders.

Bringing together the pioneers of stakeholder engagement, Chorus Call India, a leading conferencing solutions provider, organized a first-of-its-kind virtual symposium to delve into the nuances of shareholder management in the virtual world. The event saw participation from industry stalwarts such as Mr. Suresh Narayanan, Chairman and MD at Nestle India Ltd., Mr. Mohandas Pai, Chairman, Aarin Capital and Manipal Global Education and a Padma Shree awardee, Mr. JN Gupta, Co-founder and MD, SES and former Executive Director, SEBI, Mr. Murli Subramaniam, General Counsel & Company Secretary at Nestle India Ltd., Mr. Kabir Ahmed Shakir, Global CFO, Tata Communications Ltd., Mr. Sandeep Batra, CFO, Crompton Greaves Consumer Electricals Ltd. and Ms. Shweta Arora, Head - Investor Relations at Hindustan Zinc Ltd.

Focusing on the vitality of good governance and its impact on stakeholder value, Mr. JN Gupta underscored how organizations should go above and beyond the specified laws to achieve good governance and create long-term value through sustained engagement with stakeholders. His address was followed by a panel discussion moderated by Mr. Mohandas Pai. Hailing India Inc. for demonstrating good governance amidst such crisis, he went ahead to pose questions on the impact of the pandemic on shareholder engagement. Citing respective experiences, the panelists threw light on how virtual AGMs resulted in higher shareholder participation and engagement and how they are looking to shift from week-long roadshows to virtual platforms. Elucidating on the benefits of technological solutions such as those offered by Chorus Call, organizations such as Nestle India Ltd., Tata Communications Ltd., Crompton Greaves Electrical Ltd. and Hindustan Zinc Ltd. successfully navigated challenges around two-way communication or around voting.  

In his keynote address, Mr. Suresh Narayanan emphasised on the importance of corporate compassion over corporate ruthlessness. Articulating the five Cs that constitute stakeholder management - Context and purpose, Calibrating performance matrices, Culture of trust, transparency and timeliness, Continuity of the business model and Competitive advantage in managing shareholder expectations, he stressed upon the vitality of the message, irrespective of the medium as that is key to stakeholder engagement.

Host and convener of the session, Mr. Jerry Bindra, MD, Chorus Call India said, “We all knew that video will be the next big thing in the collaboration solution industry and over the course of the last one year we have become more comfortable with video conferencing calls for businesses. As the hybrid workplace becomes a reality, one of the key priorities for leaders today is how to keep stakeholders engaged. Constant engagement through virtual meetings, whether it is AGMs, quarterly earnings calls, CEO town halls has become increasingly crucial for organizations. At Chorus Call, we have been tracking this shift and are curating and managing large scale virtual corporate meetings that truly matter. We have delivered over 4,000 virtual meetings over the course of the last year, working towards creating a more permanent solution that fits the hybrid world.”

The session was organized to guide custodians of stakeholder management on how they can elevate shareholder engagement at a time when the AGM season is picking pace. The event saw participation from over 200 CFOs, company secretaries and investor relations and compliance professionals. The learnings and experiences of the industry leaders brought a multi-dimensional perspective on how virtual can be embraced to enhance shareholder engagement. The message underscoring the purpose and intent, delivered timely, accurately, and consistently on the right virtual platform is imperative to bring a near in-person experience in this era of hybrid workplaces.

Although the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) has now allowed AGMs to be conducted through VC on or before December 31, 2021, it has in the latest circular made it clear there is no blanket extension this time round for companies, especially for those that had to conduct AGMs by December 31, 2020. As per industry reports, virtual AGMs have seen better turnouts with practically no technical glitches and no interruptions from combative shareholders, giving the comfort to CXOs to move their engagements online.

The conference recording can be viewed at ccwebcast.com/virtue.

About Chorus Call India

Chorus Call is a global teleconferencing service provider with over five decades of international experience. The company is uniquely positioned by virtue of being the only conferencing services company in the world which is also a market leader in the design and manufacturing of audioconferencing equipment, through the brand name Compunetix (www.compunetix.com).

Chorus Call has been successfully operating in India as a leading service provider and is well recognized for their high quality standards and superior customer service. What differentiates Chorus Call from the other collaboration platforms is that they combine technology with active managed support by a team of experts to ensure that every virtual event is delivered exactly as planned.

AI and machine learning (ML) in mobile network infrastructure is expected to lower costs by automating functions that typically require human interaction and to speed new revenue generating service offerings, becoming increasingly important as edge, open radio access networks (Open RAN), and 5G cores get deployed.

Mavenir’s AI and Analytics portfolio includes solutions designed to analyze and derive inferences from vast amounts of unstructured data to automate networks, achieve cost savings, and build out 5G use cases. Many Industry 4.0 use cases such as Intelligent Video Analytics and AR/VR are enabled by 5G that require AI-driven inferences at the edge. Mavenir’s portfolio includes these AI-enabled applications for Network Automation, Intelligent Operations, EdgeAI, and Network Security.

1. Network Automation: Mavenir’s RAN Intelligent Controller (RIC) and Network Data Analytics Function (NWDAF) follow the specifications introduced by the O-RAN Alliance and 3GPP and operate as the heart of a network automation vision. The RIC and NWDAF enable the network to dynamically adapt to traffic conditions using machine learning (ML)-based algorithms and applications that can be deployed in any network in a multi-vendor environment. Mavenir’s containerized RIC and NWDAF product capabilities include:

• Non-RT RIC: designed to host advanced ML algorithms (rApps) to optimize network performance and train ML models using long-term RAN data for dynamic and adaptive policy for RAN performance optimization.

• Near-RT RIC: designed to host trained AI/ML models (xApps) to infer and control O-RAN functional elements in near-real time.

• NWDAF: designed to ingest data from 5G standalone (SA) network functions and to provide various analytics and intelligence services for smart network operation.

2. Intelligent Operations: By automating network operational processes with AI and analytics solutions, operators should be able to substantially reduce the cost and time from traditional, more labor-intensive methods such as drive testing, log inspection, troubleshooting, and manual calibration. With AI-based prediction engines, operators can achieve intelligent capacity planning and reduce the possibility of large-scale network outages. With anomaly detection capability, operators can uncover underlying network faults that are not easily visible. This AI-driven Operations (AIOps) solution using ML techniques plays a key role in reducing operating expenses and gives operators complete control over their networks.

3. 5G EdgeAI: Mavenir’s 5G EdgeAI solution includes Intelligent Video Analytics that can support myriad of use cases from facial recognition to anomaly detection for smart city and industry 4.0 use cases. Next generation of AR/VR applications are accelerated and enhanced by this edge platform. Large number of sensor data gets analyzed and actions are taken in a matter of milliseconds by the edge Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) analytics application.

“AI is the key driver for Industry 4.0, providing real-time insights & control of industrial processes. Low latency, high density of 5G are also enablers, so in essence, the combination of 5G and AI = Industry 4.0,” said Kuntal Chowdhury, SVP and GM, Mavenir AI and Analytics Business Unit. “While Mavenir’s AI and Analytics solutions are now available as standalone solutions, we have been offering intelligent insights as integrated solutions to Tier 1 customers around the world for years. Currently over 200 systems are deployed in more than 80 customer networks and our solutions process and analyze billions of records per day, offering real-time/near-real-time insights to optimize network performance with little to no human intervention.”

4. Network security: As new vulnerabilities arise, Mavenir’s Fraud Management and Security Suite protect the network in real-time with predictive analytics and ML. The Real-Time Fraud Management and Security analytics is leveraging unique ML algorithms and a specifically designed framework suited to manage the volume, velocity, and variety of structured and unstructured data over wireless networks. 

“Mavenir Security and Anti-Fraud Solutions based on AI/ML are taking care of on-going revenue savings at Telefónica Argentina,” says Diego Quevedo, Core Network Solution Design Lead, Telefónica Argentina. “We are in close cooperation with Mavenir to ensure the up-to-date protection of our network.”

“Mavenir’s approach of applying Real-Time Machine Learning technology to protect key operator services and revenue has been highly valued by customers,” said Ilia Abramov, VP and GM, Mavenir Security BU. “New threats raised in the recent years and increasing attack vectors on Mobile Network Services have been successfully detected and blocked though our installed base. The increased level of trust of our AI/ML technology has been confirmed with substantial growth in additional network implementations in the last year.”

“Leveraging our deep AI/ML knowledge and advanced capabilities enables Communications Service Providers to optimize, automate and advance their mobile networks for the future of 5G,” said BG Kumar, President, Mavenir’s Communications Services Business Group. “Network automation and service protection driven by AI/ML are core capabilities of Mavenir and one of the highest priorities of our customers, and we are proud to provide this solution set to enable them to realize their vision.”

Mavenir’s AI/ML and Analytics solutions and Fraud/Security solutions are deployed at multiple Tier 1 operator networks across North America, EMEA, and APAC regions. Additionally, Mavenir is dedicated to continuous AI/ML innovation through the R&D Center of Excellence in Brno, Czech Republic, and R&D in Richardson TX and Bangalore, India.

About Mavenir

Mavenir is the industry's only end-to-end, cloud-native Network Software and Solutions/Systems Integration Provider, focused on accelerating software network transformation. Mavenir offers a comprehensive end-to-end product portfolio across every layer of the network infrastructure stack for communications service providers and enterprises. From 5G application layers (VoLTE, Messaging) to Packet Core and RAN, Security, Edge Analytics and AI, Mavenir leads the way in evolved, cloud-native networking solutions enabling innovative and secure experiences for end users.

Leveraging innovations in Mobile Core with IMS (VoLTE, VoWiFi, Advanced Messaging/RCS), and Packet Core (vEPC, 5G Core) as well as Radio Access/Edge (OpenRAN), Private Networks, as well as Mobile Services and Applications such as Digital Enablement. Mavenir accelerates digital network transformation for more than 250+ CSP customers in over 120 countries, which serve over 50% of the world’s subscribers. www.mavenir.com.

Enhancing affordability in device financing, the partnership unlocks ease of 4G access for Vi^TM customers, by enabling them to get a smartphone of their choice and an annual or half yearly Vi^TM prepaid recharge plan at zero down payment and Easy EMI’s from BFL.

As part of the partnership the EMI will be calculated basis the total billed amount including the price of the smartphone and the recharge. Thereafter, the amount will be divided into 6 to 12 monthly instalments to derive the EMI amount.

If customers opt for the INR 1197 Vi^TM Pre-paid recharge for 6 months tenure, the EMI amount required to be paid by the customer will be INR 200 instead of INR 249 open market recharges. In case, a customer opts for the annual Vi^TM recharge variant priced at INR 2399 for 12-months tenure, EMI amount required to be paid by customer is INR 200 instead of INR 299 open market recharges thereby giving customers significant savings. Here the customer gets the unique advantage of being able to save by paying the amount on affordable EMI’s.

As part of the bundled offering, Vi^TM customers choosing the pre-paid recharge with a validity of 6 months, can get Unlimited Voice benefits along with 1.5 Gb Data/day at INR 1197. Similarly, customers selecting for 12 months recharge validity, will get 2 Gb Data/day along with Unlimited Voice benefits at a profitable INR 2399. Both the proposition also offers 100 free SMS and free national roaming, against the recharge at the time of purchasing the device.

Commenting on the partnership, Avneesh Khosla, Chief Marketing Officer, Vodafone Idea Limited said, “Enabling a better tomorrow for our consumers is at the core of our philosophy. We have a strong 4G network which covers 1 Bn Indians and we aim to unlock 4G access for all our customers. As COVID has fast tracked digital adoption, a smartphone has become a necessity in today’s digital society. Vodafone Idea is delighted to partner with Bajaj Finance Ltd. to equip our consumers with easy access to enjoy the benefits of the GIGAnet network. This partnership, with its unique financing solution, enables ease of ownership of a smartphone of their choice and the convenience of a worry-free recharge pack; allowing consumers to seamlessly enjoy the benefits of the Digital era.” 

Customer can avail this hassle-free finance in 2392 locations of operations of Bajaj Finance Ltd. through the vast Point-of-Sale (PoS) network of 70000+. Vi^TM customers will be able to walk into any PoS and upgrade their smartphone.

Speaking about the alliance, Manish Jain, Senior Executive Vice President, Bajaj Finance Ltd. said, “It is our constant endeavour to bring to our customers more and more unique affordability offerings. This partnership offers a first of its kind proposition to help a new mobile customer get unmatched comprehensive savings.”

Vodafone Idea’s partnership with Bajaj Finance Limited has been forged with the aim of providing easy access to the best handsets for our customers also allowing them to experience the benefits offered by GIGAnet from Vi^TM- India’s fastest and most consistent 4G network, as certified by Ookla.

About Vodafone Idea Limited

Vodafone Idea Limited is an Aditya Birla Group and Vodafone Group partnership. It is India’s leading telecom service provider. The Company provides pan India Voice and Data services across 2G, 3G and 4G platform. With the large spectrum portfolio to support the growing demand for data and voice, the company is committed to deliver delightful customer experiences and contribute towards creating a truly ‘Digital India’ by enabling millions of citizens to connect and build a better tomorrow. The Company is developing infrastructure to introduce newer and smarter technologies, making both retail and enterprise customers future ready with innovative offerings, conveniently accessible through an ecosystem of digital channels as well as extensive on-ground presence. The Company is listed on National Stock Exchange (NSE) and Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) in India.

The company offers products and services to its customers in India under the TM Brand name “Vi”.

For more information, please visit: www.MyVi.in and www.vodafoneidea.com.

Twitter - @VodaIdea_NEWS

About Bajaj Finance Limited

Bajaj Finance Limited, the lending company of Bajaj Finserv group, is one of the most diversified NBFCs in the Indian market catering to more than 44 million customers across the country. Headquartered in Pune, the company’s product offering includes Consumer Durable Loans, Lifestyle Finance, Lifecare Finance, Digital Product Finance, Personal Loans, Loan against Property, Small Business Loans, Home loans, Credit Cards, Two-wheeler and Three-wheeler Loans, Commercial lending/SME Loans, Loan against Securities and Rural Finance which includes Gold Loans and Vehicle Refinancing Loans along with Fixed Deposits. Bajaj Finance Limited prides itself on holding the highest credit rating of FAAA/Stable for any NBFC in the country today.

To know more, please visit: www.bajajfinserv.in.

VectorMob Team
 

“We wanted to present an opportunity for our clients to take advantage of the various innovations and analytics provided by us in the Internet Marketing space with a clutter-free and efficacy led campaigns that have yielded astounding results. The use of AI, real-time and data mining techniques has enabled us to engage a wide range of audience through relevant content marketing. This techno-marketing acumen has helped us grow exponentially despite the pandemic and economic degrowth across,” commented Susheel Puri, Co-founder of VectorMob.

VectorMob has worked with more than 50 leading brands, 120 publishers across the digital advertising space and are connected to more than 30 Telecom Operators worldwide leaving behind a vast network of a digital footprint that helps them with the dissemination of “right data to for the right people”.

“The convergence of media has helped to shrink the consumer market-place leading to a window of opportunities for advertisers to connect directly with their target audience. Our experience in Telecom Marketing, push-based strategies has enabled our partners to reach out to their target segment with higher efficacy rates and pinpoint accuracy. The results have been amazing, leading to our team managing multiple campaigns even during the lockdown period,” said Rachna Puri who herself has managed the Telco space for over two decades.

Some of the leading brands have worked with VectorMob for their push Marketing services followed by entertainment houses to leverage their innovative digital competence. VectorMob is currently headquartered in Mumbai with their R&D team located in Mohali.

Global organizations continue to put their customers’ cardholder data at risk due to a lack of long term payment security strategy and execution, flags the newly released Verizon Business 2020 Payment Security Report (2020 PSR). With many companies struggling to retain qualified CISOs or security managers, the lack of long-term security thinking is severely impacting sustained compliance within the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS).

Safe & unsafe connections to COVID-19 related domains

Payment data remains one of the most sought after and lucrative targets by cybercriminals with 9 out of 10 data breaches being financially motivated, as highlighted by the recent Verizon Business 2020 Data Breach Investigations Report (2020 DBIR). Within the retail sector alone, 99 percent of security incidents analyzed by the 2020 DBIR were focused on acquiring payment data for criminal use.

The 2020 PSR found that on average only 27.9 percent of global organizations maintained full compliance with the PCI DSS, which was developed to help businesses that offer card payment facilities protect their payment systems from breaches and theft of cardholder data. More concerning, this is the third successive year that a decline in compliance has occurred with a 27.5 percentage point drop since compliance peaked in 2016 (as seen in the 2017 PSR).

“Unfortunately we see many businesses lacking the resources and commitment from senior business leaders to support long-term data security and compliance initiatives. This is unacceptable,” said Sampath Sowmyanarayan, President, Global Enterprise, Verizon Business. “The recent coronavirus pandemic has driven consumers away from the traditional use of cash to contactless methods of payment with payment cards as well as mobile devices. This has generated more electronic payment data and consumers trust businesses to safeguard their information. Payment security has to be seen as an on-going business priority by all companies that handle any payment data, they have a fundamental responsibility to their customers, suppliers and consumers.” 

Additional findings within the 2020 PSR shine a spotlight on security testing where only a little more than half of the organizations (51.9 percent) successfully test security systems and processes as well as unmonitored system access and where approximately two-thirds of all businesses track and monitor access to business critical systems adequately. In addition, only 7 out of 10 financial institutions (70.6 percent) maintain essential perimeter security controls.

“This report is a welcome wake-up call to organizations that strong leadership is required to address failures to adequately manage payment security. The Verizon Business report aligns well with Omdia’s view that the alignment of security strategy with organizational strategy is essential for organizations to maintain compliance, in this case with PCI DSS 3.2.1 to provide appropriate levels of payment security. It makes clear that long-term data security and compliance combines the responsibilities of a number of roles, including the Chief Information Security Officer, the Chief Risk Officer, and Chief Compliance Officer, which Omdia concurs with,” comments Maxine Holt, Senior Research Director at Omdia (previously known as Ovum).

Lack of compliance impacts all businesses regardless of size

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMB) were flagged as having their own unique struggles with securing payment data. While smaller businesses generally have less card data to process and store than larger businesses, they have fewer resources and smaller budgets for security, impacting the resources available to maintain compliance with PCI DSS. Often the measures needed to protect sensitive payment card data are perceived as too time-consuming and costly by these smaller organizations, but as the likelihood of a data breach for SMBs remains high it is imperative that PCI DSS compliance is maintained.

The on-going CISO challenge

The report also explores the challenges CISOs face in designing, implementing and maintaining an effective and sustainable security strategy, and how these can ultimately contribute to the breakdown of compliance and data security management. These problems were not found to be technological in nature, but as a result of organizational weaknesses which could be resolved by more mature management skills including creating formalized processes; building a business model for security as well as defining a sound security strategy with operating models and frameworks.

About the Verizon Business 2020 Payment Security Report

Verizon has published the Payment Security Report (PSR) since 2010, the first-ever study on the actual value and performance of the Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard (PCI DSS). The report is based on global data gathered by PCI DSS qualified security assessors (QSAs) from Verizon and other five external contributors.

As Committed as Ever - With India, For India

The 20-year Campaign

Commemorating the occasion is the new 20-year anniversary logo. Its colours inspired by India’s national bird, the Peacock, while the flowing lines and swirl of myriad hues of the ‘Zero-0’ symbolize India’s essence – Unity in diversity of cultures, ethinicity and people, a dynamic nation perpetually evolving and growing. The ‘Samarkan’ font used to write ‘India’ is inspired by the scripts of popular Indian languages Hindi, Marathi, and Bengali – a modern India that carries its traditional identity as it marches into the future.

Huawei also launched advertisements reiterating to be “As Committed As Ever” to India’s digital journey. The commitment, supported by its three business groups, focuses on its vision of building a strong Digital India. The images in the creative pay homage to key cultural icons of India, celebrating the diverse culture of this ancient nation. Along with the advertisements Huawei India will also release a video narrating its two-decade dynamic journey in the country.

20 years of bringing digital to every person, home and organization for a better connected and intelligent India

Since the start of its R&D Center in Bengaluru in 2000, Huawei’s presence in India today is the largest overseas and most localized. In the last 20 years, Huawei has developed its three business groups (Carrier, Consumer and Enterprise) and become a strategic partner for India’s digital transformation. Huawei Carrier Business Group has been a reliable partner as network infrastructure supplier for India’s telecom service providers. It has supported India’s network requirements, introducing many industry first innovations like Narrowband 4G LTE, India’s first 5G microwave in 2018, pre-5G tech solutions such as Massive MIMO and CloudAIR and also conducted the first 5G network trial under a test set up.

For the Consumer Business Group, India is a priority market, where its flagship products from Huawei have been launched. The Enterprise business has become a key driver of the digital transformation of enterprises and SMEs in India, owing to a wide portfolio of vertical solutions for across industry sectors in the Indian market.

Collaborating with the Indian ecosystem, Huawei has procured multiple high-end IT services, engineering services and products from various India companies. By enabling this collaboration, Huawei is engaged to integrate Indian ecosystem to the global value chain. As an ICT global player, this is one of Huawei’s key contributions to enable a self-reliant India.

Huawei India R&D Center is a key design & development hub & delivery center of Huawei for the local and international markets. The India R&D center focuses on developing ICT software, end-to-end telecom solutions, consumer device software, industry standards and providing professional services for global operators. Huawei’s India operations are further strengthened by its largest Global Service Center in Bengaluru and the OpenLab New Delhi.

Automation with industrial IoT is the ability to connect sensors, devices, equipment, software applications, manufacturing production processes, workers, and end consumers and 5G technologies will be even more significant for enterprises to support the rigorous requirements of critical communications.

The event brainstormed to identify the requirement of industry verticals and readiness of Indian ecosystem partners to provide the reliable connectivity, infrastructure and services. The event witnessed participation from TSPs, Telecom OEMs, Manufacturing industry players, System Integrations who will play critical role in furthering Industry 4.0 in India to stimulate and accelerate the digitization road map of the industries.

Speaking at the event, Lt. Gen Dr. SP Kochhar, Director General, COAI said, “We at COAI are delighted to have this partnership with 5G-ACIA. To make Industry 4.0 Happen with 5G, there is a need to collaborate across verticals with telecom operators and manufacturers to see how 5G gets commercially deployed in the country and to ensure that all possible industry verticals and Government work in sync for developing the ecosystem.”

During the event Dr. Andreas Mueller (BOSCH), General Chair, 5G-ACIA, shared his opinion stating, “5G may lift Industry 4.0 to the next level and enable unprecedented degrees of flexibility, productivity and efficiency in industrial manufacturing. 5G-ACIA is happy to collaborate with COAI to jointly pave the way for the success of Industrial 5G in India and around the globe.”

Sharing his thoughts during the event, Dr. Afif Osseiran (Ericsson), General Vice Chair, 5G-ACIA, stated “India is one of the top 10 manufacturing globally. Efforts have recently been made to accelerate the progress in Industry 4.0 both by the government and industries in cities like Pune, Chennai. 5G-ACIA alliance hopes by having a closer collaboration with COAI and 5GIF, this will further raise awareness about industrial 5G and how manufacturing use cases can leverage from 5G. Further, in order to deliver a vital 5G ecosystem for automation industries major stakeholders including vertical industries, MNOs and regulators have an important role to play."

5G-ACIA is the central global forum for shaping 5G in the industrial domain. On one platform, various industries from all over the world jointly create a new ICT and OT ecosystem and set the frameworks for a highly attractive emerging market.

About 5GIF

5G India Forum (5GIF) - an industry collaborative forum, was established to enable synergizing the national efforts and play a significant role in shaping the strategic, commercial and regulatory development of the 5G ecosystem in India.

About COAI

COAI was constituted in 1995 as a registered, non-governmental society. COAI’s vision is to establish India as the global leader of innovative mobile communications infrastructure, products and services and achieving a national teledensity of 100%, including broadband. The association is also dedicated to the advancement of modern communication and towards delivering the benefits of innovative and affordable mobile communication services to the people of India.

About 5G-ACIA

The 5G Alliance for Connected Industries and Automation (5G-ACIA) is the central global forum for shaping industrial 5G standards. 5G-ACIA members jointly prepare for the disruptive change 5G will bring, promote a better understanding of industrial needs, and gain insights into a highly attractive emerging market. 5G-ACIA provides a unique global platform for OT and ICT companies, academia, and all relevant stakeholders to influence 5G development and deployment in line with industrial imperatives. They make the results of their work directly available to 3GPP, the main standardization body for developing 5G. 5G-ACIA is a market representation partner of 3GPP and has the formal status of a working party of ZVEI e.V.

For more information, please visit: www.5g-acia.org.

JUMPNET’s technology also enables them to impact the education sector directly and thus, was born, Edmission. Edmission offers a ‘phygital’ model of education for learners and educators across the world. It is also the first truly democratic platform for educators to reach out to potential learners by having access to completely equipped studio shoot facilities as well as an integrated learning management system (LMS).

GAIA means ‘Earth’ and at JUMPNET, their ecosystem is incomplete without a direct connect to Mother Earth. GAIA AgriTech works with farmers of the Konkan region to produce organic milk and eggs in a transparent, no middle-men, technology driven environment. Using technology, GAIA AgriTech intends to ensure all farmers have complete KYC, every step of production and payment will be stored and authenticated securely as nodes in JUMPNET’s data centres providing a completely private, secure and distributed network.
 

Harshawardhan Sabale, Managing Director, Jump Networks Ltd.

JumpTalk is a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service and a video conferencing solution for businesses that enables users anywhere in the world to make high-quality audio and video calls to anywhere in the world. The power of JumpTalk lies in its backend technology that allows callers to call ANY device, be it smartphones, feature phones or even landlines! At extremely affordable prices, the user avails of unlimited calling by using a simple application.
 

Harshawardhan Sabale, Managing Director, Jump Networks Ltd., says, “At JUMPNET, we have always believed that our shareholders are our most important asset. As we grow, we want to continue to share the wealth we create with them and that’s what prompted us to adopt a dividend policy where we have reserved a minimum of 10% of our net profit after tax to be distributed amongst the shareholders. We hope to continue to generate more wealth for all our stakeholders.” According to market circles Jump Networks Ltd. is an excellent buy due to its unlimited growth potential.
 
About Jump Networks Limited
Jump Networks Limited is a proprietary digital ecosystem that is providing next generation technology services on sub-optimal networks to the “Next Billion” i.e. populations that have not crossed the digital chasm. The ecosystem system aspires to create state-of-the-art, affordable technology solutions to build, develop and facilitate the sustainable digital inclusion of the masses across the globe.

The network of intelligent poles installed by Indus Towers in partnership with Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) in 2018 under Government’s Smart City Mission has been playing a vital role in keeping people safe, informed and connected during the ongoing COVID-19 situation. The fibre network and smart poles is helping VMC create awareness about COVID-19 by disseminating important information 24X7 on a real-time basis through the Variable Messaging Displays across the city. The smart poles with integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) has also been capturing data from all major applications as well as feed from various cameras installed across the city are continuously monitoring the implementation of COVID-19-related activities and adherence to the restrictions.

During the period of March to May, there has been about 100% surge in the data consumption through the Wi-Fi network. There has also been an increase of 40% in the number of people using Wi-Fi around hospitals indicating the crucial support the network is providing to citizens and healthcare professionals. 

A senior official from VMC, as part of the smart city mission said, “In the battle against the novel coronavirus, fibre network and smart poles are working as an important link for efficient dissemination of information and service to the citizens of Vadodara. During the lockdown, Vadodara recorded a 40% hike in the usage of Wi-Fi, especially in residential and specific areas next to the hospitals and VMC offices indicating that the network helped people and healthcare workers stay connected. We have also integrated My Vadodara app with the VMC portal to provide access to a dedicated section on vital information related to COVID-19.”

Nishith Dave, Circle CEO, Gujarat, Indus Towers said, “Telecom infrastructure has been playing a crucial role in ensuring people remain connected and have access to internet enabled services. We are proud that our infrastructure and technology delivered on the promise of transforming the lives of citizens in Vadodara by harnessing the power of smart technology, especially during this challenging time. The multiple application of intelligent poles is a testament to our capability and experience to execute such infrastructure projects.”

Indus Towers has always enabled connectivity in India, in the face of calamitous natural disasters and adversity. At present, the field employees of Indus Towers are enabling seamless 24x7 connectivity for smooth functioning of the essential services as well as the digital operation that are dependent on the company’s infrastructure. The field personnel of Indus Towers have equipped themselves with the necessary safety gear and working round the clock, even in designated hotspot regions. They have ensured continuous functioning of the mobile tower, which is most critical when it comes to enabling seamless connectivity.

About Indus Towers Limited

Indus Towers Limited is an independently managed company offering passive telecom infrastructure to all telecom operators. Indus is headquartered in the National Capital Region. Founded in 2007, Indus Towers Limited has been promoted under a joint venture amongst (i)  Bharti Infratel Limited (group company of Bharti Airtel Limited, rendering telecom services in India under the brand name Airtel), (ii) Vodafone India Limited (group company of Vodafone Group-UK) rendering telecom services in India under the brand name Vodafone, since merged with Idea Cellular Limited and (iii) Aditya Birla Telecom Limited (group company of Idea Cellular Limited, now re-named as Vodafone Idea Limited) which created history by collaborating to share telecom towers & infrastructure.

Indus has presence in 15 telecom circles of India and has achieved over 2,41,663 tenancies till date. With the current count of over 1,29,697 towers, Indus has the widest coverage in India and is one of the largest telecom tower companies in the world. 

Indus Towers has been actively involved in developing scalable models for smart cities. The company’s approach is to enable the integration of the digital infrastructure with the existing infrastructure. Recently, Indus Towers collaborated with Dehradun Smart City Limited (DSCL) as part of its efforts to make Dehradun a smart city.

Indus’ vision of “Transforming Lives by Enabling Communication” is setting a new paradigm for a networked economy, on a world leading scale, whereby there is inclusive and impactful growth for all.

For any further information, please visit the website www.industowers.com.

Mid Term Symposium (MTS) is a flagship program of IETE. This year the theme chosen was on “Digital Forensics and Information security” said Dr. Thakare. Opening remarks on MTS was given by Mr. Kulchandra Singh, Chairman, IETE Imphal Centre and concluding remarks came from Mr. Ajay Kumar, Zonal Mentor, East, IETE.

“On this occasion of World Telecommunications Day & Information Society Day and Mid Term Symposium of IETE, I would like to share the strategic step IETE has taken by launching its dream project “Centre of Excellence on Cyber Security and Critical infrastructure security” last week. IETE is on transformation path in digital era to serve the society,” said Dr. J. W. Bakal, President, IETE. The program was presided over by Dr. Bakal.

Addressing the online participants, Dr. Manpreet Singh Manna spoke about the transformation which is taking place. “It is a fact that this is the time for us to adopt the transformation from chalk-board teachers to digitally enabled teachers. This is the path towards building a Nation for new tomorrow,” said Dr. Manna.

During the session, on the issue of trained manpower, Professor Dr. Raghunath K. Shevagoakar, Vice-Chancellor, Bennett University & Ex. Director IIT Delhi said that the educational institutions will have to take the responsibility for developing the resources. “It will have to be University or any other Institution to develop manpower with right thinking and skills. If handled right, this will enable us to mould the future of this nation with high ethical values with assured sustainability,” said Prof. Dr. Shevagoakar. According to him, ICT is going to play a very important role in achieving the high standards of professionalism in this sector.

“On our part, we have been driving digital transformation and redefining telecommunications on the back of our comprehensive portfolio of network equipment, software, services and licensing opportunities,” said Mr. Samar Mittal, Vice President & Market Head, NSW, India, Nokia. He apprised the participants on the developments in the area of Internet of Things (IoT) Security and Automation and discussed various use cases.

During the ‘MTS’ session, Mr. Prasad Patibandla, Cyber Threat Intelligence Analyst touched upon digital forensics trends, incident handling procedures on cyber-attacks and various forensic and investigation tolls and procedures for Law Enforcement Agencies.

According to Dr. Anup Ghirdhar, CEO, Sedulity Groups and Cyber Crime Investigator, there is an increase of over 90 per cent in internet traffic during COVID-19 lockdown period. “This has thrown open many challenges for experts,” he added.

“Cyber security issues like hacking, malware attacks, corruption of data and software due to computer viruses, breaking of secured passwords, taking control of computers from remote locations have also grown in tandem and has become a key area of concern. These too need to be addressed effectively,” added Dr. Babu Lal, Chairman Redefine Dimensions Convergence Pvt. Ltd. & former Executive Director, BHEL. He also emphasized that Cyber Security in the 21^st Century is a Matter of Global Coordinated Response.

However, the most challenging issue during this period is cyber related crime. “To check the various unwanted cyber related activities. It has become mandatory that the various related aspects of cyber laws need to be propagated across the public domain,” said Dr. Pawan Duggal, Advocate, Supreme Court & Expert on Cyber Law.

Digital currency like Bitcoin and Blockchain security are a matter of concern and hence more research is required in future said Mr. Anupam Tiwari, Joint Director (Computers & Communication), Government of India.

About IETE

Founded in 1953, the Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers (IETE) is a leading professional society devoted to the advancement of Science & Technology in Electronics, Telecommunications, Information Technology, Computer Science and other related disciplines. IETE 65 Centresspread all over India including one at Perth (Australia) and Kathmandu (Nepal) respectively.

To keep pace with technological development and achieve the mission of advancing the profession, it organizes conferences, conventions, symposia, seminars, workshops, publications and brainstorming sessions for continued knowledge upgradation of its members.

While speaking at the inauguration of the ‘Centre of Excellence: Cyber Security and Critical Infrastructure Security’, Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Dr. Rajesh Pant said, “Cyber Security has become very important during COVID-19. We are passing through a very serious situation at the moment. This timely step by ‘The Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers’ (IETE) India will have full support from my Department.” 

Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Dr. Rajesh Pant in his address advised IETE to focus around Hardware Security and align its efforts with Mission of Government of India like ‘National Quantum Mission’.

Setting up of the ‘Centre of Excellence: Cyber Security and Critical Infrastructure Security’, is part of the initiative of IETE’s future growth strategy.

While conveying his sincere gratitude to the Chief Guest Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Dr. Pant for his valuable advice on bringing a focus to specific area of Cyber Security, particularly hardware security, Dr. J.W. Bakal, president, IETE shared a broad outline of the CoE. “IETE’s focus is to support Government of India’s effort in creating a strong ecosystem for Cyber Security in the areas of IoT, Smart City, Industry 4.0 and Hardware Security,” said Dr. Bakal. He also emphasized that the connected ecosystem covers smart factories, smart grid and smart supply chain therefore issues of data security and privacy are of great importance.

Dr. N. Sarat Chandra Babu, Executive Director, Society for Electronic Transactions and Security (SETS) Chennai, in this keynote address gave an overview of current and emerging trends in Cyber Security. In addition to industry-academia association; industry led applied research, he emphasized on collaboration amongst R&D organizations to arrive at a holistic indigenous solution in cyberspace. “We have to address the growing challenges of cyber threats by training a large pool of skilled manpower. For this, an appropriate training infrastructure as to be in place. CoE by IETE is a step in this direction,” said Dr. Sarat Babu. According to him there is a need for preparedness of the nation in terms of Cyber Security in Quantum Era by focusing on Post Quantum Cryptography and Quantum Key Distribution Technologies. 

On this occasion, a tech-webinar was also organized on Cyber Attacks & Mitigation Strategy and Vulnerability & Penetration Testing. Dr. T.R. Reshmi and S. Karthikeyan, Scientists, SETS Chennai delivered a holistic perspective on the above important topics. This session was followed by an interactive Q&A session.

Dr. Shiv Kumar, Co-Chair, Skill Development and Industrial Committee, IETE thanked IETE Governing Council for the support and guidance on CoE. He also thanked Electronic Sector Skill Council (ESSCI), Telecom Sector Skill Sector Council (TSSC), Information Security Education and Awareness (ISEA), Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) for extending their active support and he also thanked the participants.

During their address, Dr. Bakal and Dr. Sarat Babu applauded the initiative taken by Dr. Kumar for the efforts in launching the CoE.

About IETE

Founded in 1953, the Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers (IETE) is a leading professional society devoted to the advancement of Science & Technology in Electronics, Telecommunications, Information Technology, Computer Science and other related disciplines. IETE 65 Centres spread all over India including one at Perth (Australia) and Kathmandu (Nepal) respectively.

To keep pace with technological development and achieve the mission of advancing the profession, it organizes conferences, conventions, symposia, seminars, workshops, publications and brain storming sessions for continued knowledge upgradation of its members.

About SETS

Society for Electronic Transactions and Security (SETS) is an initiative of the Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor (PSA) to the Government of India. An idea to form a specialized organization, in the area of information security was conceived of by Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and implemented by Dr. R. Chidambaram through the Office of the PSA.

It was set up for the purpose of nucleating, sensitizing and developing provable security designs that can protect the information wealth of the country and that can be used in applications of Information Security products and services.

In terms of numbers, according to a MoveInSync report, until 20th March, 52% of total employees across India are working from home. Pune has the highest WFH with 63% followed by Bangalore with 61% of WFH employees. Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad and NCR follow the sequence with 58%, 54%, 41% and 39% respectively.

Mr. Deepak Sivakumar, TCS

So much so, that according to a report by Forbes, Microsoft Teams – the instant messaging collaborative app as part of the O365 suite of products, has seen a 775% increase in usage with over 44 million active users per day cumulatively generating over 900 million meeting minutes (includes audio and video calls). The emergence of the WFH situation has seen many companies like Microsoft, Google, Facebook and Cisco offer their enterprise specific collaborative software solutions such as Teams, Hangouts, Workplace and Cisco Webex free of cost for nearly 6 months.

While some of them may look at this as a stop-gap arrangement (depending on the nature of their work), others are exploring the possibility of a WFH as a long term solution. Here I have explored some innovative practices and techniques which can be implemented by organizations (more specifically – IT/ITeS) in order to make this a big success.

Clear your Workspace: How often in the midst of our hectic work do we take time to clear off those clutter of mails occupying a lot of space in our mailbox? Maybe occasionally we do for professional mails, but personal? Doesn’t it give a good feeling seeing your mailbox empty? My suggestion would be to run a contest wherein employees can choose to delete their long-haul of unread mails in their inboxes (either professional or personal), post a selfie in the social media handle of the organization overlooking their empty inbox! This not only helps in having a clean inbox, but to an extent helps in a brand building activity! Who knows, this may go viral with employees of many other companies following suit!

Goal Setting for the week: It does help to set goals and try to accomplish them. More so in the case of an emergency situation which calls for WFH. Associates can be asked to give an approximate summary of the tasks they might be expected to do/they can possibly do this week; hence the supervisors will have an overall understanding of the work which can be done by the associate. It helps them to plan better for the days ahead also. A unified productivity tracker (like Microsoft To-Do) which not only helps in easy entering of the tasks, but also better viewing of the productivity dashboard among teams can be used rather than depending on static excel sheets which may be difficult to enter and also not uniform among various teams.

Connectivity Devices:

• Indian telecom service providers have seen a 10% surge in overall traffic due to WFH. (Business Standard)

• Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) estimates that data consumption on average has increased 30% in the lockdown period.

• The pressure on Indian networks is high because broadband penetration is very weak in India. Out of 687.62 million internet users, 22.26 million are wired broadband and remaining 665.37 million are wireless internet users. (Economic Times)

• This unprecedented situation has forced major streaming giants such as Youtube, Netflix, Amazon Prime and Hotstar to lower the quality of the video streaming to SD from their usual options of HD and 4K resolutions to cater to the expected increase in viewership traffic.

The most important of them all! Proper connectivity is required to ensure business continuity. Running a small survey to find out what internet plans/bandwidth/price the associates are using in their homes will help in getting a holistic view of the state of connectivity present in their homes. If they are using any unreliable, poor network/speed broadband services in their homes, offer to pay for a hotspot device which can be delivered to their home.

VPN For Security and Seamless Connectivity: It ensures a high level of security and safety and all work should be done only through them. Having a clear cut VPN policy helps in proper utilization and also, clear demarcation of the timings for intensive business operations and processes (in order to experience less outages). For e.g. the load on the bandwidth might be significantly lower in late nights as not many people are using – hence any business critical activity can be done at this time to lower chances of intermittent disruptions. Also, if there is any scheduled/unscheduled power cut in a particular area, there must be a way to validate the above and accordingly transfer/allocate the tasks to another set of associates.

Have a WFH Day Every Month (In Rotation Among Teams): In order to prepare for such unforeseen circumstances, just like how we have a mock fire-drill, we can have a model WFH day (in future) in rotation among various teams in the organization to get them acclimatized to the environment of remote working. Introduce it in the official on-boarding programs, get feedback from employees regarding any difficulties they have faced during this period. It can be particularly beneficial to the Gen-Y of employees, who would ideally be not that tech-savvy or proficient with the latest messaging, productivity and collaborative tools.

Connect with the Client: A New Initiative: A webinar can be conducted where any representative from the client account can brief all the members of the account regarding what measures are being taken by them during this period of lockdown, answering the potential doubts and queries which the associates might have. This not only ensures better understanding of the gravity of the situation from both sides, but also create a congenial atmosphere between the employee and the client.

Also, have a special feature about each one of the teams during the monthly newsletter of your company which describes the critical support and help offered by the team at the time of emergency, testimonies, the innovative initiatives done by them which made the delivery seamless and on-time and also suggestions to other teams on how to effectively improve productivity during WFH. This can go a long way in improving team bonding and also give them a feeling of self-recognition and help them gain visibility for all the efforts they have undertaken.

Share your Knowledge:

There may be a few features in some collaborative tools which may not be known to all the associates. Hence an initiative where a person can share a tool-funda a day which may be new to all and which can help in the better usage of productivity and collaborative tools will go a long way in making everyone aware of the tool! Rewards and recognition for the best ideas!

Connect with your HR/Delivery Head:

A reassuring word from our senior can go a long way in boosting our spirits and confidence, isn’t it! Well, what better a time to do it than now! An associate has an exclusive opportunity to connect with the delivery manager on completion of a few tasks/courses related to his/her domain/tech. This will not only encourage learning and act as a pride of honor for the associate, but also bridge the gap between the hierarchy.

Similarly, some randomly picked associates can be given a personal call by the HR to enquire about their well-being, any difficulties they face while WFH and addressing any doubts/queries if any of the associate. This will greatly boost up the self-esteem of the employee!

Freshers: Reassurance and Engagement: It’s as important to deal with your future workforce as to deal with your present workforce. A reassuring mailer to those who have landed campus recruitments for the ensuing year describing them the major highlights of the previous year, the achievements so far, the various business units, technologies on offer, the roadmap of events, important persons to know etc. will kindle awareness among the future associates in knowing more about this stream. As they would have ideally finished their undergrad/postgrad and would be relatively free, this initiative coupled with some challenges/tasks assigned to them apart from their usual on-boarding LMS modules/courses will greatly help them in contextually becoming ready to join your ever-growing workforce! They can become easily deployable in teams, and also can save out on the time, money and effort being spent in onboarding them when they eventually join your company.

To sum it up, I may not have given any automation or technology specific solutions to help an organization sail through these difficult times. There are always experts on those lines! People are the human capital of an organization and it is they who define the organization. Hence methods and initiatives which enhance their well-being, confidence, productivity and team building are the ones which are needed in these times of a global challenge. This will not only prove effective in an emergency situation, but also become part and parcel of their professional life in whatever field, whichever company and wherever they go!

About the author

Deepak Sivakumar is currently working as a Business Analyst in Tata Consultancy Services. Prior to that, he did his bachelors in electronics and communication from SASTRA University and completed his MBA from Symbiosis University, Pune. An avid reader, blogger and a technology enthusiast, he loves to analyse current affairs and the latest developments in tech. 

He can be reached at deepaksivakumar92@gmail.com.

Left to Right:

• Mr. Sivarama Krishnan, Leader, Cyber Security, PwC
• Shri Amit Sharma, Advisor (Cyber) & Director at the Office of Secretary, Department of Defence
• Mr. Shashi Dharan, Managing Director, Bharat Exhibitions
• Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Rajesh Pant, National Cyber Security Coordinator, Prime Minister’s Office, Government of India
• Mr. Vijay K. Devnath, GM (I&S, MDMS & CISO), Center for Railway Information Systems (CRIS)

According to Lt. Gen. Pant the new policy is expected to touch all aspects related with the cyber ecosystem. The policy is expected to be announced within two to three months time. The Cyber policy would address the issues of standardization, testing, auditing and capacity building around Cyber ecosystem. “The most important aspect of the policy would be to address the cyber threat and synergies between various stake holders,” he added. India is 2^nd most cyber attacked country in the world.

As India has become one of the most data usage country in the world, there has been a considerable increase in the cyber risk vulnerability, which according to panelists could impact the GDP growth of the Country, if not addressed. The other important point of discussion during the Summit was the ownership of the data. “As an Organisation, we are exposed to appoxmately 30 million people on daily basis, of which we collect date of about 3 million people and also we have to manage the data of 1.4 million employees for over 45-50 years. While we have to provide service and also are required to manage the data, it becomes extremly difficult for us to manage both. Moreso, when ownership and privacy of the data is concerned,” said Mr. Vijay K. Devnath, GM (I&S), MDMS & CISO), Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS), Government of India.

“The issue of who own the data and where should data be kept has become an important issue,” said Shashi Dharan, Managing Director, Bharat Exhibitions.

According to Mr. Amit Sharma, Advisor (Cyber) & Director at the Office of Secretary, Department of Defence the Government of India has put in place various checks and balances to protect the data getting vunerable to cyber leakage. “The ownership of data is very critical. There are discussion happening around this aspect on international level. Our government proactive on this front,” informed Mr. Sharma.  

On the issue of CSO (Cyber Security Officer), Mr. Sharma said, “If this issue would have come up five years back, then we were putting make a headway. However, today at least every department of Government of India has a CSO.” Supporting Mr. Sharma statement on CSO, Mr. R. Shakaya, DDG (Security Assurance) DoT, Ministry of Communications said, “Besides the Government departments, CSO has become part of many private sectors also, like Banking and Telecommunication industries. However, a lot needs to be done on this front so as to reach a more secure cyber environment.” 

The common concern amongst the top cyber security experts gathered at the 6^th International Summit on Cyber Security India, 2020, was that the country was extremely vulnerable to cyber-attacks and how to put the counter measures in place.

Cyber Security India Summit 2020 was sponsored by IPification, Arcserve, Forcepoint, RamoGnee Technologies and Astrikos Consulting and Supported by Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), COAI and ITU-APT Foundation of India.

For more details on the event, please visit www.bharatexhibitions.com/en/CSI2020.

About Bharat Exhibitions

In a world where technology is erasing borders, it is indeed ironical that professionals find it increasingly difficult to maintain peer to peer contact on regular basis. Bharat Exhibitions fills in this space by managing and hosting some of India’s premier Telecom & IT events. We own niche and prestigious conference properties in the new generation technology arena such as 100 Smart Cities India, Cloud & Network Virtualisation India, 5G India, FTTH India Summit, SDN & NFV Summit, Data Centre India, Unified Communications India, Open Source Summit, WiFi India, Broadband Tech India, Smart-Sustainable Cities Technology & Innovation Summit, Cyber Security India, SMC Technology India and Telecom CXO Summit. We have a simple mission: Establish & deliver contacts that create value for your business.

For further details, please visit www.bharatexhibitions.com.

Kundan Das, Director of Business Development - APAC, Parallel Wireless receiving the Aegis Graham Bell award for Innovation in Cloud from Shri Pratap Chandra Sarangi, Minister for Micro, Small, Medium Enterprises

Aegis Graham Bell Awards (AGBA) promote innovations and entrepreneurship in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) domain. The awards were instituted ten years back by Aegis School of Business, Data Science, Cyber Security and Telecommunication to honor and reward organizations that make an outstanding contribution in these fields.

Parallel Wireless’ 2G/3G/4G/5G OpenRAN Controller and Network software was awarded in the `Innovation in Cloud’ category. The Parallel Wireless OpenRAN Controller and Network Software provides complete RAN orchestration, including self-configuration and self-optimization. The self-configuration helps in bringing down the need for manual intervention, while self-optimization allows in using available RAN data from the analytics module. This predictive approach is in contrast to the legacy reactive optimization approach and helps in improving user experience and in maximum utilization of the network resources.

On the other hand, Parallel Wireless’ OpenRAN solution was declared a finalist in the `Innovation in Telecom Infra’ category. The high cost of managing the legacy 2G and 3G deployments often prevents service providers in low ARPU markets to limit their expansion plans. The implementation of newer technologies further adds to the network complexity and the cost of managing the network.

Parallel Wireless’ 2G/3G/4G/5G OpenRAN solution disaggregates hardware and software and allows service providers to support subscribers on all G technologies without increasing their expenditure. Zain, Kalimat Telecom, MTN, Vodafone, Optus, Cellcom and Telefonica are just some of the service providers who are benefiting from this approach.

Supporting quote:

Kundan Das, Director of Business Development - APAC, Parallel Wireless, “We are committed to supporting the service providers in their journey towards a more open, programmable, and interoperable communications network. The high operational cost of managing 2G and 3G deployments prevents the service providers from expanding the network. Adding another layer to the existing network infrastructure only increases complexity. Our OpenRAN solution helps service providers to support newer 4G and 5G technologies even as they control their expenses. On the other hand, our OpenRAN Controller and Network Software platform uses the principles of virtualization to help operators bring their cellular network infrastructure to provide high-quality network experience for all coverage or capacity use cases. Winning the prestigious Aegis Graham Bell award reaffirms that we are on the right path to bring innovation to the traditional network architecture to help the telcos to connect the unconnected and also address the market challenges.”

About Parallel Wireless

Parallel Wireless is the only U.S.-based company challenging the world's legacy vendors with the industry's only unified ALL G (5G/4G/3G/2G) software-enabled OpenRAN solution. Its cloud-native network software reimagines network economics for global mobile operators in both coverage and capacity deployments, while also paving the way to 5G. The company is engaged with 50+ leading operators worldwide. Parallel Wireless's innovation and excellence in multi-technology, open virtualized RAN solutions have been recognized with 65+ industry awards.

For more information, please visit: www.parallelwireless.com. Connect with Parallel Wireless on LinkedIn and Twitter.

Mr. Ray with workshop delegates and Chief Guest TRAI Chairman Mr. R.S. Sharma and Guest of Honour CEO Prasar Bharati, Mr. Shashi S. Vempati along with Xperi Global VP, Mr. Ashruf El Dinary

While countries across the world have been transitioning their mass media from analogue to digital over the past 20 years, in India, Radio broadcasting has remained analogue inspite of radio listening being extremely popular, thereby, enjoying the status of a mass entertainment and social impact medium. The last change that happened was the advent of FM but it is still a poor cousin to internet and TV. It has been estimated that over 80% of listeners use the FM radio feature in mobile handsets largely as an entertainment source on their mobile phone. This becomes the underlying reason for any technology change in Radio such as the digital radio to be of importance in the mobile handset space.

Mr. Ramashish Ray, Founder of Retail Management Services

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Ramashish Ray, Founder of Retail Management Services, a Mobile Ecosystem Enabler and the company responsible for evangelizing the digital radio concept in mobility to India said, “It's encouraging that the Indian Govt has outlined a clear vision for digital radio and it would be really exciting to be part of the first Digital Radio mobile phone story like the first FM phone was. We are happy to have worked on mobile phone chipset level integration and reference designs which can enable this at India specific prices with mass deployment in India. This will be a key enabler to the ecosystem.”

The HD Radio system supports multiple audio programmes on a single transmission frequency. This is more effective than current analogue radio which provides only 1 audio programme per channel. These additional audio channels can be utilised for multi-language programming and local content. Best of all, listeners with an HD Radio receiver can continue to listen to their favourite analogue stations besides digital content free for listeners.

The system supports multimedia information, providing synchronized text and images with the audio programme without using any cellular data for an enhanced experience. HD Radio system also supports digital emergency alerting and notifications that can be instrumental in providing the public with resilient notification and actionable information (audio, text, images) during times of public emergency and network outages.

Radio broadcasting represents a cost-efficient system for transmitting information (currently audio) to millions of listeners simultaneously. Radio's "one-to-many" business model is the most effective point-to-multipoint transmission scheme available. The cost of content delivery is the same whether you reach one thousand listeners or one million listeners. Worldwide, daily radio listening represents over 60% of consumer media consumption surpassing TV and content streaming in many markets. In India, the increase radio broadcasting has resulted in an increase in radio listening, and is growing year-over-year. In his parting comments, Mr. Ray added, “We at RMS, are very charged up and excited to take the radio listening to the level it truly deserves to be. Imagine how multi channel can lead to large choices for various regional and cultural content at the same time or getting alerts on your mobile phone of your favorite radio show! Possibilities are infinite. It is a disruption waiting to happen!”

About RMS

A Singapore based company with a wholly owned Indian subsidiary Intartic.com, RMS (Retail Management Services SG Pte) is a Mobile Ecosystem Enabler that brings products, new technologies, services and investments together to markets. It was setup by ex Nokia and Samsung Global CXO professionals with wide experience in multi functions and multiple continents. The company RMS (www.rmsasia.com) has offices in Singapore and at Gurgaon represented by its wholly owned subsidiary Intartic.com (www.intartic.com).

From L to R: 

• Mr. Mandar Kulkarni, Director - Cloud Solution Architect Team (OCP), Microsoft
• Mr. Rahulkrishna Gupta, Senior Solutions Architect, SUSE GSI Alliance, SUSE
• Shri Debabrata Nayak, Project Director (Open Source Collaboration) & Addl. Director, Digital Locker, ​National e-Governance Division (NeGD)
• Mr. Harnath Babu, Chief Information Officer, KPMG India Private Limited
• Shri Vivek Banzal, Director (CFA), Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited
• Shri Golok Kumar Simli, Chief Technology Officer, Passport Seva, Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India
• Shri Sandeep Priya Pandey, AVP (GRC), Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN)
• Mr. Saurabh Jain, Vice President, Paytm
• Shri Sunil Kumar, Deputy Director General, National Informatics Centre (NIC)

The third edition of Open Source Summit was held on 6^th February 202 at New Delhi by Bharat Exhibitions.

During his keynote address Mr. Rahulkrishna Gupta, Senior Solutions Architect, SUSE GSI Alliance, SUSE highlighted the need for the developers to utilize a single application delivery platform, allowing them to stop worrying about the infrastructure and operational policy requirements and instead focusing on the user requirement. “Open source at any point of time would enable a developer to respond to business opportunities faster and with better alignment with their customers need,” he added.

“The Government of India’s initiative of Digital India requires solutions which are part of the open source paradigm. The need is that open source be used more effectively in terms of not just cost saving, but in terms of time also,” said Mr. Shashi Dharan, Managing Director, Bharat Exhibitions.

The primary goal of employing open source in government is also intended to facilitate the transfer of data as smoothly as possible. Open-standards proponents say that this approach would result in more innovation within government and better citizen services. The forum analysed the success stories that have been achieved and what are the real challenges that might be slowing down the growth. While Mr. Harnath Babu, Chief Information Officer, KPMG India Private Limited some about the challenges around Open Source. He further added, “No business strategy is complete if you do not have the Open Source strategy in place. As you will lose out on lots of Open Source solutions.”

Shri Golok Kumar Simli, Chief Technology Officer, Passport Seva, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India while speaking of Open Source solutions said, “As security is of paramount importance, we as per the Government’s policies make sure that the data remains in India.”

Commenting on the adoption of Open Source by the Government to India, Shri Sunil Kumar, Deputy Director General, National Informatics Centre (NIC) said, “The Government of India has encouraged the adoption of this technology in the Digital India initiative and this has further encouraged the CIO’s of enterprises and other government organizations to make a move towards Open Source technology. The rise of digital transformation in India has pushed the adoption of Open Source both by enterprises and government. According to a research, the Open Source Services market will be worth more than $30 billion by 2022. Open Source platform offers cost efficiency, scalability, innovation, rapid deployment, security and much more so it is the primary choice for Government of India to leverage the digital transformation initiative which is presently going on in the country."

Remaining Inaugural Panelists who shared their valuable views at the panel discussion are as follows: Shri Debabrata Naya, Project Director (Open Source Collaboration) & Addl. Director, Digital Locker, National e-Governance Division (NeGD), Shri Sandeep Priya Pandey, AVP (GRC), Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN), Mr. Saurabh Jain, Vice President, Paytm, Mr. Mandar Kulkarni, Director - Cloud Solution Architect Team (OCP), Microsoft.

3^rd Open Source Summit 2020 was sponsored by Microsoft, SUSE and Ramognee Technologies.

For more details on the event, please visit www.bharatexhibitions.com/en/OSI2019

About Bharat Exhibitions

In a world where technology is erasing borders, it is indeed ironical that professionals find it increasingly difficult to maintain peer to peer contact on regular basis. Bharat Exhibitions fills in this space by managing and hosting some of India’s premier Telecom & IT events. We own niche and prestigious conference properties in the new generation technology arena such as 100 Smart Cities India, Cloud & Network Virtualisation India, 5G India, FTTH India Summit, SDN & NFV Summit, Data Centre India, Unified Communications India, Open Source Summit, WiFi India, Broadband Tech India, Smart-Sustainable Cities Technology & Innovation Summit, Cyber Security India, SMC Technology India and Telecom CXO Summit. We have a simple mission: Establish & deliver contacts that create value for your business.

For further details, please visit www.bharatexhibitions.com.