iWorld
Vodafone Idea loses 2.81 million wireless subscribers in March: Trai
Mumbai: Bharti Airtel added 2.25 million wireless subscribers in the month of March, as per data by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai). Reliance Jio added 1.26 million wireless subscribers and Vodafone Idea lost 2.81 million wireless subscribers during the same period, the data revealed.
The total number of wireless subscribers increased from 1141.53 million to 1142.09 million in March. The wireless subscription in urban areas decreased from 625.19 million to 624.23 million, however, wireless subscription in rural areas increased from 516.34 million to 517.86 million during the same period.
As per Trai data, there were 1021.29 million active wireless subscribers during the month of March accounting for 89.42 per cent of the total wireless subscriber base. Reliance Jio had 378.95 million active wireless subscribers followed by Bharti Airtel at 355.78 million and Vodafone Idea at 226.08 million. BSNL had 59.82 million active wireless subscribers.
As per information from 653 operators, Trai reported an increase in total broadband subscribers from 783.37 million to 788.30 million in March. Out of these, 759.87 million were mobile device users, 27.25 million were wired subscribers and 1.18 million were fixed wireless subscribers i.e. Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi Max, Point-to-Point and VSAT (very small aperture terminal).
The top five broadband service providers were Reliance Jio at 409.28 million, Bharti Airtel at 215.27 million, Vodafone Idea at 122.48 million, BSNL at 27.19 million and Atria Convergence at 2.08 million and accounted for 98.48 per cent of the market.
The top five wired broadband service providers were Reliance Jio at 5.28 million, Bharti Airtel at 4.53 million, BSNL at 3.85 million, Atria Convergence Technologies at 2.08 million and Hathway Cable and Datacom at 1.11 million.
The top five wireless broadband service providers were Reliance Jio at 403.99 million, Bharti Airtel at 210.75 million, Vodafone Idea at 122.48 million, BSNL at 23.34 million and Intech Online at 0.21 million.
The number of telephone subscribers increased from 1166.05 million to 1166.93 million. Urban telephone subscriptions decreased from 647.76 million to 647.11 million and rural subscriptions increased from 518.29 million to 519.82 million in March.
Wireline subscribers increased from 24.52 million to 24.84 million in March.
iWorld
Anirudh Ravichander and Universal Music India join forces to take South India’s sound to the world
The composer behind 13 billion streams launches Albuquerque Records with UMI as its exclusive global partner
MUMBAI: Universal Music India has struck an exclusive partnership with Albuquerque Records, the freshly minted independent label of singer-composer Anirudh Ravichander, in a deal that bets big on South India’s booming pop and hip-hop scene going global.
The arrangement, announced on 17 March, will see Universal Music India handle future pop and hip-hop releases by Anirudh himself, as well as artists signed to the new label. A first release is already in the pipeline for April, featuring Anirudh.
The numbers behind the man are hard to ignore. Debuting in 2012 with the viral sensation “Why This Kolaveri Di”, Anirudh has since clocked over 13 billion audio streams across more than 770 tracks, cementing his position as the No.1 South Indian artist on Spotify by total streams. His fingerprints are all over some of the Tamil film industry’s biggest musical moments, from Hukum and Vaathi Coming to Arabic Kuthu and the A23 Theme.
But Albuquerque Records is a different beast. Built for the non-film space, it is designed to nurture independent talent and champion the next wave of Indian pop voices. “Universal Music India’s leadership in pop and hip-hop made them the natural partner,” said Anirudh. “I’m excited to take independent voices to audiences around the world.”
Universal Music India’s chairman and CEO Devraj Sanyal was equally effusive. “Anirudh represents the future of Indian music, bold, original, and with enormous potential,” he said. “Identifying transformative talent is our superpower, and this partnership reflects that belief.”
Sanujeet Bhujabal, managing director of Universal Music India, framed the deal as more than a distribution play. “Albuquerque Records represents Anirudh’s bold artistic vision in the world of pop and hip-hop,” he said. “True to his legacy of innovation, this partnership is set to establish yet another landmark creative space, this time for the emerging world of iPop and beyond.”
For Universal Music India, the deal deepens a long-running push into South India’s four key language markets: Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu. The label already has regional imprints, film partnerships with Maddock Films and Excel Entertainment, and a growing non-film roster. Landing Anirudh, arguably the south’s most bankable music brand, is a statement of intent. South Indian music has the streams. Now it is coming for the world.
