The Indian smartphone market rebounded 20% year-on year in Q4 to 38.9 million units on the back of strong festive season demand, with growth predicted on the back of affordable 5G devices in 2024. 

Analysts company Canalys stated, Samsung was the highest shipper and maintained its leading position with 20% market share and shipments of around 7.6 million units. Chinese vendors dominated the rest of the top five, as Xiaomi claimed second with 7.2 million units, while vivo took third with 7 million units. 

Taking fourth place was realme with 4.5 million units and finally Oppo with 3.7 million. 

For the whole of 2023, the Indian smartphone market maintained stability with 148.6 million units, a drop of only 2%. Canlays noted the market showed resilience due to improved consumer confidence in the later part of 2023, despite inventory challenges for vendors, minimal inflation improvements and unpredictable demand.

Canalys senior analyst Sanyam Chaurasia noted increased investment in mainline retail space proving beneficial for vendors and enabled market stabilisation. 

“The premium segment witnessed robust growth, thanks to easy financing options, incentive schemes for retailers and rising disposable income,” said Chaurasia. “With the celebration of Diwali in November 2023, Apple got the opportunity to push the latest iPhone 15 series during the festive sales, contributing more than 50% to its shipments in Q4. Additionally, discounts on the previous-generation iPhone 14 and iPhone 13 models during online sales resulted in Apple’s record shipments, allowing it to capture 7% market share in India. 

“Similarly, Samsung had set aggressive retail targets for its premium Galaxy S23 series to drive premium segment growth. Along with this, Samsung’s latest Galaxy S23 FE launch in Q4 drove shipments, thanks to compelling banking deals.” 

“Vendors are entering 2024’s ‘Election Year’ with improved indicators for the consumer market with manageable inflation, a steady interest rate and clear visibility of a stable government to come into power,” said Chaurasia. 

“Canalys expects the Indian smartphone market to grow by mid-single digits in 2024, driven by affordable 5G and the pandemic period replacement cycle. But the biggest challenge for vendors this year will be to manage the rising bill of materials costs.” 

Australia-based operator Telstra extended its network capabilities in Latin America by establishing a dedicated point-of-presence (PoP) in Dallas, Texas and collaborating with Mexican operators Axtel and Vivaro, in its pursuit of growth. 

In a statement, the company detailed that its subsidiary Telstra International will carry out the project, and that its initial focus will be on Mexico as the new “strategic” PoP will be a “critical gateway” for internet and IP traffic from the region. It enables global enterprises and wholesalers including in LATAM, to be able to easily integrate into Telstra’s network and enhance their reach. 

Mexican multinationals aiming to connect to other regions and plug into the network to reach Asia-Pacific, Europe and other continents can do so through the same PoP. 

Telegeography estimated that on average 84% of internet traffic to and from LATAM currently goes through the US and Canada. Data traffic is expected to grow as international bandwidth increases in LATAM and massive bandwidth markets continue to rely on the US to be the gateway to reach markets on other continents. 

“We’re focused on Latin America as a key growth market as we expect to see increased demand for connectivity from enterprises, hyperscalers and wholesale customers between APAC and the region driven by a technology boom and growing economies. 

“Our official expansion and continued investments in digital infrastructure position us well to offer customers simple and secure options to connect to this dynamic region and leverage our global network,” said Telstra International CEO Roary Stasko.

“Looking ahead, Telstra International will continue to innovate on our network infrastructure through additional PoPs and collaborate with our industry partners to provide critical connectivity and capacity to more Latin American countries such as Brazil, Chile, Argentina and Colombia.”

This Industry Viewpoint was authored by Dana Cohen Mizrahi, Product Marketing Manager at Sony Semiconductor Israel

Non-terrestrial network (NTN) connectivity is making its way into IoT chipsets, enabling connected devices and installations to be deployed anywhere. Some devices are being outfitted with stand-alone chips that can only connect to satellites, while others are using hybrid chipsets that support both terrestrial and non-terrestrial connectivity. … [visit site to read more]

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Two new facilities, recently opened by Pixxel and Apple, underline the continuing attraction to technology companies of the Indian market in general and the city of Bengaluru in particular.

Pixxel, a specialist in hyperspectral earth-imaging technology inaugurated its first spacecraft manufacturing facility (called MegaPixxel) in Bengaluru this week.

The new facility, spanning more than 30,000 square feet, consolidates all satellite manufacturing services, providing a comprehensive spacecraft assembly, integration, and testing (AIT) facility under one roof.

The facility, Pixxel says, will ensure a streamlined production process from concept to launch — providing a space for Pixxel’s satellites to be designed from scratch, manufactured, integrated and tested for launch conditions before being shipped to a launch site.

At full capacity, the facility is equipped to handle more than 20 satellites simultaneously that can be turned around within a timeframe of six months, making a total capacity of 40 large satellites per year possible.

The space is uniquely designed, with two modern clean rooms of ISO Class 7 and ISO Class 8 that safeguard against contaminants that could impair satellite functionality during the satellite assembly and integration process.

Additionally, it houses labs for advanced camera integration, electronics R&D, and electrical assembly, along with a mechanical workshop, a mission control room, and an office space that can accommodate more than 200 employees. 

Pixxel’s facility will also feature a wastewater treatment plant to help conserve water and reduce water dependency as well as smart heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to further enhance energy efficiency and minimise carbon footprint.

Meanwhile Apple has opened its latest Indian office in Bengaluru, underlining its commitment to the world’s second-largest smartphone market – and its divergence outside of China.

The new Apple office will house up to 1,200 employees and comprises 15 floors, dedicated lab space, and areas for collaboration and wellness.

This is the latest addition to Apple’s corporate office footprint across Bengaluru, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Gurugram. The company has nearly 3,000 employees in India.

Telecom Egypt and Zain Omantel International (ZOI) have announced plans to forge what they call a new digital corridor, bridging the Mediterranean and Arabian seas.

Telecom Egypt describes itself as Egypt’s first integrated telecom operator and one of the largest subsea cable operators in the region. Global wholesale services provider Zain Omantel International (ZOI) has access to more than 20 international subsea cables in the region (we reported on the launch of ZOI in May 2023). They are now joining forces to establish the corridor which, they say, will seamlessly connect the Mediterranean Sea to the Arabian Sea and Arabian Gulf, creating an ‘unprecedented’ Eurasian data highway.

The infrastructure will extend from Oman’s Arabian Sea and Gulf shores to Egypt’s Mediterranean coastline, employing a high-fibre-count, cutting-edge blend of terrestrial and subsea segments.

The terrestrial segments, spanning Oman, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, promise what is described as unparalleled reliability and protection, while the subsea section, directly linking Saudi Arabia and Egypt through the Red Sea, will feature a high-capacity repeaterless cable system.

Telecom Egypt and ZOI say this route design will provide their partners and customers with the best resiliency and reliability for their end-to-end solution. Furthermore, the infrastructure will be extended to Kuwait, Bahrain, Iraq and Jordan through ZOI’s network and collaboration with the licensed cable landing parties in each country.

This collaboration also offers an opportunity for subsea cable owners. By connecting to this open access system, they can significantly reduce their construction costs and greatly enhance latency, resilience and market response times.

Telecom Egypt will develop new infrastructure across Egypt from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean and onwards to Europe, complemented by ZOI’s robust infrastructure across the Middle East. This new network route, say the project partners, will have the shortest, enhanced-latency profile, giving hyperscalers, subsea cable providers, carriers and telecom operators improved connectivity options from the Indian Ocean to Europe.

Two of the biggest network operators and the Middle East are teaming up to change the way data traverses the Middle East. Zain Omantel International and Telecom Egypt announced today that they will build a new open-access digital corridor between the Arabian Sea and the Mediterranean. … [visit site to read more]