Today’s telecom news includes announcements on Bharat Telecom 2025, Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, Vodafone Idea, Ericsson, among others.
India Leads Global Telecom Innovation, Targets 20 percent GDP Contribution by 2035
India is emerging as a global hub for telecom innovation, expanding from device assembly to design, development, and manufacturing. At the ‘Bharat Telecom 2025’ event, over 60 Indian telecom companies presented products to more than 70 delegates from over 30 countries. The government is promoting collaboration between international investors, technology providers, and Indian companies through the National Digital Communications Policy and the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme to increase local manufacturing and support exports. Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said India’s telecom sector is expected to increase its GDP contribution from 12–14 percent to 20 percent over the next 10–12 years. India developed an indigenous 4G technology stack in 20 months. BSNL plans to expand its 4G network and upgrade to 5G. India has 1.2 billion mobile subscribers, 974 million internet subscriptions, and 944 million broadband connections.
Indian Telecom Giants Launch Unified Network Services to Curb Digital Scams
Indian mobile operators Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea are collaborating under the GSMA Open Gateway initiative to combat digital scams and identity theft. A GSMA report shows over 50 percent of Indian consumers have faced scams, with 10 percent affected in the past year. The operators are introducing federated network services, including SIM Swap and Number Verification APIs, to help online businesses verify customer identities and prevent fraud. These APIs are GSMA-certified and allow developers to build services that work across all participating mobile networks while keeping operators in control of data and policies. A hackathon titled “India Connected – APIs for a Billion Lives” has been organized to promote solutions using these APIs.
Ericsson to Make All Telecom Gear in India
Ericsson has committed to producing all telecom equipment sold in India locally, including future 6G technology. The company currently manufactures 4G and 5G equipment in India for domestic use and export. Ericsson is expanding its research and development in Bengaluru and developing solutions such as 5G-enabled food grain kiosks across India. This initiative supports India’s push for self-reliance in telecom manufacturing and encourages private telecom operators to use locally produced equipment amid geopolitical uncertainties. Local production is expected to reduce dependency on imports and strengthen supply chain security.
Shafana Fazal
