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It has been widely reported in the Indian press that Tata Communications Transformation Services (TCTS), a subsidiary of Indian digital ecosystem enabler Tata Communications, has issued a service contract  termination notice to operator Vodafone Idea (aka Vi) after the company did not pay TCTS on time.

Tata Communications is apparently in discussion about a disengagement transition plan with Vodafone Idea, though it has not named the operator specifically.

A notice to the stock exchange suggested that the carrying amount of trade receivables from the operator may have been Rs 221.19 crores (about US$26.6 million) in December 2023.

As news reports point out, TCTS handles maintenance work for Vodafone Idea’s fibre assets. However, Vodafone Idea has apparently offered an assurance that customer services will remain unaffected despite the termination of the service contract by TCTS. The work will now be brought in-house.

What may be more significant in this case is that this is a big vendor withdrawing its services to Vodafone Idea over non-payment, which does not seem to have happened to the operator before.

What this says about Vodafone Idea’s financial situation is unclear. News reports suggest that the operator is clearing its debt obligations to lenders and banks. However, some payments owed to vendors are apparently being delayed. 

We have already mentioned Vodafone Idea’s issues with Indus Towers (which led to threats to restrict service, though not their outright withdrawal). The operator also needs to pay other vendors such as American Tower Corp (ATC), Nokia and Ericsson. And, of course, it needs to find money for 5G rollout given the ground it has lost to competitors Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio.

Ukheshe International, a South African fintech enablement partner with an expanding footprint in key emerging markets, has acquired EFT Corporation, an Africa-focused payment and e-commerce solutions provider, from parent Loita Transaction Services (LXS), a pan-African payment solutions and financial switching provider.

The businesses say they will continue to operate as separate entities and maintain their respective brand identities for the foreseeable future. They add that the partnership ensures EFTCorp’s customers will continue to engage with a trusted brand while gaining access to an expanded suite of innovative digital services through Ukheshe.

As a 23-year-old pioneer of digital payments in 35 African markets supporting over 100 banks and processors, EFTCorp is known for its core switching skills and issuer processor technology. Ukheshe’s offerings encompass a comprehensive range of end-to-end digital services that assist in digitising banking partners.

This deal allows the wider group to access new technologies and opportunities in a diverse market, enhancing exposure to different customers, projects and business opportunities across Africa and the Middle East.

Ukheshe says that its expertise in digital onboarding, know your customer (KYC), digital wallets, and various payment channels will open new opportunities to digitise EFTCorp’s traditional customers who rely on established electronic payment processing systems.

Ukheshe has certainly been active in this market in recent years. This transaction follows on from Ukheshe’s 2022 acquisition of Masterpass, Mastercard’s QR code payments service, in South Africa, and the closing of a funding partnership with Development Partners International (DPI) in 2023, not to mention Ukheshe’s 2020 purchase of Oltio from Mastercard. Oltio developed the digital payments platform for Masterpass.

More recently, in 2021, Ukheshe Technologies and Infobip, a global cloud communications platform, developed what they called South Africa’s very first WhatsApp payment gateway.

It remains to be seen whether this latest deal is, as Ukheshe claims, “a significant move for the African fintech ecosystem”, let alone “a landmark deal that positions the new group for market dominance”. But Ukheshe clearly has major ambitions in this market.

As co-founder and CEO Clayton Hayward says, “The market is ripe for consolidation and disruption; bringing together these like-minded executive teams and our great products positions us to dominate the African continent as  the preferred banking solutions partner.”

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]