Qualcomm today announced a new RF solution that would enable device makers to have truly global roaming LTE devices with a single chip. The RF360 Front End chip, Qualcomm claims, is the solution to the frequency band fragmentation that is currently plaguing device makers from having one smartphone that connects to all networks globally.

At the moment, there are over 40 radio frequency bands in use across multiple technologies like LTE-FDD, LTE-TDD, WCDMA, EV-DO, CDMA 1x, TD-SCDMA and GSM/EDGE. Till now there was no solution in place that gave device makers an option to have the same hardware across the world and they had to launch country/region/carrier specific variants of the same smartphone that impacted economies of scale. This is one of the many reasons (network rollouts aside) why we do not have any 4G LTE-enabled smartphone for the few circles where carriers like Airtel have rolled out their 4G networks, while globally any flagship smartphone without LTE isn’t taken seriously. Indian carriers use TDD-LTE technology while most of the biggest 4G carriers globally use FDD-LTE.

Qualcomm would like to think that their new chip holds the key for bringing world-class LTE devices to users globally rather than them being privy to a select few. However, there are still a few challenges that have nothing to do with technology. Even now, carriers in developed markets in North America and Europe call the shots for devices running on their networks and are known to block connectivity options that would enable the device to run on a rival carrier’s network. Also, it remains to be seen whether there is any significant impact to the overall build of materials cost for device makers, which could deter them from using this solution till the time 4G markets mature and reaches critical mass to require a global roaming LTE device.

Having said that, this is a significant announcement and could answer some key LTE device ecosystem questions, especially for carriers like Airtel and Reliance Industries, which are in the process of rolling out their TDD-LTE 4G networks. It also fits perfectly in the scheme of things as the India telecom ministry approves voice services over their 4G networks. These voice services would be useless unless they are backwards compatible with older technologies and can fall back to regular 3G or even 2G networks in situations where there is no LTE network coverage.

Qualcomm anticipates the first devices to implement this solution in the second half of 2013.

News is trickling in that Airtel has acquired 49 percent stake in Qualcomm’s 4G network unit in India. There had been indications that Airtel and Qualcomm were in talks. Qualcomm has 4G spectrum in key circles of Delhi and Mumbai apart from Haryana and Kerala. This would be crucial for Airtel for its ambitions to be a pan-India 4G network operator. It already operates 4G networks in Kolkata and Bangalore and has spectrum in Karnataka, Maharashtra and Punjab. Read on.

Qualcomm paid about $1 billion for its BWA spectrum and had a JV with Tulip Telecom and Global Holding Corp, each holding about 13 percent each to comply with Indian laws. While details are scarce at the moment, we expect Airtel to have bought out the two Indian partners and some stake from Qualcomm. Eventually Qualcomm intends to exit the 4G operations space.

UPDATE: Bharti Airtel acquired the 49 percent stake for $165 million. This is a very low valuation for what Qualcomm initially paid indicating Qualcomm remained true to its stance of acquiring 4G spectrum in key circles just to ensure that carriers use its LTE technology. According to the press release, the agreement contemplates that once commercial operations are launched, subject to certain terms and conditions, Bharti would assume complete ownership and financial responsibility for the BWA entities by the end of 2014.

Airtel has launched India’s first 4G TD-LTE network in Kolkata today. Airtel is claiming download speed of up to 100 Mbps and upload speed of up to 40 Mbps, though these would be the theoretical peak speeds. Like we reported yesterday, Airtel will offer two compatible devices and three data plans. Read on for details.

Airtel has priced the LTE compatible multi-mode USB modem at Rs 7,999 and the indoor CPE with Wi-Fi module at Rs 7,750. The tariffs are the same as we reported yesterday. Shocking as it may sound, it seems that once a user crosses the monthly data quota, the speed would be throttled to 128Kbps and there seems to be no way to buy more data.

As an introductory offer, subscribers of Rs 999 plan will get back one month of their rental over the first six months (Rs 167/bill for six months) while those on the Rs 1,399 and Rs 1,999 will get two months worth of rental over the first six months (Rs 466/bill and Rs 666/bill respectively).

Airtel is launching its 4G LTE network in Kolkata tomorrow, but its website has already gone live, revealing tariffs and devices. Airtel is promising download speeds up to 100 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 40 Mbps, both of which would be theoretical peak speeds and not exactly what users will get. On the devices front, Airtel will initially offer a multi-mode USB modem and an indoor wireless gateway, which would convert LTE into a Wi-Fi network to be shared among multiple devices. Read on for tariff and services.

Airtel will offer three data plans on both prepaid and postpaid. Post consuming the data limit, Airtel will throttle the speed to 128 Kbps under its fair usage policy. The plans look decent, but considering the speed Airtel is promising, we feel that the free data quota is too low. However, Airtel would like to take the first-mover advantage and we can expect better tariffs once Reliance-backed Infotel launches its LTE network across the country.

On the content side, Airtel already has Bigflix for movies and has also tied up with Indiagames for games. Live TV is also on offer, thanks to Airtel’s online TV offering. Many Airtel Live services like devotional aarti and others will also be provided. Airtel has also mentioned it will be launching its 4G LTE service in Bangalore next.

Communications Minister Kapil Sibal is expected to launch Bharti Airtel’s broadband wireless access (BWA) services based on 4G technology in Kolkata Tuesday.

“We are expecting Communications Minister Kapil Sibal tomorrow,” a senior company executive said.

A successor to the 3G and 2G families, 4G is expected to be five times quicker than 3G services. It would offer services such as high-definition mobile TV and video conferencing. Airtel has selected Chinese telecom equipment maker ZTE to manage its services in Kolkata.
The firm bagged BWA spectrum in four circles — Kolkata, Maharastra, Punjab and Karnataka — for Rs.3,314.36 crore in 2010 along with other players including Reliance Infotel (earlier known as Infotel Broadband Services), Qualcomm, Tikona, Aircel and Augere. While Infotel became the only player to win a pan-India licence, Qualcomm bagged licences in four circles, Tikona in five circles, Aircel in eight circles and Augere in one circle. The auction fetched the exchequer over Rs.38,500 crore.

With this launch Airtel will become the first player to launch the 4G service in India. The company said that launch of the service in other circles will happen soon. Other players are yet to announce plans to roll-out 4G services.

Bharti Airtel will launch its 4G services in Kotkata this month, Chief Executive Sanjay Kapoor said Tuesday. “It will be launched this month in Kolkata,” Kapoor told reporters on the sidelines of a telecom event.

The carrier has also appointed ZTE to supply and manage its 4G LTE network in Kolkata. “According to industry estimates, by 2016 – 6% of all mobile connections will have 4G connection, which would create 36% of the total mobile data traffic – thus paving way for the ensuing data revolution. The impending launch of 4G in the country will provide ultra high speed data access, driving fundamental changes in society at large. We look forward to the launch of 4G technology in India, which will be timed to match the world in its launch,” Kapoor said in a statement to announce the ZTE deal.

4G is a successor to the 3G and 2G families, and is expected to be five times quicker than 3G services. The firm bagged Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) spectrum in four circles — Kolkata, Maharastra, Punjab and Karnataka — for Rs.3,314.36 crore in 2010.

Another firm, Reliance Infotel, earlier known as Infotel Broadband Services, which won a pan-India licence for BWA spectrum, is yet to announce its roll-out plans for 4G services. Other firms which have won spectrum in the auction include Qualcomm, Tikona, Aircel and Augere.

With additional inputs.

A source claiming to be in possession of an iPad 3 prototype provided BGR with images containing details about Apple’s highly anticipated third-generation tablet. From the data in the photos, which contain the output from an iPad 3 using a development and debug tool called iBoot, we can infer plenty of information about the upcoming iPad 3. For starters, the model numbers are J1 and J2 (iPad3,1 and iPad3,2), and while DigiTimes reported this a few weeks ago, these two models are not different devices, just a single iPad available in two versions — one with Wi-Fi only and one with Wi-Fi and embedded GSM/CDMA/LTE for all carriers. Also included in the photos is, for the first time, confirmation of which processor Apple will be using in the iPad 3: an A6 processor with model number S5L8945X. For reference, the Apple A4 model was S5L8930X and the A5 is S5L8940X. The new processor will also apparently be a quad-core model, making the upcoming iPad 3 the fastest iOS device ever, we have been told. More screenshots are included in our gallery below.

This post originally appeared on BGR: The Three Biggest Letters In Tech.com

“Independent Media Trust, a trust set up for the benefit of RIL, has agreed to fund the promoters of Network18 and TV18 to enable them to subscribe to the proposed rights issue announced by both the companies today,” RIL said in a statement.

The investment would result in making the two firms debt free. And in return, RIL would have access to the digital content of the media group for distribution through its 4G broadband network being set up by the company.

RIL, through investments of about Rs.2,600 crore by its group companies, currently holds interest in various ETV channels being operated and managed by the Eenadu Group. It holds 100 percent stake in regional news channels, namely ETV Uttar Pradesh, ETV Madhya Pradesh, ETV Rajasthan, ETV Bihar and ETV Urdu channel.

It also has a 100 percent interest in regional entertainment channels ETV Marathi, ETV Kannada, ETV Bangla, ETV Gujarati and ETV Oriya and 49 percent interest in Telegu channels — ETV Telugu and ETV Telugu News.

“A part of the above investments comprising of 100 percent interest in news channels, 50 percent interest in entertainment channels and 24.5 percent interest in Telugu Channels is being profitably divested to TV18 Broadcast Limited,” said RIL.

In a separate announcement, the TV18 board approved a rights issue of Rs.2,700 crore to pay off existing debt and fund their acquisition plans.

“TV18 will have Board and Management Control of ETV News Channels and ETV non-Telugu general entertainment channels (GECs),” the Raghav Bahl-led media group said in a regulatory filing.

As a part of the deal, RIL’s broadband venture — Infotel Broad Band Services Limited — will get preferential access to all their content for distribution through the 4G Broadband Network being set up by it.

Infotel will source digital content from the TV18 and Network18 group which the company said would be a key driver to increase consumption of broadband.

Raghav Bahl and his team will continue to have full operational and management control of both Network18 and TV18.

China-based ZTE has completed a series of tests between TD-LTE and 2G/3G GSM/UMTS networks using 3GPP circuit switching fallback (CSFB). The operations included testing a series of services such as mobile originating calls, mobile terminating calls and SMS. The company said in a statement that the tests demonstrate that CSFB is a reliable voice solution on TD-LTE networks. When a user on a phone using CSFB that operates on an LTE network initiates a voice call, the CSFB handset will “fall back” to available 2G/3G networks to complete the call. CSFB allows greater call range as it uses existing 2G/3G nodes. This use of existing infrastructure also enables voice services without IMS deployments. It is a single chip voice-implemented solution defined by 3GPP.

India will get TD-LTE networks sometime next year, which use a different technology from the ones deployed in the US. One of the biggest challenges carriers are expected to face is the paucity of compatible devices to offer to consumers and to make them work seamlessly with current 2G/3G networks in order to offer standard voice services. ZTE hopes its solution will take care of that issue.

Sony Ericsson doesn’t have much of a presence in the United States smartphone market right now. Sure, it released the Xperia PLAY for Verizon Wireless and AT&T earlier this year, but it didn’t make much of a splash. Sony Ericsson’s U.S. position could change soon, though, if it decides to pump out a bunch of high-end smartphones. The latest rumor suggests that the company could release a phone with the model number “LT28at” that will land on AT&T later this year. It reportedly packs a number of impressive specs, including support for AT&T’s 4G LTE network as well as a 13-megapixel camera, a 4.55-inch Reality Display with a 1280 x 720-pixel resolution and a front-facing HD camera for video chats. The details come simply from a Bluetooth “End Product List” (EPL), which may or may not be legitimate, but we’re definitely hoping AT&T and Sony Ericsson announce something big during the Consumer Electronics Show next month.

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This post originally appeared on BGR: The Three Biggest Letters In Tech.com

We are taking this one with a pinch of salt but The Economic Times is reporting that Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) is likely to offer LTE tablets for Rs 3,500 and will offer data plans as low as Rs 10 for 1GB. This is not the first time we are hearing about the Rs 3,500 tablet but paying Rs 10 for 1GB of data sounds a bit unrealistic (of course, we won’t mind). Currently, carriers offer about 100MB of 3G data for Rs 100 and RIL could wipe out the entire data market with its aggressive plans. Mind you, the same report claims that the company’s plans to launch its 4G LTE network have been pushed from mid-2012 to late-2012, which puts more question marks on the authenticity of these tariff plans.

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“All the stakeholders may now submit their written comments by November 30 and counter comments by December 7, 2011,” TRAI said in a statement.

The regulator had invited comments of stakeholders on consultation paper on advanced mobile wireless broadband services August 19. Initially, the written and counter comments from the stakeholders were sought up to September 20 and September 27 respectively. The last date for submission of written and counter comments was earlier extended to October 31 and November 7 respectively.

“The investment in Extramarks has been made through an affiliate company, Reliance Strategic Investments Ltd,” the company said in a statement.

The investment by Infotel will enable Extramarks pursue its aggressive growth plans in further developing services and wider market penetration also by utilising the money in computer-aided programmes. The company endeavours to provide computer-aided learning and reach out to the students in the remotest corner of the country. Its digital distribution model will provide services to the student community across age groups including education support and study help at affordable prices.

In the auction for broadband airwaves held last year, Infotel Broadband had emerged as the sole pan-India winner and had paid for Rs.12,847.77 crore for the spectrum. Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries had thereafter announced that the company had acquired a 95 percent stake in Infotel for Rs.4,800 crore (little over $1 billion) to enter the broadband services. The company is expected to launch its broadband wireless access services early next year.

The jury might be still out on Aakash, DataWind’s cheapest Android tablet in the world for the Indian government, the manufacturer is already in talks with Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) to make cheap TD-LTE-enabled 4G tablets. Business Standard is quoting DataWind CEO, Suneet Singh Tulli, where he confirms having had preliminary talks with RIL for making ultra-cheap 4G tablets. RIL has broadband spectrum to roll-out a TD-LTE network across the country. It plans to launch its 4G network sometime next year and is reported to have tied up with Disney’s UTV to provide entertainment content. RIL is expected to launch its LTE network with affordable tablets and other devices, just like it did in 2002 when it launched its CDMA network, now called Reliance Communications. DataWind claims it has already received over 108,000 pre-orders for its commercial version of Aakash, which is priced at Rs 2,999 and comes with GPRS connectivity. Tulli claims the company has also received interest from institutions for 2.2 million units of the tablet.

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Images and details surrounding the unannounced Motorola DROID4 for Verizon Wireless have been published on the web, revealing a potential QWERTY-equipped counterpart for the just-unveiled Motorola DROID RAZR. The phone appears to carry the same shape as the new RAZR, however its slide-out keyboard makes it significantly thicker. Purported specs include a 4-inch display, 4G LTE compatibility for Verizon Wireless’ network, 1080p HD video capture support, an HDMI-out port, a secondary front-facing camera and Android 2.3.5 Gingerbread. Droid Life speculates that the phone might also include the same 1.2GHz TI processor as the RAZR, and that the rear camera resolution matches the RAZR’s 8 megapixels. Two more images of the DROID4 follow below.

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This post originally appeared on BGR: The Three Biggest Letters In Tech.com