Archive for March, 2010
All BMW 5-series’s are not the same
March 31st, 2010 | 
Author: As with the 5-Series GT it is possible to spec the Five up with a variety of electronic systems (dampers, anti-roll bars and steering) and with these fitted it is a very different car.
Every car on the international launch had all of these systems fitted. The RHD 530d tested here has none. In the magazine version of this road test we try an active car back-to-back with the passive car, and recommend which systems are worth going for.
Unfortunately the online format doesn’t give us such flexibility, but in short – go for the dampers, avoid the steering, and the roll-bars are a matter of preference.
Hope this clears things up.
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Mobile – OECD has published policy recommendations on international mobile roaming
International Mobile Roaming Services: Analysis and Policy Recommendations
UAE – FNC telecom survey makes case for change
The Federal National Council study is the first detailed survey of its kind in the country and it was compiled by a special committee chaired by FNC member Hamad Harith Al Midfaa.
The study findings refute the common perception that telecom charges in the UAE are low compared with several other countries, especially those of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), a bloc of 30 countries.
The issue of high telecom tariff had also been raised in a recent FNC session, and when Emirates Business contacted the TRA, Director-General Mohammed Nasser Al Ghanim reiterated what he had told the council then: “The authority is working to break the monopoly, but it is not an easy thing to do.”
As an example of its efforts in this direction, the senior official cited how the TRA helped telecom giant etisalat’s rival company du obtain sea cables to boost its international activities and to expand its network. Du now covers 95 per cent of populated areas of the UAE, said Al Ghanim.
However, even with the increased competition, more evidently needs to be done. The survey committee found big gaps in the tariff structure, especially when it comes to international calls (residence) and broadband internet (residence and business). In Saudi Arabia, prices are 41.9 per cent lower; in Qatar 11 per cent; and in Bahrain 3 per cent.
In Germany, it is lower by 94 per cent; Canada 93 per cent; Norway 89 per cent; Japan 19 per cent; and Korea 7 per cent. On an average, prices in OECD countries are 66 per cent lower.
The FNC committee said although UAE’s broadband internet services of less than 1 MB are the cheapest in the Gulf, they are high in comparison with the average OECD prices. In Turkey it is lower by 72 per cent; Sweden 65 per cent; and Denmark 63 per cent. On an average, OECD charges are 56 per cent lower.
Nortel CVAS Boosts Carriers Competitive Advantage with 4G Mobile VoIP Solution
Nortel CVAS’ 4G Mobile VoIP solution equips operators to integrate seamlessly with all cellular technologies, including 2G, 3G and the latest 4G LTE and WiMAX networks. The solution delivers a consistent set of voice, messaging and multimedia services to all of the subscriber’s devices, with seamless hand-off across WiFi, GSM 2G/3G, CDMA 2G/3G, HSPA/+, WiMAX and LTE networks.
Nortel CVAS’ new enhancements in 4G Mobile VoIP equip carriers with advanced routing capabilities for querying a Home Location Register (HLR) to optimize call routing into the cellular network, billing enhancements to facilitate billing correlation between legacy cellular and SIP networks, and roaming support on a foreign cellular operator’s network.
The solution offers integrated wireless signaling gateway capability that allows operators to leverage their existing OAM systems for fault management, performance management, provisioning and billing. Subscribers can enjoy a better communication experience because the solution enables seamless hand-off between mobile and broadband networks, as well as advanced features like single identity, presence, web-based call screening, visual voicemail, and SMS to IM interworking.
Nortel CVAS is implementing the first large scale 4G VoIP network that offers voice continuity between 4G mobile VoIP, existing 2G/3G cellular voice and WiFi. In addition, Nortel CVAS has deployed VoIP solutions that leverage the subscriber’s laptop and mobile device in parallel for call control and multimedia service enrichment.
“As the carrier VoIP market leader and tier one vendor in 4G Mobile VoIP, Nortel CVAS is uniquely positioned to help carriers deliver a rich communication experiences to subscribers, regardless of their location, device or network type,” said Samih Elhage, president, CVAS, Nortel. “Our 4G Mobile VoIP solution simplifies operator deployments and eliminates the need for costly upgrades to existing Mobile Service Control Points and back-office systems, which results in lower costs and faster time to market for carriers. In addition, Nortel CVAS mobile VoIP and FMC innovations have been deployed by several leading service providers across the globe.”
Nortel CVAS 4G Mobile VoIP solution enhancements are expected to be available in the second half of 2010, and are powered by the latest software releases of the Nortel CVAS’ Adaptive Application Engine SIP software engine (Rel A2E 8.0). The solution can be deployed as a stand-alone SIP Application Server, as a 3GPP IMS-compliant application server or as an upgrade for carrier customers who have already deployed Nortel’s industry-leading Communication Server (CS) 2000 IP Multimedia softswitch.
Nortel CVAS is the recognized leader in the Carrier VoIP space, having shipped more than 121 million Carrier VoIP and Multimedia ports, including over 10 million SIP lines to leading wireline and wireless carriers globally. Nortel has consistently been ranked as the #1 Global Carrier VoIP and Softswitch leader since 2002. Nortel CVAS has customer deployments in all continents with leading carriers and provides VoIP solutions to 80 percent of IDC’s worldwide listing of top 20 carriers (by revenue). For more information on Nortel CVAS see www.nortel.com/ippoweredlife. For the latest Nortel news, visit www.nortel.com/news.
Nortel CVAS Boosts Carriers Competitive Advantage with 4G Mobile VoIP Solution
India – FDI in telecom not that rosy
This changes the common perception that FDI levels in the telecom sector are very high. It also reveals that despite the fact that FDI limits were raised from 49% to 74% five years ago, foreign investors have not utilized the higher investment ceiling.
In addition, foreign telcos have given the 3G auctions a miss. This has wiped out the possibility of a large chunk of fresh FDI inflow and also reduces the auction’s potential to generate telecom minister A Raja’s original revenue target of Rs 40,000 crore.
Among the nine bidders, Vodafone accounts for the highest FDI at 70.9%, which includes Vodafone’s investments and some of Essar’s own foreign investments. The second largest FDI is in Aircel with its foreign investor — Global Communication Services Holding (GCSH) owning 64.9%. Deccan Digital, which owns 34.9% is, in turn, also held 25% by GCSH. So in that sense, the exact foreign holding in Aircel is closer to 74% through direct and indirect routes.
The other two bidders with leading foreign investments are Etisalat and S Tel. Etisalat Mauritius holds 44.73% in Etisalat India with Delphi Investments holding 4.27%, totalling 49%. Bahrain-based BMIC Ltd owns 42.7% of the 49% FDI in S Tel. Bharti Airtel and Idea both have roughly 40% FDI. Pestel Ltd is Bharti’s largest foreign investor with a 15.5% holding, followed by foreign FIs, foreign companies and shareholders who own 17.9% FDI. Idea has FDI of 40.5% through TMI and P5 Asia Investments.
Tatas have an FDI of 34.1%, mostly through NTT Docomo, which is the single largest foreign investor at 26.5%. The only bidder that has 100% Indian investment but barely any 2G operations is Videocon. Reliance communications also has a very large chunk of its total investment held by Indian promoters.
While foreign investments coming in after the 3G bidding is over is a possibility, the lack of foreign investors’ interest in 3G bidding or even investing up to the full 74% FDI limit in 2G operations should be of concern to the government. In fact, Telenor, one of the major new foreign investors is staying away from 3G auctions altogther.
FIs had made it clear in 2008 that 3G bid conditions presented huge entry barriers to new entrants in general and foreign investors in particular. Despite this, a year after the first set of guidelines were issued, the 3G entry norms were not adequately altered, resulting in nine bidders joining the race for three pan-India 3G licences but without any new Indian or foreign investor in contention.
