5 iPhone questions for Airtel,Vodafone !

Apple's 3G iPhone is set to be launched in Inida on Firday August 22, within a month of the global launch. Though Apple has partnered with only one mobile operator per country,India is one of only three countries (Italy and Australia being the other two) to have multiple operators-Airtel and Vodafone.

Apple may have squeezed its partner operator in nearly every developed country, but in India the operators have so far held all the aces. It is not going to be smooth sailing though as the iPhone's India launch will bring a whole new set of challenge to the table. Abhimanyu Radhakrishnan has five questions for Airtel and Vodafone regarding the impending iPhone services ...

Go for MID: It's cheaper and faster than 3G.

3G mobile services, to be launched in India on August 22, is set to have serious competition. The reason is simple: if you are looking for high quality video streaming of movies and want to play multiplayer on-line games, it's not 3G services alone you need to look at.

All you will have to do is to pay around Rs. 12,000 to Rs. 15,000 for a mobile internet device with a screen like your PDA and get speeds, which are three times faster than what was promised by 3G mobile operators.

Which companies got 3G License in India?

3G spectrum has been provided to GSM players like Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limites, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar (then Hutch) to carry out an interface check on a non-commercial basis ahead of the start of 3G mobile services.

As per the guideline, any licensed telecom operator can bid for 3G spectrum and the radio waves will be auctioned in 5-10 blocks depending on the availability. Each successful bidder will be allocated only one block in a service area.


Spectrum will be auctioned in the 450 Mhz, 800 Mhz band for EVDO (for CDMA players) and in 1900 band when it is available.

All about 3G and what it means for you !

There is no firm date set for the auction of 3G spectrum, but it is likely to take place before February 2009 since the government may need the money to keep its deficit within control; current estimates put the initial entry fee bids that the government will get at any where between 30,000 crore (Rs, 300 billion) and 40,000 crore (Rs,400 billion).

In that case, by about December 2009, India may get broadband-type internet speeds on mobile phones. That, in turn, will allow users to view movies on their mobile phones, conduct video telephony while on the move, and so on.
Users demand better and faster services, and as they start using high-end phones, they want more information, faster data access and multimedia services through their mobile phones. Only 3G technology provides this. So what is 3G spectrum all about? Read on. . .