BSNL introduces new GPRS Plans for its Prepaid and Postpaid subscribers
- Category: BSNL
- Tuesday, 31 August 2010 16:30
- Written by Puneet Jain
A few days back we were discussing about BSNL GPRS plans tariff on our Facebook Page and today we come to know that BSNL has announced revision of its GPRS plans' tariff for both Prepaid and Postpaid subscribers. We do not know if its co-incidence or something else, but whatever it is, its great news for BSNL GPRS users.Here are the details of BSNL's new GPRS Plans :
For its Postpaid users 4 new Plans are available at a fixed monthly cost of Rs. 49, Rs. 89, Rs. 199 and Rs. 249.
| Fixed Monthly Cost |
Free Data Usage
|
Charges beyond Free Data Usage | |
| Day/Any time usage | Night Usage | ||
| Nil | Nil | Nil | Rs.0.01/10KB |
| 49 | 300 MB | 2 GB | Rs.0.01/10KB |
| 89 | 2 GB | Nil | Rs.0.01/10KB |
| 199 | 2 GB | 4 GB | Rs.0.01/10KB |
| 249 | Unlimited | Rs.0.01/10KB | |
For Prepaid customers 7 new GPRS Packs are introduced :
| Recharge Voucher | Free Data Usage | Charges beyond Free Data Usage | Validity (in Days) | |
| Day/Any time usage | Night Usage | |||
| 7 | 100 MB | Nil | Rs.0.01/10KB | 1 |
| 14 | 200 MB | Nil | Rs.0.01/10KB | 3 |
| 54 | 300 MB | 2 GB | Rs.0.01/10KB | 30 |
| 98 | 2 GB | Nil | Rs.0.01/10KB | 30 |
| 219 | 2 GB | 4 GB | Rs.0.01/10KB | 30 |
| 274 | Unlimited | NA | 30 | |
| 555 | Unlimited | NA | 180 | |
BSNL took more time than usual to annouce this price reduction as most of the other telecom operators have already reduced their GPRS tariff long back. Anyways "Better late than Never".
PS : Prices mentioned above may vary a little bit from circle to circle. The above plans are valid from 1st September 2010.
Before recharging with above Prepaid GPRS Packs please confirm with your customer care if these packs are available in your state. Availability of these packs may be delayed in some of the states.
RCom forms 3G Business Team, plans 3G Innovation Lab
- Category: Reliance Mobile
- Monday, 30 August 2010 14:57
- Written by Puneet Jain
Reliance Communication today revealed its 3G Business Team and 3G Innovation Lab. In an all India bid for 3G spectrum, RCom has won 13 circles including the metros of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata.Reliance Communication has appointed Mr Prashant Gokarn as Head – 3G. was earlier involved in 3G roll out in several countries and has worked in companies like Spectrum, Anderson Consulting and S2T. At RCom, he was heading Corporate Strategy since 2008. Following his new mandate, he has moved to 3G business. He will also be a key member of RCOM’s Wireless Management Board.
RCOM has also roped in Google's former Head of Wireless Business Mr Suresh Jayaraju as Head -New Age VAS. He has an experience of over 14 years managing internet, media, and mobile technologies. Prior to joining RCom, his other assignments were with Tech Mahindra, OnMobile Systems Inc and Rediff.com.
As part of its 3G readiness plan, RCom has established a 3G Innovation Lab with end-to-end wireless network infrastructure. This Innovation Lab will be an integral part of RCom’s 3G operations offering real-time product developmental capabilities and time-to-market equation benefits to RCOM. The 3G Innovation Lab will be in line with RCom’s strategic focus to encourage innovations in mobile technologies.
The objective of the Innovation Lab is to facilitate the development of mobile service innovations through collaboration with 3rd party developers.
RCom’s 3G Innovation Lab will involve a community of content developers, product innovators, technology platforms enablers, device manufactures and OEMs. The collaborative unit will be formed through tie ups with top local as well as Global partners.
The Lab is a move towards the ‘Open Platforms’ architecture which encompass open systems, open networks, democratic framework for partners & consumers for availability of the best products based on the consumer’s usage. The Lab is established at Reliance ADA Group’s Headquarters in Dhirubhai Ambani Knowledge City, near Mumbai.
BSNL revises Prepaid EVDO tariff
- Category: BSNL
- Saturday, 28 August 2010 12:07
- Written by Bandhan Preet Singh
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) has announced the revision of its Prepaid EVDO tariff. Now there are four plans available for Prepaid EVDO customers. Plan 150 provides 500 MB of data usage, Plan 250 provides 1GB data usage. Plan 500 provides 2.5 GB data usage and Plan 750 provides unlimited data usage.
|
Charges |
Free usage limit |
Charges beyond free limit |
Validity |
|
|
1. |
Rs.150 |
500 MB |
Rs.1/MB |
30 days |
|
2. |
Rs.250 |
1 GB |
Rs.1/MB |
30 days |
|
3. |
Rs.500 |
2.5 GB |
Rs.0.80/MB |
30 days |
|
4. |
Rs.750 |
Unlimited |
NA |
30 days |
Please note that :
- The charges mentioned above will be automatically deducted from the account balance available in the customer’s account.
- The bundled free usage is also applicable while in national roaming.
- The data charges while in national roaming is the same as that of normal data charges.
- The bundled free usage is to be exhausted within the validity period of 30 days. No carry forward of unutilized free data usage will be allowed after the expiry of validity period.
Vodafone introduces special offers on Ramzaan in UP West
- Category: Vodafone
- Friday, 27 August 2010 16:54
- Written by Mihir Patil
Vodafone has announced the launch of E-Top Up 56 and an array of value added services this Ramzaan, for all its subscribers in UP West. Vodafone E-Top Up 56 offers 786 seconds for local Vodafone to Vodafone calls from 10 PM to 8 AM every night. Buyers of E Top Up 56 will be credited with 786 seconds everyday for a period of 30 days .Additionally, during the holy month of Ramzaan, customers can also subscribe to the following VAS offerings:
- Quran Alerts and other information like timings of Sehri and Iftari. For subscribing call *123*786#. Its charges are Rs. 30 per month
- For devotional caller tunes and delicious recipes for Ramzaan call 5674786. Its charges are Rs 6/minutes.
Pankaj Thapliyal, Chief Operating Officer, Vodafone Essar – UP West and Uttarakhand, said “It has always been our endeavor to connect with our consumers through innovative and relevant products and services. During this auspicious month of Ramzaan, consumers can avail any these services bringing them closer to religion, family and friends.”
Aircel launches GSM mobile services in Gujarat
- Category: Aircel
- Friday, 27 August 2010 10:42
- Written by Puneet Jain
From today one more Mobile Operator will fight for share of GSM subscribers of Gujarat. Gujarat already has 8 GSM Mobile Operators and the newest addition to this list is Aircel. Gujarat is the 22nd Telecom Circle where now Aircel is present. There are Ads of Aircel in today's edition of leading newspapers of Gujarat, however we were unsure about it launch in entire Gujarat of only few selected city so we contacted Aircel's Corporate Communications Head - Ms. Shalini Sethi, she informed us that "Aircel is present in all of Gujarat". We expect that competition in GSM space in Gujarat will get fierce with Aircel's launch in the state as Aircel is more established Telecom operator than the other operators which recently launched their services in Gujarat.Aircel's Prepaid SIM Card is available at Rs. 25. It comes with no talk time and lifetime validity. Prepaid subscribers have an option to choose from 3 FRCs priced at Rs. 77, Rs 123 and Rs. 222. For its Pospaid customers in Gujarat Aircel has introduced 4 Plans - Easy Minutes 499, Easy Minutes 799, Easy Minutes 999 and Easy Minutes 1999.
While writing this Article I received Official Statement from Aircel, Here are more details :
Mr. Gurdeep Singh, Chief Operating Officer, Aircel said, “We are proud to be here in Gujarat and present to our customers a National Brand with a strong local connect. We will be introducing products and services uniquely tailored to meet the special needs of our Gujarat consumers and open to them a world of possibilities. We have introduced, extremely innovative Pocket Internet cards an Industry first by Aircel to democratize Internet on the mobile which offer the consumers unlimited browsing for a period of 30days @Rs 98; 3days @Rs 14 and a one day pack @ Rs 5 respectively anytime anywhere.
In addition there will be a range of simple Postpaid Plans starting with a monthly rental of Rs. 499 with inbuilt 1400 minutes to be used across local, STD and roaming ( on Aircel network) along with 2500 SMS and inbuilt Pocket Internet and Unlimited dialer tunes for one month. The Gujarat launch brings us closer to the completion of our Pan India roll-out.”
Mr. Gurdeep Singh, added, “We attribute our success to our core values of trustworthiness, simplicity, strong local connect and service that is value for money. We bring these same values to serve Gujarat. With mobile penetration of 50% and Internet penetration of 8% in Gujarat, there are a lot of segment based needs that an operator can fulfill for better consumer satisfaction.”
Aircel, has introduced a Value plan with inbuilt VAS & Data @ Rs. 123 which gives you unlimited Pocket Internet surfing for a month and Unlimited dialer tunes with downloads at no extra cost. This is inclusive of free Stock Updates.
Simple value plan offers STD @ 1p/1sec , Aircel to others @ 1p/ 2secs and Aircel to Aircel @ 1p/3secs. The validity is for a period of 90 days. Aircel subscribers in Gujarat can carry home tariffs while roaming on Aircel network across India for a period of 90 days.
To address a significant population that has a strong base in US and Canada, Aircel provides an attractive ISD pack @1.6p/sec for 90 days inbuilt in the Simple Value Plan.
Aircel introduces a Business Pack in Gujarat for the SME’s with unlimited community calling and Data @Rs.199 /Rs 499/Rs 999 for 1month / 3 months/ 6 months respectively offering absolutely free local Aircel to Aircel calls & SMS and Aircel to others and STD @ 45p. This is inclusive of free Stock Updates.
Aircel announced the first PocketApps Store in association with Infosys this year. Aircel brings to its consumers in Gujarat thousands of applications with Aircel PocketApps, giving way to a million possibilities. For a weekly charge of Rs. 7, you can download as many free applications as you want which could be from tracking your expenses, monitoring your fitness, scanning restaurant menus to reading newspapers in regional languages or even getting road directions.
VAS services of Aircel includes localized content including a WAP Portal page in Gujarati for any GPRS handset. In addition to this, there will be Music on demand, CRBT and an innovative voice based Doctor-on-call service among others.
Apart from a Retail coverage Aircel will provide a range of both prepaid and postpaid products through its exclusive company outlets in Ahmedabad, Vadodara, Rajkot & Surat.
TATA DOCOMO introduces weekly subscription plan for its My Song service
- Category: TATA DoCoMo
- Thursday, 26 August 2010 14:56
- Written by Puneet Jain
TATA DOCOMO has introduced weekly subscription plan for its Ring Back Tone service - MySong users. The new weekly subscription are for both prepay and postpay subscribers.To activate MySong Weekly Plan, subscribers will have to pay weekly rental of Rs. 10 where they can download unlimited songs and change it free of cost by dialing 543217. Song validity remains lifetime and it allows a maximum of 50 songs in the library that can be played in the loop and can be added or deleted anytime. As an additional benefit, subscribers also have an option to set MySong tune as their caller tune by paying a monthly subscription of Rs 30 with no song download cost.
MySong Service is also available on monthly basis, wherein subscription charges are Rs 15 for 30 days, while Rs 10 per song download will be applicable. The validity for each song downloaded will be 90 days.
Reliance (GSM) launches new Unlimited Calling Pack in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh
- Category: Reliance Mobile
- Thursday, 26 August 2010 13:07
- Written by Puneet Jain
Reliance Communications has announced the launch of a new calling pack for its GSM prepaid subscribers in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. The unlimited local On-net GSM 249 Pack is priced at Rs. 249 with 30-day validity offers subscribers the benefit of making unlimited on-net free calls to any local Reliance Mobile on both GSM and CDMA networks. Local calls to other networks and STD calls with this pack costs 50 paisa per minute.Reliance Communications also launched a daily On-net Pack priced at Rs.12 for its GSM customers in Odisha. The new daily pack offers subscribers 50 minutes of talktime to make call to any local Reliance Mobile for the day.
S Tel launches its GSM services in North Eastern states - Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya
- Category: S Tel
- Tuesday, 24 August 2010 14:32
- Written by Puneet Jain
S Tel today announced the launch of its GSM services in the North Eastern states - Tripura, Nagaland, and Meghalaya. Starting with towns including Agartala, Dimapur, Udaipur, Kumarghat, Ranir Bazar, Chumukedima, Jowai ,Nongpoh ,S Tel is planning to expand its services so as to reach across 87 towns & over 26% of the population in the states by year end. S Tel is already present in one of the North East states Assam, where it commeneced its service in the month of July.S Tel's Starter Pack is available at Rs.49. It comes with 30 days validity. S Tel also offers per second plan (1p/1sec) with recharge of Rs. 6 with the starter pack. As an promotional offer, S Tel is offering full talk time on all top-ups.
S Tel customer care in North East can be reached at 9131012345 from any landline or mobile number. Besides this, S Tel users can access the toll free customer care number 1212.
Uninor introduces “Bandhan Offer” for Raksha Bandhan
- Category: Uninor
- Tuesday, 24 August 2010 11:22
- Written by Shabnam Sultan
Uninor has introduced a plan 50 STD Min Free on its Unlimited Local Plan where the subscribers can choose 197 Plan and can talk to their loved ones on the occasion of Raksha BandhanFor unlimited 197 plan users get 700 Local Min free on calls to any network in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, 2000 Local Uninor Minutes Free and now Raksha Bandhan Special 50 STD Minutes Free.
Uninor has also started a contest where users who are opting for Unlimited 197 between 18th and 25th August will have a chance to win daily prizes of free talk time, bike and handsets in lucky draw.
Vodafone WAP Connections in 3G Era?
- Category: Editorial
- Sunday, 22 August 2010 10:21
- Written by Nikhil Pai
Indian mobile subscribers are welcoming 3G data connections in the country but unfortunately one of India’s leading mobile operator, Vodafone, is still stuck in the WAP era. While most other mobile operators are now offering cheap full-fledged data plans, Vodafone is only offering its crippled ‘Vodafone Live’ in comparable price range & offers its more advanced ‘Vodafone Mobile Connect’ at very expensive prices.Price War for Data Plans
Recently the price war between mobile operators in India extended from voice to data plans with players such as Bharti Airtel & Tata DoCoMo launching new GPRS plans offering sufficient data in less than Rs.100 per month. For example, Airtel now offers 2GB plans for Rs.98/month while Tata DoCoMo offers 2GB plan for as low as Rs.48/month & 6GB plan for Rs.98/month. Other operators such as Aircel, Reliance & Idea also offer similar data plans to its subscribers.
Vodafone’s GPRS offerings
Now compare this with the new GPRS plans offered by Vodafone. Due to competitors offering sub-Rs.100/month data plans, Vodafone also started offering GPRS plans for less than Rs.100 per month but what most subscribers don’t realise is these plans only offer access to Vodafone Live & not Vodafone Mobile Connect.
On Vodafone Live you get basic internet access for browsing the internet only through a mobile browser. You cannot use your email client to send & receive emails. You cannot use most third party apps such as Fring or Nimbuzz. You also cannot use your phone as a modem to surf the internet on your laptop. If you need any of this, and chances are very high that you will, Vodafone gives you a standard reply: “You need to subscribe to Vodafone Mobile Connect”
Now packages for Vodafone Mobile Connect don’t come cheap. Postpaid packages start from Rs.199/month with no data included & go upto Rs.499/month for 500MB data & Rs.699/month for 1GB data.
The situation gets terribly worse if you are on Vodafone Prepaid as the only plan offered is Rs.199/month with no data included & download charges are priced at 5p/10kb. Assuming you download 2GB of data on a prepaid connection, your data bill alone will be a whopping Rs.10,685 (1024x2048/100/2 + 199). Now compare this to Rs.98 if you had a Airtel connection or Rs.48 if you had a Tata DoCoMo connection!
Final Words
Vodafone’s largest competitor, Bharti Airtel too offered separate Airtel Live & Airtel Mobile Office packages a while ago, with separate plans for prepaid & postpaid. However Airtel rectified this & now only offers a single Airtel Mobile Office plan for Rs.98/month for 2GB data for both its prepaid & postpaid customers. Airtel Live is now only a portal for downloading ringtones, wallpapers & other content.
Hopefully, Vodafone will soon discontinue offering crippled Vodafone Live plans in the sub-Rs.100/month range & offer Vodafone Mobile Connect instead.
Disclaimer: Most of the GPRS subscription rates mentioned herein may differ from circle to circle & depend upon your individual plan. We have used indicative rates for the purpose of this article.
