Intel has reportedly teamed with Lava to create a new series of smartphones based on Medfield-series Atom chips. The Indian handset maker is said to be preparing to introduce a new smartphone brand for the Medfield devices, rather than sticking with its own branding that is currently tied to feature phones and a single budget-priced Android handset.
Apple is aiming to "quadruple" the amount of money it spends in India, claims local publication The Economic Times. In January the company's CIO, Niall O'Connor, is said to have visited the city of Bangalore, where he was met by senior officials from two technology companies, Infosys and Wipro. O'Connor is reportedly deciding which firms in India will get lucrative software and maintenance contracts worth about $100 million.
Apple could open retail stores in India following a change in local ownership rules, says a senior official with the country's Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion. Apple has been in talks with the department for "some time," according to local business publication Mint, and is allegedly eager to retry the Indian market after having failed to make headway in 2006. Under previous rules, single-brand retailers like Apple would have had to have had at least a 49 percent domestic investment; now they can claim full ownership.
The iPhone 4S will arrive in India on November 25th, local carrier Aircel has announced through Facebook. Pre-orders are set to begin on November 18th. The Times of India meanwhile claims that another carrier, Bharti Airtel, has launch plans of its own; the company is said to be planning midnight launches across the country as the 25th ticks over.
Research In Motion has confirmed that Frenny Bawa, managing director of the company's Indian division, has stepped down from her position to pursue other interests. Although the executive's reasons for leaving RIM were not fully disclosed, the announcement follows strong pressure from the Indian government to gain access to encrypted communications sent via BlackBerry Messenger.
Peek, a provider of SaaS services that give internet-only wireless devices smartphone-like capabilities, is expanding to the cellphone market. Peek has partnered with Micromax, India's largest domestic mobile handset manufacturer, to offer cloud-based apps on that company's Q80 phone. Peek's "Genius Cloud" software will give the Q80 instant messaging, video chat, social networking, web browsing, and push e-mail.
Apple is planning a special version of the iPhone 3GS to accommodate India, a local report claims. An 8GB unlocked version is expected to ship sometime in the near future, at a price of 19,990 rupees, or about $444 US. Initial carrier vendors are only expected to include Aircel and Bharti Airtel, but others may join later.
Apple's practice of selecting one or two "exclusive" carriers in a country to sell the iPhone -- at least for a period following the launch -- has come under scrutiny in India, where a complaint has been filed with that country's Competition Commission, The Wall Street Journal reports. Not allowing all compatible carriers equal access to the popular phone immediately gives those who have it an unfair market advantage and is anti-competitive, the complaint alleges.
The iPhone 4 will finally launch in India on May 27th, says the Wall Street Journal. The phone will be available from two carriers, Aircel and Bharti Airtel. The former is offering both pre-paid and subscription options, charging 34,500 rupees ($763) for a 16GB model, and 40,900 rupees for 32GB. With a two-year subscription people should get back the cost of the phone through monthly credits.
The iPad is now officially available in the United Arab Emirates, Apple has announced. As the region lacks online or retail Apple Stores, the main way of buying the tablet is through an authorized reseller. One vendor, iStyle, is selling Wi-Fi models at prices running from 2,199 AED (about $599) for 16GB through to 3,099 AED ($844) for 64GB. The cost of a 3G iPad scales from 2,799 AED ($762) on up to 3,699 AED ($1,007), imposing a high premium versus the US, where the most expensive iPad is still only $829.
The iPad will be launching in India on January 28th, the Telegraph reports. Because Apple lacks online or retail stores in the country, people will primarily have to turn to authorized resellers to get the tablet, such as Imagine in Calcutta. Wi-Fi models should cost between 26,000 and 37,000 rupees, or about $569 and $810. 3G versions should sell for between 33,000 and 44,000 rupees, or roughly $723 and $964.
Research in Motion has denied rumors that it has made special concessions in talks with India over access to encrypted information sent over BlackBerry networks. In a statement provided to the Wall Street Journal, the company claims it will not make changes to its security architecture for BlackBerry Enterprise Server customers.
Two CDMA-based carriers in India are negotiating with Apple for the iPhone, sources tell the Wall Street Journal. The companies are Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices, the latter of which at least has allegedly been in talks for four to five months. Although there is no indication of when either carrier might launch, the news is thought to be more evidence that Apple is building a CDMA iPhone, primarily for a debut with Verizon in early 2011.
The Indian government has extended RIM’s October 31 ban deadline to January 31. According the Economic Times newspaper, the new arrangement has given RIM an additional 90 days to give India's security forces appropriate access to its Enterprise data services. RIM has made some of its services manually accessible, including its messenger service, but has promised to deliver real-time access by the start of next year.
Digiarty has announced that it is giving away free copies of HD Video Converter for Mac until June 20th. Supporting over 200 video and audio codecs, the app converts videos into formats compatible with a variety of devices. This includes multi-track HD videos containing several language and video tracks. Digiarty adds that it is also currently offering a small discount on DVD Ripper for Mac, bringing the price down to $36.
Vodafone's Indian division, Vodafone Essar, has begun selling the iPhone 3GS in the country. The carrier will have to compete with Bharti Airtel, which is launching on the same day. Essar is offering both pre-paid and subscription data plans; the latter cost 200, 499 or 699 rupees per month, and offer 100, 250 or 600MB of data before regular rates kick in. The pre-paid option includes no bundle but costs only 100 rupees a month, just over $2 US.
Having only said last week that it would soon carry the iPhone 3GS in India, Bharti Airtel has just announced that sales will begin on Friday, March 26th. While the iPhone 3G has been available in the country for some time, the 3GS has been kept out for unspecified reasons. These could potentially involve relatively slow demand, given India's Third World status.
The Indian government is indeed laying plans for the sale of a $10 notebook, according to a regional newspaper. Although the government is at one point said to have retracted the pricetag, adding a zero to the end, DNA writes that a prototype of a $10 (500 rupee) notebook will go on display in Tirupati on February 3rd. The computer was jointly developed by the Indian Institute of Science and Indian Institute of Technology, and is a part of a plan dubbed the National Mission on Education.
India has postponed the auction of its 3G spectrum from an original date of January 16th to the 30th, following requests from potential bidders to have more time to review related documents and rules. At the same time, the deadline for applications to become a bidder has been extended from the 5th to the 15th. The auction will give domestic and foreign companies the option to acquire the 2.1GHz wireless frequency, used for HSPA-based 3G data network services.
Bharti Airtel, one of two iPhone 3G carriers in India, has announced new details on its iPhone 3G launch Friday. All three variants (8GB black, 16GB black and 16GB white) are expected to be available, with the 8GB model retailing for Rs 31,000 ($716), and the 16GB versions selling for Rs 36,100 ($830). The prices are substantially higher than previously anticipated.
The Indian branch of Vodafone says it is now taking pre-orders for the iPhone 3G, in advance of its official launch in the country, scheduled for Friday, August 22nd. 8 and 16GB iPhones will be available, and will cost Rs 31,000 ($710) and Rs 36,100 ($830), respectively. These prices are significantly higher than in the US market, where the 8GB model can be obtained for as low as $200.
Vodafone on Tuesday announced official pricing and availability information for the iPhone in India, offering the device starting at an astonishing Rs 31,000 (~$715) for the 8GB model, or Rs 36100 (~$830) for the 16GB. Vodafone is offering potential customers a chance to own the device "before others do", by placing a Rs 10,000 (~$230) deposit, allowing them to book a specific time for their purchase and setup for the launch on August 22nd.
Vodafone India has already begun taking pre-registrations on the iPhone 3G, according to an announcement. The move is unusual in that the company has yet to disclose a final release date for the device, although rival Bharti Airtel is expected to release it on July 11th along with the initial wave of iPhone 3G deployments. Bharti has not formally announced any iPhone plans, including any registration campaigns.
The latest update in the Indian government's ban of the BlackBerry cellular phone has the Canadian maker of the device, Research In Motion, telling the government it is not able to provide it with encrypted messages sent by its enterprise customers. RIM already had a 15-day ultimatum imposed on it by the government, which is demanding access to all wireless communications for security reasons.
Reports indicate that an Indian iPhone could be just around the corner, allegedly available in September between Rs 27,200 and Rs 28,000. According to the Business Standard, Vodafone is expected to have the 8GB iPhone during the first week of September, with the 16GB version to surface in the middle of 2009. The news reportedly comes from Apple sources in Singapore, who only a few months ago was revealed as "tight lipped" until recently.
As Motorola announces its desire to spin off its handset and broadband business as independent public companies, Videocon Industries is first to throw its hat into the ring, filing an expression of interest document for the former of the two departments. According to DeepikaGlobal, there will be a delay in the decision, however, since the acquisition process is required to be cleared by the regulatory body. Videocon chairman and managing director V. N. Dhoot told reporters of its intents.
Use of Research in Motion's popular BlackBerry phones could effectively be barred in India by the end of the month, warns a local publication. The Business Standard cites anonymous sources, who say that government security agencies want RIM to share algorithms used to decrypt messages, under threat of the termination of BlackBerry services for non-compliance. Unlike most cellphones, BlackBerries operate on a proprietary e-mail network.
Yesterday's shareholder meeting for Apple may have produced "nothing material," according to analysts from Piper Jaffray, but it did provide small pieces of information about Apple's products and strategy. It was for example unknown if the company's goal to sell 10 million iPhones in 2008 meant a total since the product's inception, or simply within the calendar year; it is now confirmed that Apple wants to add 10 million to the 3.7 million sold in 2007. Piper is currently projecting sales that exceed Apple estimates, at 12.9 million iPhones during 2008.
