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Monday, July 25, 2011

Telecom Industry in India: More players may lead to higher tariffs?

Telecom industry has been instrumental in revolutionizing the lives of common Indians. The mobile phone and now the internet has been in focus of late at almost every level be it policy, corporate, consumer etc. But the industry is going through turbulent times. The 2G scam, the steeply priced 3G spectrum, tax claims… the list is endless. It doesn’t make for a good reading as telecommunication will go a long way in determining our future growth rate as we are in the information age. 

Let’s have a look at some of the problems plaguing the industry. Let me divide the problem into two parts based on the technology involved; 2G and 3G

2G: If you look at problems in this space, the 2G scam comes to your mind straightaway. Undoubtedly it’s a blot on the Indian face. And its findings will certainly leave many embarrassed but let’s not waste our time over these facts related to the scam. Instead, let’s concentrate on the other major issues related to 2G. The one that comes to the mind is “too much competition or should I say too many players”. While FCFS basis used to allocate spectrum helped keep the cost down hence low tariffs but it allowed too many players to enter the fray. 

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

ऐसी भी एक शाम हो जो सिर्फ मेरे नाम हो !!!!!

A creation very dear to me and close to my heart...


भाग दौड़ से दूर कही आराम ही आराम हो,
मन मेरा मुझ तक ठहरे, कुछ और नहीं इसे  ध्यान हो!

Sunday, July 3, 2011

Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin: Are they worth it?

IPOs are back in the reckoning. And this time it’s none other but Uncle Sam that’s the epicenter and the boys raising the bars are from the dot-com business. With most of them having or claiming to have gained the critical mass (for the much abused “network effect”), it’s not a surprise that the valuations are simply going through the roof. The four of the biggest newsmakers are Facebook, twitter, Linkedin and Groupon. Though likes of Skype, Zynga, Yandex (Russian search engine), Pandora (music streaming company) etc. have been in the news as well. 


So, what’s the fuss all about? For that let’s have a look at the user base, revenue and the predicted valuation for some of these tech firms.

Firm
User Base
Revenue
Profit/Loss
Valuations
90 m
$51m
-$6.8m
$4.2bn
100 m
$243m
$15m
$8.9bn
279 m
$942m
$47.2m
$15-20bn
700 m
$4bn
-
$100+bn
300 m
$100m
-
$7.7bn
83 m
$713.4m
-$389.6m
$20bn