Reliance Communications

Reliance Communications Ltd
Public
Traded as NSE: RCOM
BSE: 532712
Industry Telecommunications
Founded 2002[1]
Founder Anil Ambani
Headquarters DAKC, Kopar Khairane, New Mumbai, Maharashtra, India[2]
Key people
 Anil Ambani (Chairman)
Products
Revenue ₹22,113 crore (US$3.4 billion) (2017)[3]
₹7,017 crore (US$1.1 billion) (2017)[3]
₹703 crore (US$110 million) (2017)[3]
Members 85.4 million (May 2017[4])
Number of employees
 7,257 (2017)[3]
Parent Reliance ADAG
Subsidiaries Global Cloud Xchange
Reliance Digital TV Limited
MTS India
Aircel
Website www.rcom.co.in

Reliance Communications Ltd. (RCom) is an Indian telecommunications company headquartered in Navi Mumbai, India. It provides GSM (Voice, 2G, 3G, 4G) mobile services, fixed line broadband and voice services, DTH depending upon the areas of operation. Reliance Communications is the sixth largest telecom operator in India with 85.4 million subscribers as of May 2017.[4] RCOM is a subsidiary of Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group.

History

Reliance Communications Ltd. was established in 2002. The same year, it launched CDMA services nationwide. In 2008, Reliance Communications launched GSM services. In the 2010 spectrum auction, Reliance Communications paid ₹ 58,642.9 million for 3G spectrum in 13 circles Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Punjab, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Bihar, Odisha, Assam, North East and Jammu & Kashmir.[5]

On 25 May 2012, RCom announced a price reduction of 51% on its 3G services.[6] In 2011, Reliance provided up to 28 Mbit/s data rate in India with its MIMO technology.[7] On 31 January 2013, RCom announced its partnership with Lenovo to market co-branded smartphones in India.[8] The smartphones were said to use the Android operating system and have dual-core processors.[8] In 2015, it launched CDMA in REV. B technology in non 3G circles.

In April 2016, RCom informed its CDMA subscribers that it would be shutting down its CDMA operations, and that all CDMA subscribers would be migrated to GSM and LTE networks.[9] The company announced that the migration had been completed in September 2016.[10]

Acquisition of MTS India

On 14 January 2016, RCom announced that it had acquired Sistema Shyam TeleServices Limited (SSTL), doing business as MTS India, in an all stock deal, in which SSTL received a 10% stake in RCom, after paying off its existing debt. RCom would assume the liability for installments that SSTL had to pay the government from purchasing spectrum. The liability amounted ₹392 crore annually for 10 years. As a result of the deal, Reliance acquired MTS India's subscribers, as well as SSTL's spectrum in the 850 MHz band.[11]

The merger deal was approved by the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in February 2016.[12] SEBI cleared the deal by March, and SSTL shareholders approved the deal on 18 March.[13] By mid-August, the deal was approved by tax authorities and the shareholders and creditors of RCom and SSTL.[14] The merger was approved by the Rajasthan High Court on 30 September 2016,[15] and the Bombay High Court on 7 October 2016.[16] The merger is expected to be completed in mid-2017. In April, RCom laid off 600 employees in preparation for its merger with MTS and Aircel.[17]

Merger of wireless business with Aircel

On 14 September 2016, RCom and Maxis Communications (owners of Aircel) announced that they would merge their mobile network operations. The deal is the largest consolidation in Indian telecom history, and will create the fourth largest mobile network operator in the country by subscribers and by revenue. RCom and Maxis, each will hold 50% stake in the merged entity, with equal representation on the board of directors and all committees. RCom will continue to operate in the enterprise segment and data centre businesses as a standalone entity.[18][19]

RCOM announced on 15 March 2017 that it had received approval for the deal from SEBI, BSE and NSE.[20][21][22] The deal was approved by the CCI on 20 March 2017.[23][24] The shareholders of Aircel and RCom approved the merger on 22 and 24 April 2017 respectively.[25] The merger is expected to be completed by mid-2017.[26]

Network coverage

Reliance Communications operates in all 22 telecom circles of India, and offers services on GSM and CDMA platforms. Mobile services are available in the following telecom circles:

Telecom circle 2G 3G 4G
Andhra Pradesh & Telangana (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Assam (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Bihar & Jharkhand (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Delhi (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Gujarat (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Haryana (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Himachal Pradesh (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Jammu and Kashmir (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Karnataka (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Kerala (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Kolkata (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Maharashtra & Goa (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Mumbai (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
North-East (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Odisha (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Punjab (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Rajasthan (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Tamil Nadu (under 3G ICR with Aircel) (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
West Bengal (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Uttar Pradesh (East) (under 3G ICR with Aircel) (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)
Uttar Pradesh (West) (under 3G ICR with Tata Docomo) (under 4G partner with Reliance Jio)

Ultraband

RCom launched its Ultraband service offering internet speeds of up to 1 Gbps in select locations in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai in April 2016.[27]

Subsidiaries

Reliance Telecom Limited (RTL) operates in Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Bihar, Assam and the northeast of India. It first offered GSM services in January 1997.[28] Reliance Tech Services is the IT services wing of Reliance ADAG. It provides IT consultancy, business process outsourcing and software development for Reliance Communications and other ADA group companies. Reliance Globalcom owns the Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe undersea cable system and RIDC provides Internet data centre (IDC) services located in Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad and Chennai. Reliance Communications also acquired FLAG Telecom, Yipes ethernet service, Digicable and Vanco.

Reliance Digital TV Ltd

Reliance Digital TV Ltd is a direct to home (DTH) television operator offering services under the brand name Reliance Digital TV.

Reliance Infratel Ltd.

Reliance Infratel Ltd. (RITL) handles RCom's mobile towers asset and related infrastructure. RCom owns a 96% stake in the company and the rest is held by several minority investors - Quantum (M), NSR Partners, Galleon, HSBC Daisy Investment (Mauritius), Drawbridge Towers, Investment Partners B (Mauritius). Investment Partners B had invested $287 million in 2007.[29]

RCom announced that it had signed a binding pact with Brookfield Infrastructure Group to sell a 51% stake in Reliance Infratel for ₹11,000 crore (US$1.7 billion). RCom will utilize the entire amount earned from the deal to reduce its existing debt. Following the deal, Brookefield will hold a 51% state in Reliance Infratel, RCom will retain a 49% stake and the minority partners will exit.[30][31]

Global Cloud Xchange

Global Cloud Xchange (GCX) offers a comprehensive portfolio of solutions customized for carriers, enterprises and new media companies across the world’s largest private undersea cable system spanning more than 67,000 route kilometres (“rkm”), integrated with Reliance Communications’ 2,00,000 rkm of domestic fiber-optic backbone.

Reliance Global Call

Reliance Global Call offers international calling service in India, US, Canada, Australia, UK, Singapore, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Singapore, France, Belgium, Austria, Spain, Ireland, Netherlands and rest of the world.

References

  1. ↑ "About us, Reliance Communications". Retrieved 30 June 2015.
  2. ↑ http://www.rcom.co.in/Rcom/personal/customercare/customercare_sac.html
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Reliance Communications Financial Annual Results For 2012 - 2013" (PDF). Rcom.co.in. Retrieved 16 January 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Highlights of Telecom Subscription Data as on 31st May, 2017" (PDF). Telecom Regulatory Authority of India.
  5. ↑ "RCom launches 3G services in 3 cities". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 14 December 2010.
  6. ↑ "RCom slashes 3G tariff by 61%". The Times of India. 25 May 2012. Retrieved 25 May 2012.
  7. ↑ "Reliance Improved their 3g with MIMO Technology". Teletechnology of India. 22 August 2011. Retrieved 5 October 2013.
  8. 1 2 "Reliance, in a deal with Lenovo to offer co-branded Jelly Bean smartphones to consumers". TechIt.in. 1 February 2013.
  9. ↑ "RCom kicks off migration process; to upgrade CDMA subscribers to 4G LTE network". 2016-04-02. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  10. ↑ "Reliance Communications Posts Nearly 6% Rise In Q1 Profit - NDTV". Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  11. ↑ "Reliance Communications acquires Sistema's MTS India in all-stock deal". www.businesstoday.in. Retrieved 2016-09-06.
  12. ↑ "Reliance Communications Gets CCI Approval to Acquire MTS". Retrieved 2016-09-06.
  13. ↑ "Sistema Shyam shareholders approve merger with Reliance Communications". Retrieved 2016-09-06.
  14. ↑ "DoT's approval for SSTL-RCOM merger likely in Q4: Sistema - The Economic Times". Retrieved 2016-09-06.
  15. ↑ India, Press Trust of (30 September 2016). "RCom gets Rajasthan HC approval for Sistema acquisition". Business Standard. Retrieved 1 October 2016.
  16. ↑ "Reliance Communication gets Bombay HC approval for Sistema acquisition - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Retrieved 2016-10-08.
  17. ↑ "Pink slips for 600 as Reliance Communications trims fat - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
  18. ↑ "RCom, Aircel announce merger; create fourth largest telco in India - Times of India". Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  19. ↑ Pandey, Piyush (2016-09-14). "RCom-Aircel merger a strong challenger to Idea Cellular". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2016-09-14.
  20. ↑ "Reliance Communications Gets SEBI, Exchanges Nod For Aircel Merger". NDTV. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  21. ↑ India, Press Trust of (15 March 2017). "Reliance Comunications gets Sebi nod for merger with Aircel". Business Standard India. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  22. ↑ Bureau, Our (15 March 2017). "RCom-Aircel merger gets SEBI nod". The Hindu Business Line. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  23. ↑ Feeds, IANS (20 March 2017). "RCOM gets CCI approval for Aircel merger". India.com. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  24. ↑ Lead, Telecom (20 March 2017). "RCOM-Aircel merger deal gets CCI approval". TelecomLead. Retrieved 20 March 2017.
  25. ↑ "Anil Ambani-driven RCom, Aircel shareholders approve merger - ET Telecom". ETTelecom.com. Retrieved 5 May 2017.
  26. ↑ "RCom says Aircel merger to be completed by 2017 middle, MTS merger by March". Telecom Talk. Retrieved 15 February 2017.
  27. ↑ http://telecomtalk.info/rcom-launches-ultraband-with-1-gigabit-per-sec-speed-in-mumbai/152477/
  28. ↑ "Telecom Investment: At its Peak". Telecom & Networking Communications Today. 3 December 2009. Archived from the original on 28 January 2010. Retrieved 6 October 2013.
  29. ↑ "Brookfield set to buy majority stake in Reliance Communication towers; Anil Ambani to stay on as minority partner - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
  30. ↑ Pandey, Piyush (14 October 2016). "RCom to sell 51 p.c. in tower assets to Brookfield for Rs 11,000 crore". The Hindu. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
  31. ↑ "RCOM plans to sell tower assets to Brookfield for Rs 11,000 crore". The Indian Express. 14 October 2016. Retrieved 14 October 2016.
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