iWorld
5G stole the limelight at IMC 2018 Day 1, with Live Demonstrations
New Delhi : India Mobile Congress 2018 (IMC 2018), South Asia’s biggest Mobile, Internet and Technology event, kicked-off today amidst much fan-fare at Aerocity, New Delhi. Chief Guest, Shri Manoj Sinha, Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Communications and Minister of State for Railways, inaugurated the event, which is jointly organised by the Department of Telecommunications and COAI. The event witnessed the presence of more than 15,000 people including international exhibitors, media, global speakers and other notable delegates, including several established and budding entrepreneurs.
While addressing the gathering, Hon’ble Minister Shri Manoj Sinha, stated that the Government would leave no stone unturned in extending its support to India’s ICT and TMT sectors. Apart from showcasing India’s rich technology heritage and the road ahead, the three day event highlighted India’s massive ICT innovation potential and brought to light, several game-changing technologies that will shape India’s digital future in the coming times. The event, themed “New Digital Horizons: Connect, Create, Innovate”, witnessed exemplary participation and support from global information and communications technology companies. The platform saw an impressive international presence with over 300 exhibitors, 2000 CXOs and 190 global speakers.
Key Highlights of the Day-1
On Day 1, a number of exhibitors including Reliance Jio Infocomm, Intel, Nokia and Qualcomm participated in 5G trials. This was the first time people could get a glimpse of what is to be expected from 5G in the years to come and how it can affect the scope and development of futuristic technologies. A number of discussions were pivoted around how such technologies will shape India’s digital future. The sessions showcased India’s 5G potential and the numerous unique use cases 5G will have in India. There were live 5G demonstrations by companies such as Nokia, Ericsson, Qualcomm, Reliance Jio infocomm and the like.
The introductory panel discussion, around the theme – The India Story (Stack 3.0) – Connect, Create, Innovate, was the pick of the conference sessions. The second-half of the day saw a number of interesting and vital discussions on The Evolving Regulatory Landscape in the New Digital Ecosystem-Regulatory Brief, Enabling Futuristic Networks – Reducing complexity to Redefine connectivity, Digital Identity – A revolution or a threat, Connecting the Unconnected – Building Next-Gen ICT Infrastructure for the Masses, Gadgets of Tomorrow – Connected Intelligence, graced by speakers such as Mr. Ajit Pai, Chairman, U.S. Federal Communications Commission, Mr. David Hammarwall, Head of Product Line 5G RAN, Product Area Networks, Ericsson, Mr. Vinayak Godse, Senior Director, Data Security Council of India, Mr. Bimal Dayal, CEO, Indus Towers and Mr. Jonathan Wood, Senior Director, Intel Next Generation and Standards, Intel.
IMC 2018 also hosted the ASEAN & BIMSTEC Conclave which was addressed by delegates including Shri Manoj Sinha, Hon’ble Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Communications and Minister of State for Railways and 16 other Ministers from ASEAN & BIMSTEC Countries, H.E. Mr. Pichet Durongkaveroj, Hon’ble Minister of Digital Economy and Society, Govt. of Thailand, H.E. Khennavong Bounsaleumsay, Vice Minister, Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications (MPT), Lao PDR, H.E. Thant Sin Maung, Hon'ble, Union Minister of Transport and Communications, Govt. of Myanmar, H.E. Chea Manit, Under Secretary of State, Ministry of Posts & Telecommunications (MPTC), H.E. Tram Iv Tek, Minister of Posts and Telecommunication, H.E. M Shahidul Islam, Secretary General, BIMSTEC. A number of topics curated for consumer interest garnered excitement and enthusiastic participation from the delegates. One such session involved a discussion on “Smart Cities: Automating the way we live”.
Key highlights of the day:
Nokia
Nokia’s state-of-the-art manufacturing unit in Chennai has started manufacturing 5G New Radio (NR) based on the 3GPP 5G New Radio Release 15 standard. It is the factory to start manufacturing 5G radio equipment in India. The Chennai plant is one of the largest telecom equipment manufacturing plant in the country, recently reaching the 4 million units annual production milestone of 2G, 3G and 4G units. It serves both domestic as well as global customers, shipping to over 100 countries. As part of an on-going program, known as the ‘Conscious** factory’, the Nokia Chennai plant recently implemented the first 'real-world' Smart Manufacturing application of Industry 4.0 in India leveraging solutions such as Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR), connected Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Big Data Analytics, and Internet of Things to enhance operations and increase productivity. The plant is equipped with cutting-edge manufacturing technologies, such as the state-of-the-art surface mounting technology, with a capacity of 12.8 billion components every year, 3D automated optical inspection and X-Ray inspection capability.
Huawei
Huawei Reiterates Commitment to Bringing 5G to India with Full Range End-to-End Technology Showcase at IMC 2018 – Conducting industry’s first 5G use case demos in partnership with Airtel, Huawei paves ROADS to a fully connected and intelligent world.
Mr. Randeep Sekhon, Chief Technology Officer, Bharti Airtel said, “Ubiquitous high speed networks will open doors to a digital world that will be full of exciting digital innovations. Having conducted India’s first in-lab 5G test with Huawei, we are delighted to extend our partnership to demonstrate cutting edge AR and VR based use cases for 5G.”
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iWorld
WhatsApp tests ‘WhatsApp Plus’ paid subscription tier
€2.49 plan adds customisation tools, messaging and calls remain free.
MUMBAI: Your chats may soon get a glow-up at a small monthly price. WhatsApp is testing a new paid subscription tier called ‘WhatsApp Plus’, signalling a shift towards premium personalisation features while keeping its core services free. The feature is currently being rolled out to a limited set of Android beta users, with early reports from WABetaInfo indicating a price of €2.49 per month (approximately Rs 274). Meta has confirmed the test, stating that it is designed for users who want more control over how they customise and organise their app experience.
Importantly, the subscription remains optional. Core functionalities including messaging, voice calls and community features will continue to be available free of charge, ensuring that the platform’s primary use case remains unchanged.
Instead, WhatsApp Plus focuses on aesthetic and organisational upgrades. These include exclusive sticker packs, new themes, custom app icons and personalised notification tones. On the functional side, subscribers may be able to pin up to 20 chats significantly higher than the current limit of three along with access to custom chat lists and enhanced categorisation tools.
Industry observers suggest the offering is largely cosmetic. Social media consultant Matt Navarra noted that the features lean more towards visual and usability enhancements rather than altering the app’s core functionality.
While global pricing has not been finalised, the subscription is expected to remain a low-cost monthly plan, with reports indicating a possible one-month free trial for eligible users. The feature is still in beta, meaning the final set of offerings could evolve before a broader rollout. Support for iOS users is also anticipated in the coming weeks.
The move mirrors a broader trend in the social and messaging ecosystem, where platforms such as Snapchat and Instagram have introduced similar subscription layers adding premium features without placing core services behind a paywall.
For WhatsApp, the strategy appears clear, keep the conversation free, but charge for a little extra flair around it.
