Telecom companies hoping to get additional 2G spectrum relatively cheap are in for disappointment, as the regulator favours a phased auction. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) is of the opinion that the spectrum, which will be available with the government as a result of the Supreme Court order cancelling 122 licences issued in 2008, should not be auctioned in one go.

Trai favours auction of 2G spectrum in phases

Business Standard

With a total purse string of $16.6 million &mdash; much lower than last year&rsquo;s $62.8 million &mdash; for the nine franchisees and a choice of 144 players (with only seven Indians) to choose from, the Indian Premier League 5 (IPL) auction to be held on Saturday in Bangalore is expected to be a low-key affair, with only a few star players worth chasing for and no big firework deals.

With just $16.6 mn, IPL 5 auction to be low-key affair

Just minutes after his press conference in Mumbai, Subrata Roy, chairman, Sahara India group, in a telephonic interview with Surajeet Das Gupta, spoke on the reasons for ending his eleven-year association with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

We want amicable discussions with BCCI, not a legal battle: Subrata Roy

Talks under way for partnership model to provide last-mile connectivity to 4G users.

RIL plans to pick 26% stake in leading cable operators

The race to pick up a strategic stake in the two sports channel of Nimbus Communications, Neo Cricket and Neo Sports, is hotting up. Nimbus and its investment bankers mandated to find a partner, Barclays Capital and Avendus, sounded out Sahara about the offer and details of it were expected to be sent to the company soon, said sources.

Race for Nimbus hots up, Sahara joins the fray

Regulator puts price at average of 1.65 times 3G cost; Sibal&rsquo;s approval needed for rollout.

New proposal to price spectrum

Two months after the government tightened the FDI policy in the pharma sector by allowing up to 100 per cent brownfield investment only after Foreign Investment Promotion (FIPB) clearance, there have been several applications from international pharma companies interested in Indian firms. However, the FIPB in its last meeting a few weeks ago threw a spanner in the works by deferring four such applications.

Pharma M&A deals face FIPB roadblock

The government-initiated world&rsquo;s cheapest tablet computer project has run into a headwind. Leading handset manufacturers have blasted Datawind&rsquo;s Aakash tablet on the ground that it is based on outdated technology and inadequate specifications, a charge the Canada-based firm has dismissed.

Aakash runs into storm as firms, Datawind trade charges

The government is liberalising its foreign direct investment rule that repatriate its original investment before a three-year lock-in period from the day it completes its minimum capitalisation norm for the sector.

3-year lock-in rule for FDI to go

Maharaja, the kitchen appliances brand, has always been known as a low-priced mass market player.

Maharaja's premium play

R V Kanoria takes over Ficci when Marwaris in Kolkata are apprehensive about their future. Surajeet Das Gupta and Bhupesh Bhandari talk to him.

The right chemistry

Reports about Aircel&rsquo;s sale is &ldquo;mere speculation&rdquo;, says Maxis CEO Sandip Das. In an interview with Mansi Taneja and Surajeet Das Gupta, he notes broadband will trigger a tide of growth for the industry.

The next big phase of the data market is about to emerge: Sandip Das 

Unfazed by the controversy surrounding the 2G spectrum scam, Aircel, in which Malaysia-based Maxis Communications holds 74 per cent stake, has chalked out ambitious plans to remain competitive and transform itself as a key player in the emerging market for data-led telecom services.

Surajeet Das Gupta