Mobile Magazine April 2019 Issue Review

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phone of the month
HUAWEI MATE 20 PRO
Technology
Redefined
Karan Bedi
COO, Blaupunkt
Televisions India
CES 2019 FACE TO FACE
Tech Innovations From
Apple's Orchard
SPOTLIGHT
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THE FACETS
OF PUBG
Arrest, Award and Opportunity
@MyMobileMag
@mymobilemag
National Policy on
Electronics 2019
Decor Your Home With
Smart Speakers
VANTAGE
FEATURE

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t is proud and encouraging to know that
the mobile handset and components
manufacturing eco-system is considered to
be the Champion product category under
the “Make in India” and “Digital India” flagship
programs of the Indian Government. India has
surpassed Vietnam in becoming the second
largestmanufacturerofhandsetsbyvolumewith
production reaching 225 million units valued at
INR 1,32,000 crore by the end of 2017.
ThePhasedManufacturingProgram(PMP)hasbeenthe
key strategy for widening and deepening the components
manufacturing eco-system in the mobile handset sector,
the twin objective of the PMP being value addition and
generation of employment in India. While the Mobile
industry is growing, there is a simultaneous evolution in the
app industry as well.
Postthesmartphonerevolution,brandscreatedaholistic
eco-system in the country for many unicorn companies
in the past one decade. Many apps/services are being
accessed primarily on smart phones now. Prevalence of
the Open OS has also facilitated smart phones supporting
multilingualcapabilitiesandalsoledtoenhancementofthe
SkillIndiaProgrambythegovernment.Thesocietalimpact
of this robust eco-system has led to a growing number of
entrepreneursandstart-upsinIndia.Smartphonesandopen
OS facilitate financial inclusion of the masses and leads to
variousonlinecapabilitiesfortheconsumerssuchasdigital
payments, app development and E-commerce. Moreover,
Open OS led to not just a growth of the mobile and app
ecosystem but an overall rise in the Indian economy. This
happened due to an increase in smart phone penetration,
thereby leading to an overall GDP growth of the country.
While we embark on this crucial journey with the vision
to showcase the various verticals of the mobile and app
industryinthecountry,itwouldbeinterestingtoobservethe
impact of Open OS eco-system on Indian consumers.
Happy Reading! n
FIRSTCALL
MYMOBILE
Editorpage
04 | aPRIl 2019
Pankaj Mohindroo
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
I
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The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for errors
and omissions contained in this publication, however caused.
The opinions and the views contained in this publication are not
necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are advised to
seek specialist advice before acting on information contained in
this publication, which is provided for general use and may not
be appropriate for the reader’s particular circumstances. The
ownership of trademarks is acknowledged.
Volume XIV, Issue III, APRIL 2019
E D I T O R I A L
Pankaj Mohindroo | Editor-in-Chief
Haider Ali Khan | Deputy Editor
Ramesh Kumar Raja | Assistant Editor
D E S I G N
Ajit Kumar Parashar | Sr. Graphic Designer
M A R K E T I N G
Puja Mohindroo | Manager - Business
Sandeep Kumar | Sr. Manager – Marketing
O P E R A T I O N S
K. Rajagopalan | Advisor-Legal, Accounts &
Administration
Deepak Kohli | Sr. Manager – Accounts
C I R C U L A T I O N
B. G. Mathur | Manager- Production & Circulation
A D V I S O R Y B O A R D
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Style Notes
09 letters
12 Newsbits
16 big News
25 Just iN
Get a close look at new mobile
devices now in the market
34 lead story
The Facets of PUBG - arrest,
award and Opportunity
CoNsumer
iNsight
40 Data Usage in India to Grow at
73% CaGR by 2022
44 Streaming Platforms Gaining
Ground post Trai’s new Tariff
Regime
66 Internet Emerging as an
Empowering Tool to advance
Social Standing
market iNsight
42 Over 1 bn Feature Phones to
be Sold in 3 Years
50 Global Wireless Hearables
Sales to Reach 129 mn Units
by 2020
FaCe to FaCe
46 Vivek Dhir – Founder and CEO,
StarsTell.com
48 Sanjay Kaushik – Managing
Director, Netrika Consulting
62 Vineet Budki – Co-Founder and
CEO, Guiddoo World
64 B l Mittal – Founder and
Executive Chairman,
SastaSundar.com
70 amit Sethi – Co-Founder and
CTO, Cashify
73 anmol Kukreja – Co-Founder
and CEO, Skillbox
74 Neeraj Sharma – Country
Manager, South asia and MEa,
Mobvista
82 Suraj Mhatre – Business Head,
Warranty Bazaar
The Burntest
52 realme 3
54 oppo F11 pro
57 redmi Note 7
60 Fitbit Charge 3
68 by iNvitatioN
How aI is Revolutionizing the
Mobile Industry – Ralf
llanasas, a Technology Blogger
16
CONTENTS
06 | aPRIl 2019 MYMOBILE
40
34
66

CONTENTS
MYMOBILE
What'sInside
Total number of
pages = 124
78 Feature
Make Your Home Smart with
Smart Speakers
iN FoCus
77 Cricket-based Mobile Gaming
apps set to Explode
81 Opera launches built-in VPN
on its android Browser
83 Mozilla introduces ‘Firefox
lite’
107 India’s E-Waste to Touch 5.2
MMT by 2020
85 my guide
The most comprehensive
feature and price list
of mobile devices
108 add oNs
The latest and the best of
gadgets and accessories, from
earphones and Bluetooth
speakers to power banks
122 vaNtage poiNt
National Policy on Electronics
2019: a visionary step that
can transform India,
says ICEa
77
85
107

Inbox
My trust and passion of
reading My Mobile keeps on
increasing as the topics
which you have been
covering are matchless like
the last issue of March
2019 (Foldable
Smartphones) was very
informative, well timed and
properly researched one.
While the Big News and
Consumer Insights are
wholesome informative, the
Bazaar Bargain helps us to
know the latest price of the
already launched products
on which we could get the
best bargain. My best
wishes to My Mobile team.
—Namit, New Delhi
Dear My Mobile team, it
gives me an immense
knowledge of mobile
ecosystem which you guys
deliver through the
magazine and it’s simply
brilliant. I really liked review
of Vivo V15 Pro in your burn
tests. Majority of readers or
the users might not be
aware of the whole insight
about any latest mobile or
technology but what we get
from it, which is very helpful
and deep. It is a must have
for those who want to get
useful and correct
information.
—Geetansh, Mumabi
My Mobile has been
associated with me since I
was in my college and has
been a part of my growing
up. I am very fond of this
unique and informative
magazine present in the
country. Since I am a
dedicated reader since my
young age, I have been
admired as the one who
knows everything in my
friends and neighbors about
mobile and technology.
—Shivali, Jaipur
We, as the regular reader
and subscriber of My
Mobile, love to read the
gadgets, mobiles and apps
more often in the magazine
rather than going to any
website. The main source of
our tech content comes
from My Mobile magazine.
The unmatched quality of
the product keeps it in a
different league altogether.
Just-ins, Consumer and
Industry Insights always
come handy. an ideal tech
magazine should follow your
footsteps.
—Rakesh, Patna
The March 2019 issue was
well elaborated and very
timely as were quite
interested in knowing about
the Foldable smartphones
that are coming our way.
The burn tests and chief
speak you did were pretty
good and informative. It has
been my guide to all the
tech queries and hence
developing my knowledge as
a consumer.
—Gulsheen Kaur,
Chandigarh
My Mobile has been my
boredom buster during long
trips and journeys. We get
all the information about the
apps and new features
running onto our handsets.
You guys always do in-
depthstory. Waiting for your
next issue.
—Paromita, Kolkata
I want to thank My Mobile
team for their
continuous effort to provide
the unique and latest
content in mobile and
technology domain. What I
like the most as a reader is
the Burn Tests as it gives
an overall comparison of
the devices. Thank you
so much, guys! Keep
rocking.
—Saurav, Mumbai
The best way to get
knowledge about all the
available mobile devices
and their prices is My
Mobile. The kind of
collective information
available in My Guide
section of the magazine is
very helpful, especially for a
customer and reader like
me. We get all the brands,
their specifications and
price range at the same
place. Rather than flipping
through the entire
magazine, one would get the
idea about any particular
mobile.
—Manika, Delhi
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Technology
Redefined
Karan Bedi
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CES 2019 FACE TO FACE
Tech Innovations From
Apple's Orchard
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FACE TO FACE
Mobile Gaming:
The Current
Dominators
BOREDOM
BUSTER
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FOLDABLE
SMARTPHONES!
Sensible or Senseless?
Are you crazy about cellphones and have the
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Do you have a nose for news and can also key in a dream
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LETTERS
APRIl 2019 | 09

T
he mobile gaming market in India has been
experiencing explosive growth over the last few
years. According to recent studies, India ranks
amongst the top five markets globally for mobile
gaming with a whopping 222 million users spending an
average of 42 minutes a day on games. From Candy Crush
andLudoKingtoTempleRunandPUBG,mobilegaminghas
enteredthemainstreamlexiconofthenation’sconsciousness
andthereisnoturningbackfromhere.AndQualcommisready
to support India’s new-found love for mobile gaming with its
suiteofhardwareandsoftwaretoolsthatofferconsolequality,
immersive gaming experiences on their mobile devices.
The proliferation of smartphones equipped with the
Qualcomm Snapdragon Mobile Platform, coupled with
cheaperdataplansandwider3Gand4Gcoverageemerged,
quite literally, as a game changer. Smartphones powered by
the Qualcomm Snapdragon Mobile Platform are assured of
a superlative gaming experience while guaranteeing longer
battery life, and better connectivity. Not just the elite gaming
platform within the Snapdragon 800 series or even the high
endthe700serieschipset,eventheSnapdragon600series
offers superlative gaming experience, making Qualcomm
Snapdragon powered handsets the preferred smartphone
for India.
Hereiseverythingyouneed
to know about Qualcomm
Snapdragon’s mobile gaming
capabilities:
Performance and
GPU power
Qualcomm Adreno GPUs
are at the heart of the
Snapdragon processors.This
GPU is designed for quick &
power efficient rendering of
complexgeometriesessential
for gaming. As a result,
Snapdragon processors can
handle the most advanced
3D games on mobile devices
withnolag,atthefastestframe
ratesandbestgraphicsquality,
making for a completely
immersive experience.
Advanced graphics quality
What’s a game without stunning graphics? The Adreno
GPU in every Snapdragon processor ensures the best
quality graphics for even the most advanced and complex
games, ensuring a smooth gaming experience. The latest
QUALCOMM SNAPDRAGON
REDEFINING MOBILE GAMING IN INDIA

ADVT.
*Disclaimer: Qualcomm Snapdragon is a product of Qualcomm Technologies,
Inc. and/or its subsidiaries.
platform, Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Mobile Platform, with
newQualcommAdreno640GPUprovidesupto20%faster
graphicsthanthepreviousgenerationwhilecontinuingtolead
the industry in performance per watt. Gaming experiences
usingAdrenographicswillachieveanewlevelofrealismwith
support of the Vulkan 1.1 API, high dynamic range (HDR)
gaming,physicallybasedrendering(PBR)andsupportsover
a billion colors.
High speed and better sound
Top notch graphics are just one element
in the magic mix that makes elevates a
mobile game to cult status. The other two
are sound quality and network bandwidth
and latency. Imagine playing an intense
game on a device with dropped frames
(janks) or playing PUBG with low quality sound. Fortunately,
Snapdragon processors have you covered.
The QualcommAqsticAudio suite guarantees best in class
sound quality and the X12 LTE modem ensures lightning
fast speed.
All round better performance, even in
mid-range platforms
The Snapdragon 800 series equipped with the elite gaming
platformoffersasuperlativegamingexperience.Butthatisnot
tosaythatmobiledevicesequippedwithmid-rangeplatforms
don’t offer excellent gaming support. The Snapdragon 600
seriesisdesignedtohelpgamersplayfaster,betterandhave
anoverallbetterexperience.Infact,someofthemostpopular
mobilegameshavebeenoptimizedontheSnapdragon600
series.Asaresult,thisseriesoffersgamerstheabilitytoplay
withupto90percentfewerjanksand30percentfastergame
launches.
Immersive experience
Successful mobile games reach their cult like status largely
on the basis of the completely immersive experience they
offer. Qualcomm Snapdragon has this covered.The 700
series provides improved multi-media
experience with faster processing and
graphics rendering without any janks that
will keep games running smoothly.The
Adreno GPU helps Snapdragon platforms
offer console like gaming quality and a
cinematic experience on the smartphone.
The billion plus colors supported by the
platform, coupled with the best in class
audio quality guaranteed ensure a truly immersive gaming
experience.
AI Power
Today, more intelligence is moving to end devices, and
mobile is becoming the pervasiveAI platform. Building
on the smartphone foundation and the scale of mobile,
Qualcomm envisions makingAI ubiquitous—expanding
beyond mobile and powering other end devices, machines,
vehicles, and things. Snapdragon 855 features the 4th
generation multi-core QualcommAI Engine, which offers a
total capacity of more than 7 trillion operations per second
(7TOPs), and 3x theAI performance compared to the
previous generation mobile platform. n

NEWSBITS
MYMOBILE
What’sUp
12 | APRIl 2019
Oppo’s first 5G smartphone gets 5G CE
certificate
Chinese handset maker Oppo’s first 5G
smartphone has successfully passed 5G
CEtestsconductedbySportonInternational
Inc, a global inspection services authority.
“An integral step towards the commercial
launch of its 5G smartphone in Europe,
Oppo’sCEcertificationverifiesthatthe5G
device is compliant with EU requirements
essentialforenteringEuropeanmarketsin
areas such as wireless, electromagnetic
compatibility, health and safety,” Oppo
said in a statement recently. Originally
showcasedatMobileWorldCongress2019
(MWC) in Barcelona, the 5G phone is also
the first multi-frequency, multi-mode and
multi-EN-DCcombination5Gsmartphone
to be approved by the CTC. The phone
maintains advantages of the n78 band
such as more band combinations and
wider bandwidth, which can be applied
across a broader range of countries and
regions.
HuaweidevelopsownOSincaseofAndroid
ban
Tech major Huawei has developed its own
proprietary operating systems (OS) and is
ready to implement those in case its legal
battle with the US leads to a ban on the
export of US-made products and services
suchasAndroidandWindows.Theworld’s
second-largest handset player by market
share currently uses the Android OS for its
handsets and Microsoft’s Windows for its
laptops and tablets. The Chinese
technologygiantfiledalawsuitagainstthe
US government recently as a “last resort”
to get a federal ban on the use of its
products lifted. The lawsuit, filed in a US
District Court in Texas challenges the
constitutionality of Section 889 of the
2019 National Defence Authorization Act
(NDAA), which was signed by President
Donald Trump in August last year.
Xiaomi launches 7th manufacturing plant
in India
Xiaomi recently announced a new
manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu,
making it the company’s seventh such
plant in the country. The manufacturing
plant was launched in partnership with
Flex ltd. “We are delighted to announce
our new smartphone manufacturing
partnership with Flex ltd. In line with our
sincerecommitmenttoMakeinIndia,this
new association will further drive our
localization efforts,” said Muralikrishnan
B,ChiefOperatingOfficer,XiaomiIndia,in
New Delhi. The seven smartphone
manufacturingplantsofXiaomiarespread
across four campuses in partnership with
Foxconn, Flex and Hipad. With the new
plant, Xiaomi said it now has a combined
manufacturing capacity of up to three
smartphones per second during operating
hours.
Samsung launches 12GB LPDDR4X
mobile DRAM
South Korean electronics major Samsung
has launched a 12GB lPDDR4X mobile
DRAM.Accordingtothecompany,itisthe
industry’sfirst12-gigabyte(GB)low-power
double data rate 4X (lPDDR4X) package
and is claimed to feature higher capacity
than most ultra-thin notebooks.
Announcing the mass production of the
new mobile DRAM, the company said the
DRAM will enable smartphone users to
take full advantage of all features in next-
generation smartphones. The 12GB
mobileDRAMwillhelpsmartphonemakers
maximizepotentialofdeviceswithfeatures
like 5 cameras, artificial intelligence
support, 5G capabilities. Its 1.1mm
thickness allows for sleeker smartphone
designs in addition to ultra-large high-
resolution screens. Smartphone users will
be able to experience faster multitasking
and browser search along with easy
navigating through apps. The mobile
memory is said to deliver a data transfer
rate of 34.1GB per second.
Lava launches new feature phone for Rs
1,799
Homegrown handset
maker lava has
launched in India its
new feature phone,
34 Super, priced at
Rs 1,799 and with a
30-hour battery life.
The phone comes
with a 2.4-inch
screen, 2,500mAh battery, 1.3MP rear
camera and a box speaker with amplifier,
capable of generating 99.6 dB loudness.
“The biggest selling proposition of ‘34
Super’ is powerful battery and supreme
soundquality,”saidTejinderSingh,Head,
Product-Feature Phones, lava
International. The mobile phone supports
English, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali, Gujarati
and Punjabi. It carries one-year
manufacturer replacement guarantee in
India and comes with a six-month
replacement for in-box accessories,
including battery, charger and earphones.
The phone would be available across
75,000 retail outlets in black-red and
sunrise gold colour variants.
YouTube Music lands in India
Google-owned YouTube has come up with
its new music streaming app, YouTube
Music, in India. This is the second big
debut of a global music streaming giant in
IndiaafterSwedishplatformSpotifymade
its way into the country recently. The ad-
supportedversionofYouTubeMusicisfree
andtogetaccesstoad-freeYouTubeMusic

NEWSBITS
APRIl 2019 | 13
What’sUp
Premium, you have to pay Rs 99 a month,
the company said in a statement. The
companyalsoannouncedtobring“YouTube
Premium” to India which would be
availableforRs129amonththatincluded
membership to YouTube Music Premium,
offlinedownloadsandaccesstoallYouTube
originals.YouTubeMusicwouldthrowabig
competitiontoserviceslikeGaana,Saavn,
Apple Music and Amazon Music. In the
crowded Indian music streaming industry,
the newly-launched Spotify has already
garnered over one million users.
Apple acquires patents from Lighthouse,
wants to revamp Face ID
Apple is looking to upgrade Face ID in its
upcoming phones and devices and has
acquired patents of an AI security camera
company, lighthouse. Apple reportedly
boughtthepatentportfolioofthecompany
at the end of 2018, reported The Verge.
ThepatentsacquiredbyApplelargelydeal
with using computer vision to scan and
recognise faces, which may mean that the
company might upgrade Face ID in its
upcomingdevices.Ifthosesoundfamiliar,
it’sbecauselighthouse’spatentsdescribe
technology that’s quite similar to what
AppleusesforFaceIDonitsiPhoneXSand
XR devices. It is possible that Apple is
looking to use lighthouse’s technology to
advance Face ID further, maybe, in a
version for a computer that would benefit
fromlighthouse’sabilitytotellfacesapart
from a farther distance than the Face ID
system currently on its smartphones or
Apple could use the ability to recognise
multiple users to add the long-requested
abilitytoaddseveralFaceIDuserstoshare
a single device or phone.
WhatsApp Business app now available on
iOS
WhatsApp Business, a free-to-download
communication tool specifically designed
for small businesses, is now available for
iOS users. Announced back in September
2017andlaunchedforAndroidinJanuary
2018, the beta version of the app for iOS
was introduced in February this year. The
company has not officially announced the
rolling out of its Business app on the iOS
platform but according to WABetaInfo, a
fan site that tests new WhatsApp features,
the app is available in Mexico. “WhatsApp
BusinessisnowavailableontheAppStore
in some countries: the first one is Mexico!
Is WhatsApp Business available in your
country too? let me know under this
tweet!” WABetaInfo tweeted recently.
Users from Brazil, Argentina, and France
alsoconfirmedtheavailabilityofWhatsApp
Business for iOS devices in their
countries.
GooglePay looks to bring kirana store
customers on its platform
Following peer-to-peer (P2P) and bill
payments,GooglePayislookingtowinover
customers of smaller offline retailers or
kiranastores.WhileGooglehadannounced
planstopartnerwithpoint-of-saleproviders
to onboard retail merchants, it is now
piloting transactions based on the Unified
Payments Interface (UPI) to be made by
consumerswhilemakingofflinepurchases,
said reports quoting two people aware of
the development. Having emerged as one
of the top three payment applications on
UPI, thanks to P2P and bill payments,
Google’s offline strategy is designed to
create an ecosystem of payment solutions
for Indian consumers. For the technology
giant, which is aiming to connect the Next
Billion Users to the internet, India is a key
market. By leveraging payments, the
company is targeting a big chunk of the
consumer-retail interface.
Delhi Govt launches common mobility
app
In order to help commuters plan their
journey on the Delhi Metro as well as all
state-runbuses,theDelhigovernmenthas
come up with a common mobility
application, ‘One Delhi’, which integrates
publictransport-relatedinformationatone
place.launchingthemobileapp,Transport
Minister Kailash Gahlot said the service
would allow people to learn bus routes,
timings and real-time arrival, instead of
waiting endlessly at stops for a bus to
arrive. “The app will be a universal journey
planner for Delhi commuters with several
remarkable features. Users can access
real-time arrival of all cluster buses at any
bus stop and static data of the DTC buses.
To make travel easier in Delhi, the app will
allowuserstoaccessallbusstops,busand
Metroroutes,fares,expectedtimeofarrival
of Metro trains at a particular station,”
Gehlot said.
Haptik partners Maharashtra Govt to
launch Aaple Sarkar chatbot
Inkeepingwiththedigitizationeffortbeing
actively pursued by the Centre, the
Maharashtra government has partnered
with Haptik, the world’s largest
conversational AI platform, to develop a
chatbot for the purposes of effective
information dissemination, as part of the
Right to Services Act of 2015. The Act

NEWSBITS
MYMOBILE
What’sUp
14 | APRIl 2019
mandates that citizens should be able to
access information regarding public
servicesthroughdigitalplatforms.Thenew
chatbot will be another medium through
which citizens can get their queries
resolved. Available on the Aaple Sarkar
RTS (Right to Services) website, the bot
provides easy, conversational access to
information regarding 1,400 public
servicesmanagedbythestategovernment.
Haptik’s chatbot simplifies the process of
searching through the vast array of public
services.
1 in 3 women continues to receive
inappropriate calls, messages
Truecaller recently launched a nationwide
campaign to raise awareness against
women harassment that occurs through
mobile phones. In conjunction to the
campaign, Truecaller released the second
edition of its Truecaller Insights report,
“Understanding Impact of Harassment,
Spam Calls & SMS for women”, which
revealed 1 in 3 women in India continued
toreceivesexualandinappropriatecallsor
SMS. The report showed that out of the
surveyedwomenwhoreceivedharassment
calls and SMS, 52% received unknown
calls and SMS with inappropriate content
atleastonceaweek.74%ofcallsreceived
were from unknown people to the victim
and a staggering 23% calls were made by
stalkers followed by 11% calls that were
made from a person known to the user.
TikTok crosses 1 billion download
milestone
TikTok, the social video app from Beijing’s
ByteDancehashitanothermajormilestone
with more than one billion worldwide
downloads on the Apple App Store and
Google Play Store, Sensor Tower revealed
in its latest Store Intelligence estimates
report. The one billion downloads include
lite versions and regional variations of the
app but does not include Android installs
in China. New users reached 71.3 million
worldwide, excluding China count. TikTok,
thefourthmostdownloadednon-gameapp
lastyearwasthenumberthreeappglobally
in terms of new installs across both stores
during January and was number one non-
gameappintheUSrecently.Interestingly,
25 per cent of TikTok’s downloads to date
have come from India, and the userbase is
estimated to be about 250 million. In
January this year, 43 per cent of new users
were from India, compared to 9.5 per cent
in January last year.
Vodafone Idea, Zee seal content deal
Vodafone Idea and Zee Entertainment
Enterprises have entered into a strategic
alliance for ZEE5, an over-the-top (OTT)
platform. Under the partnership, the
content portfolio of ZEE5 will be available
to Vodafone Idea customers on Vodafone
PlayaswellasIdeaMoviesandTVapp.The
telecom market leader said that its
customersofVodafoneIdeacannowenjoy
the entire content catalogue of ZEE5
providing a seamless viewing experience
via multiple devices. The content of ZEE5
can be accessed by customers through
Vodafone Play or Idea Movies and TV app.
The ZEE5 content is available across 12
languagessuchasEnglish,Hindi,Bengali,
Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada,
Marathi, Oriya, Bhojpuri, Gujarati and
Punjabi. In addition, Vodafone Idea
subscribers will get access to ZEE5
premium subscription which includes
originalshowsandfilms,premiummovies,
digital movie premieres of upcoming
blockbuster films as an introductory offer.
Spice Digital changes its brand identity to
DiGiSPICE
In a strategic move, Spice Digital has
revamped its brand identity to DiGiSPICE.
As part of the rebranding, it has merged all
of its business units and international
operations across geographies such as the
Middle-East, Africa, South Asia and
Southeast Asia under the DiGiSPICE
brand. The company has also undertaken
extensive employee re-orientation to help
them understand what the brand stands
for. The move is aimed at reflecting the
company’scontinuedevolutionasadigital
leader over the last 18 years, as well as its
focus on utilizing its extensive expertise in
new-age technologies to deliver impactful
digital solutions. Post the revamp,
DiGiSPICE also aims to make greater
headway into emerging cutting-edge
domains such as Blockchain, Robotic
Process Automation, Big Data, Data
Analytics and the Internet of Things (IoT)
etc.
Karix Mobile announces partnership with
WhatsApp for Business
Karix Mobile, one of the world’s largest
providers of unified communication
solutions, has announced its partnership
withWhatsApptoofferWhatsAppBusiness
APIs to its customers. The service was
launched at Mobile World Congress 2019
in Barcelona, where Karix Mobile
showcased their extensive suite of unified
communication. Karix Mobile is one of the
s e l e c t o f f i c i a l
WhatsApp Business
service providers
globally to offer this
service. For enterprise
customers based in
India, Karix will offer
two deployment
models - Managed
Cloud and On-Premise, to integrate the
WhatsApp Business API. For global
customers and developers, the WhatsApp
Business API will be available through
Karix.io–itscloudcommunicationplatform
as a service (CPaaS).
Idea Sakhi, a mobile-based safety service
launched exclusively for women
To address the increasingly felt, safety
related concerns of women who wish to

step out and do more, brand Idea has
designed a unique mobile-based solution,
Idea Sakhi. It is a free of cost service
available to all women customers using
eitherprepaidorpostpaidservicesofIdea,
across the country. Accessible on both
smartphones and basic feature phones,
Idea Sakhi offers three extremely useful
features - Emergency Alerts, Emergency
Balance, and Private Number Recharge.
launched during the International
Women’s Week recently, this service has
already been made available to women
customers of Idea across AP & Telangana,
Assam & North East, TN incl. Chennai,
Kerala, Gujarat, J&K, Maharashtra & Goa,
MP & Chhattisgarh and Delhi.
WeChat introduces in-app gaming tab
China-based messaging and payments
platformWeChatisaddinganin-appmini-
gaming platform to let users play basic
games like Tetris, open to developers
worldwide. The company had listed two
developers outside China for now and
Google was one of them with its doodling
game -- “Guess My Sketch”. WeChat said
its mini games platform grew to over 400
million monthly active users, but that was
still less than half of how many monthly
active users were on the app -- 1.082
billion mostly from China, The Verge
reportedrecently.Withitsgamingplatform,
WeChat promises new developers joining
in from around the world profit shares.
Vodafone Idea seals content partnership
with ShemarooMe
Telecom operator Vodafone Idea has
entered into a strategic partnership with
ShemarooEntertainment’snewlylaunched
video streaming service- ShemarooMe. As
a part of this exclusive partnership,
subscribers of Vodafone Play and Idea
Movies & TV apps will have full access to
Shermaroo’s content library across
Bollywood, Devotion, Kids and other such
genres and languages. ShemarooMe has a
wide array of content offerings spanning
various genres like movies, shows, music,
plays, devotional, kids and similar in
Gujarati and many
more languages.
Thispartnershipwill
give all the fans of
Gujarati content
accesstoover400+
latest Gujarati
nataks, blockbuster movies and much
morethroughShemarooMe.VodafoneIdea
customers will get exclusive access on
Vodafone Play and Idea Movies and TV
apps for a period of one month.
Red FM launches Hidden Files, a
cybercrime show
Private radio network 93.5 Red FM has
launched a show on cybercrimes called
‘Hidden Files’, a first of its kind in the
history of radio. The initiative aims at
creating awareness around today’s
generation not only about hackers stealing
financial information but also how
cybercrime continues to evolve, with new
threats surfacing every year. The show is
anchoredbycyberexpertAmitDubeyinan
audiobook format. Amit started as a
software engineer
to help the police
solve criminal
cases, and turned
out to become the
National Security
Expert and a Crime
Investigator on
Cyber Forensics and Ethical Hacking. SP
DrTriveniSinghwillworkcloselywithAmit
narrating 13 audio files, which will be a
part of his upcoming book ‘Hidden Files.’
RisersAcceleratortosupportstart-upswith
Rs 10-50 lakhs of funding
Risers Accelerator, a newly-launched
platform aimed at providing financial,
infrastructural and knowledge support to
young entrepreneurs, will shortlist 200
start-upsformentoringin2019-20,itsaid
while announcing the launch of its
operations in New Delhi recently. Risers
Acceleratoralsolauncheditswebsiteatthe
event and said it is positioning itself as a
“platformtotransformthegame-changing
ideas of start-ups into feasible and
profitable businesses”. The new start-up
accelerator initiative is backed by a team
of 35 young entrepreneurs from diverse
backgroundsandsectors;theircumulative
experienceismorethan700years,andthe
totalworthoftheirbusinessesismorethan
Rs 3,000 crores, it said in a statement.
SEMrush, Colliers International unveil
Indian real estate market trends for 2019
SEMrush,anonlinevisibilitymanagement
and content marketing SaaS platform and
ColliersInternationalrecentlyunveiledthe
exclusive joint study ‘Digital Real Estate -
Winning the Indian Market with Data’.
They also announced the top 20 most
searched real estate players of India and
top 10 most searched cities for real estate
properties in India. The joint report by
SEMrush and Colliers International
revealed the first ever ‘Digital Real Estate
Insights’ with data collected for
demographics, investment, property
prices, commercial and residential buyer
trendsbyColliersInternationalanddigitally
analyzed by SEMrush. Fernando Angulo,
Corporate Speaker, SEMrush, stressed on
the fact that first-of-its-kind digital real
estate study for India can help builders,
brokers, and aggregators to assess and
reframe their online marketing and
branding strategies for optimum profits
and business growth. n
team@mymobile.co.in
www.mymobileindia.com APRIl 2019 | 15

What’sUp BIGNEWS
MYMOBILE16 | APRIl 2019
Proliferation of Open OS in mobile devices
has enabled the widespread demand, use
and affordability of smartphones:
ICEA – KPMG study
India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA), in association
with KPMG, released a detailed report, “Impact Assessment of
Open OS Ecosystem for Devices in India”, capturing how the
proliferation of Open OS in mobile devices has enabled the
widespreaddemand,useandaffordabilityofsmartphones,which
in turn has positively transformed the entire mobile ecosystem
including handset OEMs, ODMs, allied industry manufacturing
units, mobile application developers and consumers. With more
than 330 million Indians accessing the internet and a host of
online services on their handheld devices, it is also contributing
tothegovernment’sinitiativeslikeDigitalIndia,StartupIndiaand
Make in India.
Some of the key insights from the
report include:
• India overtook USA to become the second largest mobile
phone market in the world in terms of number of units, with
the Indian smartphone market growing at a CAGR of 37% in
value to reach INR 1,43,000 crores in 2017
• The number of manufacturing facilities for handsets and allied
industries have increased from 3 in in 2014 to 268 in 2018
• Open OS mobile operating system has expanded the market
size of smartphones in India by reducing barriers to entry.
Numberofsmartphonessoldincreasedfrom2millionunitsin
2009-10to117millionunitsin2017-18,correspondingwith
the increase in smartphone OEMs from 7 in 2009 to ~80 in
2018
• An estimated 72% of mobile application developers in India
are using open OS as the base of their development, and they
are also getting access to user base of 152 countries via 300
app stores
• Indian consumer is getting more choices with more smartphone
models available across price ranges with the retail price of
entrylevelsmartphonehavingfallenfromINR12,000in2009
to INR 1,400 in 2018. The Average Selling Price (ASP) of
smartphoneshasreducedby16%toreachINR11,800during
the same period
• Manufacturing of Open OS based handsets is estimated to
have created ~5.5 lakhs of direct and indirect jobs in India
from 2014-2018
EvolutionandsuccessfuldeploymentofOpenOSeco-systems
are considered to be crucial factors leading up to staggering
successeswitnessedinthemobilehandsetindustryecosystemin
Indiaduringthepastonedecade.OpenOSecosystemshavealso
playedakeyroletowardsrealisationofthevisionrelatedtoremoval
of digital divide amongst haves and have nots and its successful

BIGNEWS
What’sUp
enablement has also led to easy access of technology amongst
citizensfromvariousstratasofsocietiesthroughenhancedhandset
penetrations through reduced cost of handsets.
RS Sharma, Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
(Trai),said,“Theeasyaccessibilityandaffordabilityofsmartphones
has shrunk the digital divide between urban and rural India. The
Open OS ecosystem has further helped in the establishment of
manysmall,mediumandlargeenterprises.Iwould,however,wish
that India has its own OS developed for our needs.”
PankajMohindroo,Chairman,ICEA,said,“Postthesmartphone
revolution, brands created a holistic ecosystem in the country for
many unicorn companies in the past one decade. Many apps/
services are being accessed primarily on smartphones now.
Prevalence of the Open OS has also facilitated smartphones
supporting multilingual capabilities and also led to the
enhancement of the Skill India program by the government. The
societal impact of this robust ecosystem has led to a growing
number of entrepreneurs and startups in India.”
“Despite mobile handsets were considered to be a luxury
product only a decade and a half back leading to its lesser
penetrationandthistechnologyremainingoutofboundsamongst
the marginalised segments of society, today, this turnaround
success achieved in this sector benefiting the masses has been
madepossiblethroughdeploymentofOpenOSecosystemsasone
of the major success factors well recognised. Today, mobile
handsets which are technologically superior and contemporary
and found amongst the masses are synonymous with affordable
pricing. This undoubtedly plays a crucial role towards removal of
digital divide and fulfilment of objectives as found under the
flagship “Digital India” program,” Mohindroo added.
Jaideep Ghosh, Partner and Head-Technology, Media and
Telecommunications, Management Consulting, KPMG in India,
commented, “The contribution of Open Source operating system
is critical in making smartphones affordable and thus easily
accessible. By democratising technology and bringing it to the
palms of Indian masses, open OS platforms are enabling
smartphones evolve into tools for socio-economic
empowerment.”
Growingpenetrationofsmartphoneshasmadeonlineservices
like mobile banking, shared economy services, e-commerce etc.
moreaccessibleforconsumers.Ithasledtogreatervalueaddition
from manufacturers and app developers as well as a robust sales
and marketing ecosystem thereby contributing to economic
growth. n
“Theeasyaccessibilityandaffordability
ofsmartphoneshasshrunkthedigital
dividebetweenurbanandruralIndia.
TheOpenOSecosystemhasfurther
helpedintheestablishmentofmany
small,mediumandlargeenterprises.I
would,however,wishthatIndiahasits
ownOSdevelopedforourneeds”
– RS Sharma,
Chairman, Trai
“Manyapps/servicesarebeing
accessedprimarilyonsmartphones
now.PrevalenceoftheOpenOS
hasalsofacilitatedsmartphones
supportingmultilingualcapabilities
andalsoledtotheenhancementofthe
SkillIndiaprogrambythegovernment.
Thesocietalimpactofthisrobust
ecosystemhasledtoagrowingnumber
ofentrepreneursandstartupsinIndia”
– Pankaj Mohindroo,
Chairman, ICEA

BIGNEWSWhat’sUp
Apple introduces streaming service,
credit card and gaming arcade
iPhone-makerApplehaslaunchedatelevisionstreamingservice,
acreditcardandanonlinegamingarcade,inordertoreintroduce
itself also as an entertainment and financial services company.
The Cupertino-based tech major lifted the curtain on a
television and movie service called Apple TV+ that will stream
originaltelevisionshowsandmoviestoatelevision-watchingapp
for users of its 1.4 billion gadgets worldwide, as well as owners
of smart TVs and other devices. But Apple, known in the tech
industry for keeping its products secret until they are finished,
leftoutkeypricingdetailsforseveralofitsnewservices,unnerving
investors and sending its shares down slightly.
This tech development by Apple could be seen as a first step
to challenging streaming video leaders Netflix and Amazon,
although Apple is taking a different approach by offering paid
“channels” from HBO, Starz and Showtime alongside its own
content.Itsrevampedappforsubscribingtochannelsfromothers
willcomeoutinMay,butApple’sownoriginalshowswillnotarrive
until autumn, with pricing not yet announced. Apple said both
its TV+ shows and the new version of the TV app will be available
in more than 100 countries.
Applealsointroducedacreditcard,avideogamearcade,and
added hundreds of magazines to its news app at an event at its
Cupertino, California, headquarters. As Apple struggles with
saturated markets and sales of its iPhone fall, the company is
turning more of its attention to services that provide regular
subscription revenue. Hollywood celebrities helped debut the
revamped television offering. Apple has commissioned
programming from Jennifer Aniston, Reese Witherspoon, Oprah
Winfrey and Steven Spielberg.
Apple executives stressed privacy protections for consumers
as they shop and consume content across a range of Apple
phones, iPads or other hardware. They also emphasized content
that would appeal to young audiences, potentially setting the
stage for a rivalry with Walt Disney. Winfrey announced a global
bookclub.Thecompany,secondonlytoMicrosoftinmarketvalue
among tech giants, led off the event with an announcement that
its free news app will now come in a paid-subscription version,
called Apple News+, which curates a range of news articles and
will include 300 magazines including National Geographic,
People, Popular Science, Billboard and the New Yorker. Apple
said it would cost $9.99 a month.
The company also introduced a titanium, laser-etched Apple
Card backed by Goldman Sachs and Mastercard that can track
spending across devices and pay daily cash back on purchases.
CEOTimCooksaidApplePay,itsdigitalwallet,willsoonbeusable
on public transit systems in Portland, Oregon, Chicago and New
York City. Apple Pay will be available in more than 40 countries
by the end of the year.
The company also introduced Apple Arcade, a game
subscriptionservicethatwillworkonphones,tabletsanddesktop
computers and include games from a range of developers. Apple
saidthegamingservicewillfeaturemorethan100exclusivetitles
fromgamingpartnerssuchasAnnapurnaInteractiveandthatthe
service will arrive this autumn. n

BIGNEWS
What’sUp
WithgrowingfocusondigitalmarketingandAdTechsector,the
budget allocation reflects exponential growth for mobile
marketing in India. In a recent report released by MoMagic
Technologiestitled,“DisruptingMobileAdTechinIndia:Delivering
UserExperience”,84%respondentsstatedajumpintheirbudgets
for mobile Ad spends within the spectrum of digital marketing.
“Mobile advertising in India is all set to take a quantum jump
in the next two years with more and more Indians, moving to
consumingcontentespeciallyvideosontheirmobilephones.With
mobiledatapricesinIndiabeingthelowestintheworld,advertisers
and marketers have changed their strategy to get quantifiable
resultswithdeepuserinsight,”saidArunGupta,FounderandCEO,
MoMagic Technologies.
The study also indicated that for over 10% of the respondents
Adspendsonmobilehaveremainedsame.Thesurveyalsobrought
to the fore the fact that mobile advertising as part of the digital ad
spends is still below 50% for 64% of the respondents. Only 23%
of the respondents said that their mobile Ad spend as part of the
digital Ad spend was more than 50%.
One of the key aspects to further drive mobile advertising will
be the user experience (UX) for the mobile Ads. Balancing
advertising ROI (return on investment) while ensuring a superior
user experience, which builds brand loyalty, has been a major
challenge for advertisers and publishers. As the mobile Ad
ecosystem gains more prominence and increasingly becomes a
necessity, it is inevitable and imminent that the conversations will
evolve from Ad performance to user experience.
In the survey, overwhelming 53% respondents believe that
mobileAdsaremoreeffectiveinreachingtherighttargetaudience.
But more importantly, majority of the respondents (~36%) also
believe that given the interactive nature of the mobile Ads (which
enhance the entire user experience) drive a higher level of
engagement. An important aspect of the research report implies
that mobile Ads in their current shape and form ruin the user
experience (UX) and pushes the customers away. Videos that play
automatically,pop-ups-whichareintrusive,andtheoversizedand
sometimes irrelevant banners impact the brand image.
According to the research, two biggest challenges being faced
by the publishers and advertisers currently is - effective user
targeting and knowing the pulse of the users. Indian advertising
stakeholders, too, have realized the importance of UX and are
experimenting with newer Ad formats and content types. An
overwhelming majority of the respondents are open to, and are
increasingly adopting newer Ad formats like content gamification,
splash Ads, video and other immersive formats.
A positive trend that emerged out of the study is that the entire
ecosystemisbecomingawareof,andiskeepingtheuserexperience
at the core while designing their marketing campaigns. n
Mobile Ad spends show an upward trajectory for
India
“Mobileadvertisingin
Indiaisallsettotakea
quantumjumpinthenext
twoyearswithmoreand
moreIndians,moving
toconsumingcontent
especiallyvideosontheir
mobilephones.With
mobiledatapricesin
Indiabeingthelowestin
theworld,advertisersand
marketershavechanged
theirstrategytoget
quantifiableresultswith
deepuserinsight”
– Arun Gupta,
Founder and CEO,
MoMagic Technologies

BIGNEWS
MYMOBILE
What’sUp
OnePlus eyes five-fold increase in headcount at
India R&D centre
China-basedpremiumhandsetmakerOnePlusplanstoincrease
headcount at its R&D centre in India by up to five-folds as it
lookstomakethefacilityitslargestgloballyinthenextthreeyears.
The research and development centre has an employee strength
of 100 at present. “We have recently opened up OnePlus R&D
centre in Hyderabad. This will become OnePlus largest centre
globally in the next three years. looking forward to India R&D
centre, you can expect 300-500 people to be part of the team,”
OnePlus Founder and CEO Pete lau said recently. India is one of
thelargestmarketsforOnePlusaccountingforaround33percent
of its global revenue, lau said.
AsperCounterpointMarketResearch,OnePlusemergedasthe
best-selling premium smartphone brand of 2018 and also led the
premium smartphone segment (priced over Rs 30,000 a unit) for
three consecutive quarters capturing 36 per cent of the market in
October-December 2018. lau said that the company will be
among the first to launch 5G smartphones globally in the second
quarter and look for availability of the next generation networks in
India at the earliest. The company would also be part of 5G trials
inIndiainpartnershipwithchipsetmakerQualcomm.Hesaidthat
OnePlus is looking to scale up manufacturing in India as per
businessrequirementandatthesametimeencouragingcomponent
makersandothersupplychainvendorsofitspremiumsmartphones
to set up base in India. OnePlus currently uses Oppo Mobiles
factory to manufacture its devices in India and claims to be
manufacturing all devices locally that are sold in India.n
Xiaomi invests Rs 3,500 crore into India business
Xiaomi which surpassed Samsung to become the leader in the
Indian smartphone market, recently pumped Rs 3,500 crore
into its Indian entity, the highest by the Chinese company since it
entered the country over four years back. As per regulatory filings
with Registrar of Companies, Xiaomi infused the money into
XiaomiTechnologyIndiaintwotranchesthisyear:Rs2,000crore
onMarch1andRs1,500croreonJanuary17.Thefirm,counted
among the world’s largest technology startups, did not say in its
filingswhereitwouldusethefunds.Twoseniorindustryexecutives
reportedly said Xiaomi would utilise the funds to enter the white
goodssector—suchaswaterpurifiers,washingmachines,laptops
and refrigerators — as well as to expand its company-owned Mi
Home retail stores to sustain the leadership in the Indian
smartphone market.
This development comes at a time when Samsung has upped
its smartphone strategy in India by forsaking profit margin in
multiple new smartphones in a desperate attempt to win back
leadership.Themoneyhasbeeninfusedbytheholdingcompany,
XiaomiSingaporePteltd,whichowns99.9%oftheIndianentity
— the balance 0.1% is owned by Xiaomi HK ltd, which did not
makeanyfreshinvestment.UnderthefirsttransactioninJanuary,
3,786 shares of Xiaomi Technology India were offered to the
holding company at a premium on a rights basis, while for the
second one, in March, 6,959 shares were allotted. Xiaomi India
till now has been conservative in spending, since it relied heavily
on an asset-light model and has been ploughing back whatever
resources it was generating in the country. n
20 | APRIl 2019

BIGNEWS
UnlikebigplayersSamsungandHuaweiwhich
recently came up with foldable devices,
South Korean electronics major lG has decided
todosomethingdifferent.Thecompanyrecently
revealedthatitwillnotmakefoldablesmartphones
anytime soon. But, it seems that the company is
working on a rather unique design for a
smartphone. lG is said to be planning to come
out with a stretchable phone. The company has
filedforanewpatentwhichhintsthatitmightbe
considering launching a smartphone which will
stretch in all the directions. The patent filed by
company explains that the smartphone’s display
can be extended and reduced in one or more
directions. When the display is stretched the
parts slide apart and the size of the smartphone
increases. The display can also be stretched by pulling it in and
out of the housing.
The stretchable smartphone has the same advantage as a
foldablesmartphone.Theuserswillbeabletoincreasethescreen
size by stretching the display. The patent filed reads, “A mobile
terminal hacking display unit configured to be expanded or
contractedinatleastonedirection,ahousingdisposedatalower
partofthedisplayunitandformedtoencloseelectricalcomponents
and a case covering a rear surface of the housing provided. The
caseincludesatleasttwodividedcasesseparatefromeachother,
and, when at least one of the divided cases moves in a fast
direction relative to another one of the divided cases, the display
unit is expanded and contracted in response to the movement of
the at least one divided case.” n
LG wants to make phones that can stretch
What’sUp
Oppo’s Hyderabad facility working on 5G
solutions for India
Oppo’s Research and Development centre in Hyderabad is
reportedly working on 5G solutions for its global market and
India-specific mobile phone solutions and products. According
to Tasleem Arif, Vice President, Head of R&D, Oppo Mobile
India; the current headcount of the facility would be doubled
from the existing 150 in the next two to three years, depending
on the business. “India is an emerging market. We have more
commitmenttotheIndianmarketandwewanttocomeoutwith
more innovation which is specific to the Indian consumer and
for that we have established the Indian R&D centre last year in
December in Hyderabad,” said Arif. “The main purpose of
setting up this R&D Centre is to come up with more innovative
productswhichwillsolveIndianconsumerproblems,”headded.
Besides, Indian specific products and specification, the
Hyderabadfacilitywasalsoworkingon5Gsolutionsandoverseas
market requirements, he said in Mumbai recently during a
product launch programme.
As per Arif, the requirement of the price segment need is
differentinIndiaasmorethan85percentpeopleuseslessthan
USD 250 devices and about five per cent use devices between
USD 500 and USD 700 dollars. To
solve the Indian problem they need
something in the service side,
software side which addresses their
routine or daily problem such as
charging limitations, he said. “We
areworkingonlotofsolutionswhich
arespecifictoIndia.Andalsoweare
aligning with the Digital India
initiative. We are closely working
with the government and we are
closely working with the startup and
service providers and Infosystem
providers,” Arif added. n

BIGNEWS
MYMOBILE
What’sUp
Mobile data rates cheapest in India, costliest in
Zimbabwe
Spam messages likely to rise this poll season
Helmed by ultra-cheap data packs
offered by billionaire Mukesh
Ambani’s Reliance Jio, which has
amassed 28 crore subscribers in a short
time, India has emerged as the country
that provides mobile data at the lowest
rate in the world, says a new study.
Indians pay on an average Rs 18 for one
gigabyte (GB) of data against a global
average of Rs 600, showed the research
bypricecomparisonsiteCable.co.uk.“A
country whose young population has a
particularlyhightechnologicalawareness,
Indiaoffersavibrantsmartphonemarket,
with strong adoption and many
competitors. Data, therefore, is quite
staggeringly cheap,” said the report.
With over 430 million smartphone users, India is the second
largestsmartphonemarketintheworldafterChina.Forthestudy,
datafrom6,313mobiledataplansin230countriesweregathered
and analysed by Cable.co.uk between October 23 and November
28,2018.FortheIndiamarket,researchersstudied57plansand
found that 1GB of data was available in the country for as low as
Rs 1.41 and for a maximum of Rs 98.83. In terms of inexpensive
mobile data packages, India is followed by Kyrgyzstan ($0.27),
Kazakstan ($0.49), Ukraine ($0.51) and Rwanda ($0.56).
According to the study, 1GB of data costs $6.66 in the UK and
$12.37 in the US. Mobile data packages are the most expensive
in Zimbabwe where 1GB of data can cost on an average $75.20,
the results showed. n
The number of spam messages is only set to increase this poll
season, as political parties may flood voters’ inbox with vote-
seeking messages, a report says. The report by local Circles, a
community engagement platform, states that in a bid to reach
maximum number of recipients, political parties use mobile
SMSes as a cheap form of marketing and seek votes. As many as
12,000 voters across the country were surveyed by the platform.
According to the report, almost 70 per cent citizens receive spam
messagesdespiteactivatingthe‘donotdisturb’facilityand78per
cent received more than four unwanted messages every day. “For
many years now, political parties and their candidates have used
mobile SMSes as a cheap form of marketing,” read the report,
adding how the cost effective exercise allows political parties to
send vote-seeking messages to lakhs of citizens who may or may
not be the intended recipients.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India in May, 2018 had
released its Telecom Commercial Communication Customer
Preference Regulation 2018, which is specifically designed to
counterthemenaceofunwantedSMSes.However,theengagement
platform claims that the spammers have been flouting the norms.
With WhatsApp restricting the number of bulk messages to five,
SMShasemergedasanewweaponforthepoliticalparties.“With
election around the corner and political parties planning their
campaigns with full steam, it is clear that regulator will have to
take some tough steps to make sure that citizens get some respite
from spam and unwanted SMSs in India,” the community
engagement platform said in the report. n
22 | APRIl 2019
team@mymobile.co.in

APRIl 2019 | 23
JUSTIN
Redmi Note 7 Pro
Followingteasersandspeculations,Xiaomirecentlylaunched
the Redmi Note 7 Pro along with the Redmi Note 7 at an
eventinNewDelhi.TheProvariantimprovesontheRedmiNote
7 in a number of ways, including an upgraded processor, more
storage, and enhanced cameras.
Talkingaboutspecs,theRedmiNote7Profeaturesthesame
“AuraDesign”astheRedmiNote7aswellasthesame6.3-inch
Full-HD+ screen with 19.5:9 aspect ratio and waterdrop-style
notch (aka Dot Notch). Both front and back of the phone are
coveredby2.5DcurvedGorillaGlass5foraddeddurability.The
smartphoneispoweredby11nmmanufacturingprocess-based
octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 SoC, coupled with 4GB/
6GB of RAM, and 64GB/ 128GB of inbuilt storage with a
microSD card slot (up to 256GB). The handset runs on Android
Pie-based MIUI 10 and the company says that it has added
enhancedsystemoptimisationsintheRedmiNote7Pro,which,
Xiaomiclaims,provide10percentfastersystemresponsiveness.
It is powered by a 4,000mAh battery with Quick Charge 4.0
support in the phone.
Intermsofoptics,theRedmiNote7Propacksadualcamera
setup on the back that includes a 48-megapixel primary sensor
withf/1.79lensanda5-megapixelsecondarydepthsensor.The
companyhasalsoaddedanumberofartificial
intelligence (AI) powered features in the
camera app of the phone, including AI scene
detection, AI Portrait 2.0, and Night mode.
There is a 13-megapixel front shooter on the
phone as well as support for 4K video recording
on the rear camera.
Additionally, it sports a rear fingerprint sensor, USB Type-C
port, 3.5mm audio jack, and dual-SIM support (hybrid). On the
connectivityfront,theRedmiNote7Prosupports4GlTE,Wi-Fi
5, Bluetooth 5.0 and Infrared.
As for prices, the smartphone is priced at Rs 13,999 for the
4GB + 64GB variant, whereas the 6GB + 128GB version costs
Rs 16,999. One can purchase it via Mi.com, Flipkart and Mi
Home stores. n
FirstLook

24 | APRIl 2019 MYMOBILE
JUSTIN
Samsung
Galaxy M30
Playing it aggressively in the budget segment of
late with the new Galaxy M series, Samsung
has come up with the Galaxy M30 smartphone
following the recent launch of Galaxy M20 and
Galaxy M10.
Comingtospecs,theGalaxyM30sportsa6.4-
inch Full HD+ Super AMOlED display with a
U-shaped notch on the top. The Galaxy M30 runs
on Samsung Experience 9.5 UI based on Android
8.1 Oreo. Underneath, Samsung has shoved in a
1.8GHz octa-core Exynos 7904 chipset paired
witheither4GBor6GBRAMand64GBor128GB
storage.
In the camera department, the Galaxy M30
houses a 13-megapixel primary camera alongside
a 5-megapixel depth sensor and a 5-megapixel
wide-angle camera. For selfies, there is a 16-
megapixelcameraatthefrontwithsupportforlive
Focus.TheGalaxyM30ispoweredbya5,000mAhbatterythat
also comes with the fast charging support. For security, there’s
a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and face unlock.
TheGalaxyM30alsocomeswithaUSB-Cportanda3.5mm
headphonejack.TheSouthKoreansmartphonegiantisoffering
gradient colour options on the Galaxy M30 - Gradation Black
and Gradation Blue.
As for prices, the Galaxy M30 starts at Rs 14,990 for the
base variant with 4GB RAM and 64GB storage and going up to
Rs 17,000 for the high-end variant with 6GB RAM and 128GB
storage.ThesmartphoneisavailableonAmazonandSamsung.
com. n
MYMOBILE
FirstLook

JUSTIN
Eluga Ray 800
Panasonichascomeupwithanewentry-levelsmartphone
known as the Eluga Ray 800 in India. The major
highlights of the device include a 5.5-inch full HD display,
Android 7.0 Nougat, Arbo Hub, octa-core processor,
4,000mAh battery and 4GB RAM.
Speaking of technical specifications, the Panasonic
Eluga Ray 800 houses a 5.5-inch full HD display with
a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels and Gorilla Glass
3 protection on top. The handset is powered by an octa-
core processor clocked at 1.8GHz, the company
hasn’t revealed, which processor is on the smartphone.
The handset comes with 4GB of RAM paired with
64GB of internal storage expandable up to 128GB via a
microSD card. It runs Google’s Android 7.0 Nougat
operating system and is backed by a 4,000mAh non-
removable battery.
On the camera front, the Panasonic Eluga Ray 800
flaunts a 13MP primary sensor on the back. On the front,
it features an 8MP sensor to take selfies. Both the camera
modules come paired with an lED flash.
In terms of connectivity, the Panasonic Eluga Ray 800
comes with 4G VolTE, Wi-Fi 802.11b/g/n, Bluetooth-
BT4.2, and USB-OTG support.
Priced at Rs 9,999, the smartphone is available via
e-commerceplatformsandleadingretailoutlets.Thedevice
comes in only one colour option – Stunning Gold. n
FirstLook

JUSTINFirstLook
MYMOBILE
Vivo Y91i
In order to take on the likes of Redmi, Realme, Samsung and
Asus, Vivo recently launched a new Y-series smartphone in
India called the Vivo Y91i, which comes under the Rs 10,000
segment.
Coming to specs, the Vivo Y91i sports a 6.22-inch HD+
display with screen resolution of 1520x720 pixels and 19:9
aspect ratio. The smartphone is powered by an octa-core
MediaTek Helio P22 SoC paired with up to 2GB RAM and
32GBofstoragemodel.TheVivoY91icomeswithtwovariants
-thebasemodelwith2GBRAMand16GBofstoragewhilethe
second model packs 2GB RAM and 32GB storage. The phone
also supports expandable storage support. On the software
front, the Vivo Y91i runs Android 8.1 Oreo with Funtouch OS
4.5 on top.
Camera-wise, the new Vivo phone comes packed with a
single camera on the rear panel as well as on the front. On the
back panel, the Vivo phone includes a primary 13-megapixel
camera sensor with /2.2 lens and lED flash. For selfies, the
Vivo Y91i includes a 5-megapixel front camera paired with an
f/1.8 lens. The new Vivo phone also includes tons of camera
featureslikeFaceBeauty,Timelapse,PalmCapture,andVoice
Control.
The handset also comes with dual-SIM (Nano) support. It
ispoweredbya4,030mAhbattery.Connectivityoptionsinclude
4G lTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v5.0, GPS/ A-GPS, FM radio, Micro-
USB,anda3.5mmheadphonejack.Sensorsonboardinclude
an accelerometer, ambient light, gyroscope (virtual),
magnetometer and a proximity sensor.
The Vivo Y91i comes in two colour options- Fusion Black
andOceanBlue.Thephoneisavailableforbuyingacrossoffline
channels. Its price in India has been set at Rs 7,990 for the
16GB storage option, whereas its 32GB storage model costs
Rs 8,490. n
26 | APRIl 2019

JUSTIN
Domestic handset player lava has introduced a
new device, called the lava Z40, to its entry-
level portfolio. The device is said to be focused on
first-time smartphone users.
As for specifications, the lava Z40 sports a
4-inch display bearing a resolution of 400 X 800
pixels and is protected by a Corning Gorilla Glass
2.5D panel that can prevent it from scratches and
drops.Intermsofsoftware,thedevicerunsAndroid
v8.1 (Oreo) Go Edition, which is a lightweight
iteration of Google’s mobile OS and comes with Go
edition of apps along with the Data Saver feature.
The internal storage on the phone is set at 8GB, but
there’s an option to expand it up to 64GB. The
smartphone is powered by a quad-core processor
that has a clock speed of 1.4GHz and is paired by a
1GB RAM. The handset is fuelled by a 2,250mAh
battery.
Talking about optics, there are 2-megapixel
cameras on the rear as well as front. The brand
claimsthatthelavaZ40hasauniquefeatureinthe
connectivitydepartment.Thephonecomeswiththe
Dual 4G-VolTE support by which users can surf the
internet through one 4G SIM and simultaneously
receiveVolTEcallsontheother.TheZ40isclaimed
tosupporttheatre-likesoundclarityandcomeswith
10 language support feature, including Hindi.
Having a price tag of Rs 3,499, the lava Z40 is
available in two colours- Black and Red. n
Lava Z40
APRIl 2019 | 27
FirstLook

FirstLook JUSTIN
Tecno Camon
iSky 3
Transsion Holdings’ subsidiary Tecno
Mobile has launched the Camon iSky 3,
itsfirstsmartphonewithlatest‘Android9Pie’
operatingsystematitscore,whichmakesthe
user interface more rounded and vibrant.
In terms of specs, the Tecno Camon iSky
3 sports a 6.2-inch HD+ notch display with
19:9 ratio giving it a screen-to-body ratio of
88% offering more immersive viewing
experience of watching movies and playing
games on the smartphone. The handset uses
2.0 Ghz 64Bit quad-core processor coupled
with 2GB RAM and 32GB ROM which can
supportexpandablememoryupto256GB.It
is equipped with HiOS 4.6, which uses
Artificial intelligence to give smartphone
users customized experience.
For photography, the Tecno Camon iSky 3
ispackedwithapremiumtwincamerasetup,
which is an integration of a 13MP primary
camera that has best-in-class f/1.8 aperture
along with quad flash allowing consumers to
capture crisp, clear images even in low light
and2MPdepth-sensinglensperfectlysuited
forrealportraits.Thedeviceisalsosupported
with 4x digital. For selfie enthusiast, 8MP AI
selfie camera equipped with f/2.0 aperture
78-degree wide angle and front flash, which
helpsincapturingmorelightforbetterquality
selfies and groufie, no matter what kind of
scenes and light conditions you are in. In
addition, the device comes with 6-level AI
beauty mode allowing adjustment as per
consumer preferences that scans up to 228
facialpointsoptimizedonIndianskintonefor
giving more real selfies.
Priced at Rs 8,599, the smartphone is
available in four colour options- Midnight
Black, Aqua Blue, Champagne Gold and
NebulaBlack.Thesmartphonecomeswitha
one-time screen replacement, 100-days free
replacement and one-month extended
warranty. n

APRIl 2019 | 29www.mymobileindia.com
JUSTIN
ChinesehandsetmakerXiaomihascomeupwiththeRedmi
Go in India. The Redmi Go is an entry-level smartphone
aimed at first time users.
Talking about specs, the Redmi Go sports a 5-inch display
with a resolution of 720x1280. This gives it an aspect ratio of
16:9 and a pixel density of 296ppi. The display doesn’t have
anynotchtoaccommodatethefront-facingcamera.TheRedmi
Go is powered by Qualcomm’s entry-level Snapdragon 425
processor paired with a gigabyte of RAM and 8GB of internal
storage. The smartphone runs Android Oreo 8.1 based on
Android’sGoplatformwhichisalightweightandstrippeddown
version of
theregular
O r e o
operating
s y s t e m .
The Redmi
Go is powered
bya 3,000mAhbattery,whichis
claimedtoprovideastandbytime
of 10 days.
In the photography department,
the handset also packs an 8MP rear-facing camera with f/2.0
aperture and an lED flash. The front of the smartphone has a
5MP selfie camera with f/2.2 aperture with support for HDR
and beauty filters.
The Redmi Go also offers Google Assistant in Hindi, with
supportforover20regionallanguages.Usersalsogetunlimited
storageonGooglePhotosinhighqualityresolution.Xiaomisays
this is a first in the segment.
It is available in two colour options- Black and Blue and
is priced at Rs 4,499. The Redmi Go is available via
Flipkart, Mi.com and Mi Home Stores. launch offers
include up to Rs 2,200 Jio cashback and up to 100GB free Jio
4G data. n
Redmi Go
FirstLook

FirstLook JUSTIN
Jivi Xtreme 3, Xtreme
3X and Xtreme 7
Homegrown handset brand Jivi Mobiles has launched
three new smartphones-- Xtreme 3, Xtreme 3X and
Xtreme 7 under its popular Xtreme series in India. These
three new smartphones have full view (18:9) display,
fingerprintsensorandfaceunlockamongthekeyfeatures.
They are available for purchase offline as well as online.
Xtreme 3: The Xtreme 3 comes with a full view 18:9
displayandhas5.3”screensize.Thephoneisloadedwith
dual rear cameras with Bokeh and is powered by a
3,000mAh battery. It comes with 1GB RAM and 8GB
ROM. It also has face detection and fingerprint sensor
features which enable the security unlock. It has a 5MP
frontcamerawithBokeh+8MPprimarycamerawithBokeh
which claims to take good quality pictures and video calls.
ThephonesupportsdualSIM(4G+4G),quad-core1.3GHz
and OTG support. The phone runs Android 8.1 Go edition.
It comes with a price tag of Rs 4,499.
Xtreme 3X: The Xtreme 3X has a full view IPS display
with 2.5D glass and 5.3” screen size. It also has an
advanced fingerprint sensor which enables the security
lock. The phone is powered by a 3,000mAh battery and
loaded with 16GB ROM and 1GB RAM. The phone has
8MP primary camera and 5MP front camera with Bokeh
whichclicksamazingqualitypictures.DualSIM(4G+4G),
OTG support, quad-core 1.3GHz and face unlock are
among other features. The phone runs Android 8.1 Go
edition. It costs Rs 4,999.
Xtreme 7: The Xtreme 7 is the upgraded version with
5.5” HD+ IPS 18:9 2.5 D glass and more memory. The
phoneispoweredbya3,000mAhbattery,isequippedwith
16GB ROM and 2GB RAM. The phone has 8MP primary
camera and 5MP selfie camera with Bokeh which clicks
amazingpictures.DualSIM(4G+4G),OTGsupport,quad-
core1.3GHz,fingerprintsensorandfaceunlockareamong
otherfeatures.ThephonealsorunsAndroid8.1Goedition.
This model is priced at Rs 5,999.n

APRIl 2019 | 31
Chinese handset maker Meizu
recently launched a new mid-
range smartphone called the Meizu
Note 9initshome country.The main
highlight of the smartphone is a 48-
megapixelrearcamerasetup,atrend
which is increasingly being adopted
by a lot of mobile companies.
In terms of specifications, the
Meizu Note 9 sports a 6-inch full
HD+ display of 1080x2244 pixels
resolution with 18.7:9 aspect ratio,
450-nit peak brightness and a pixel
density of 403 pixels per inch. The
phone runs on Android 9.0 Pie
operating system and is powered by
2.0GhzQualcommSnapdragon675
processor with Adreno 612 graphics
processor.
For photography purposes, the
Meizu Note 9 has a 20-megapixel
front facing snapper with f/2.0
aperture. It offers Artificial
Intelligence-based beautification
featuresaswellasAI-unlocksupport.
Ontheback,ithasaverticallystacked
dual rear camera setup -- which is
placed on the left side -- comprising
48-megapixel primary sensor and a
5-megapixel secondary sensor, with
f/1.7 aperture. Below the camera
setup, users get a fingerprint sensor
as well.
The Meizu Note 9 comes in three
colour variants – Magic Black, Starry
Blue and White. The smartphone
comes in two storage variants. The
base variant offers 4GB RAM and
64GBinternalstorageandcostsCNY
1,398 (roughly Rs 14,700). The
second storage variant, offering 6GB
RAMand64GBinternalstoragecosts
CNY 1, 598 (roughly Rs 16,800). n
JUSTIN
Meizu Note 9
International

Honor 10i
Huawei’s sub-brand Honor recently unveiled a new
smartphonecalledtheHonor10iinRussia.TheHonor10i
comes with triple rear cameras and a higher-res 32-megapixel
shooter on the front for selfies and video calling.
Speaking of specs, the Honor 10i flaunts a 6.21-inch
display with full HD+ resolution (1,080 x 2,340 pixels) and a
small cut-out up top. At its core lies the in-house Kirin 710
chipset, which is accompanied by GPU Turbo technology 2.0
toboosttheperformance.Thehandsetcomeswith4GBofRAM
and 128GB built-in storage.
Talking about the optics, the triple cameras comprise a 24-
megapixel f/1.8 shooter, an 8-megapixel f/2.4 snapper and a
2-megapixel f/2.4 sensor. The camera module is paired with
lED flash and Honor’s AI tricks to aid in photography. The
32MP selfie shooter also comes with AI and facial recognition
features.Thedevicecomespre-loadedwithEMUI9.0.1based
on Android 9 Pie. It is powered by a 3,400mAh battery with
micro-USB 2.0 support.
TheotherfeaturesoftheHonor10iincludearear-mounted
fingerprint sensor and connectivity options such as 4G lTE,
WiFi, WiFi direct, Bluetooth, NFC, and GPS/ GlONASS. The
device measures 154.8 x 73.64 x 7.95mm and weighs 164
grams.
The Honor 10i has been listed on the company’s official
website in Russia. It sports gradient glass body and comes
in Shimmer Red, Shimmer Blue, and Vicious Black
shades. There’s no word on the pricing and availability of the
device. n
International JUSTIN

Vivo iQoo
After much speculation, Vivo finally launched the
first gaming smartphone under its sub-brand iQoo
i.e. the Vivo iQoo in China. It is packed with high-end
specsandisdedicatedtothegamersandphotographers.
It also features vapour cooling system.
As for specs, the Vivo iQoo flaunts a 6.41-inch
full-HD+ AMOlED display with screen resolution
1080x2340 pixels resolution. Sadly, the Vivo phone
doesn’t come with full-screen display as there’s a
waterdrop notch in the centre of the phone which
equips the selfie camera. On the front, it includes just
one camera while on the back there are three. It sports
a 3D glass build with an lED strip on the back panel.
Thisisforallthevariantsexceptthetop-endmodelwith
12GB RAM. The top-end model of the Vivo iQoo
includesafaux-carbonfibrebackwhichisprotectedby
a curved glass panel.
The handset is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon
855 paired with up to 12GB RAM, 256GB of internal
storage. The good bit is the Vivo iQoo runs on Android
9.0 Pie with Funtouch OS 9 on top. The Vivo iQoo
includes in-display fingerprint sensor, 4,000mAh
batterywithVivo’sSuperFlashChargetechnology,and
USB Type-C port.
As a gaming phone, the Vivo iQoo houses Monster
APRIl 2019 | 33
JUSTIN
International
Touch shoulder buttons which are placed on the
sides of the phone in order to offer four point
operations to the gamers. It comes with several
Multi-Turbo features to offer a great gaming
performance.
Forimagingduties,theVivoiQooincludes13-
megapixel Sony IMX263 sensor + 12-megapixel
sensor with an f/1.79 aperture + 2-megapixel
depth sensor configuration on the back panel. On
the front, it includes a 12-megapixel selfie
shooter.
The Vivo iQoo comes in four variants in China.
The base model comes with 6GB RAM/ 128GB
storage and is priced at CNY 2,998 (approx. Rs
31,700), 8GB RAM/ 128GB storage comes for
CNY 3,298 (approx. Rs 34,900), 8GB RAM/
256GB storage priced at CNY 3,598 (approx. Rs
38,100) and 12GB RAM/ 256GB storage model
is priced at CNY 4,298 (approx. Rs. 45,500). It
comes in two colours- Electric Blue and lava
Orange. It is likely to be launched by June this
year. n
team@mymobile.co.in

LEADSTORY
Arrest,Award and Opportunity
34 | APRIl 2019
S
ahil is quite anxious these days.
He has been finding it difficult
to cope with his ongoing board
examination and crave for
playing PUBG. A teen into high school
spends 8 to 10 hours of a day playing
PUBG.Hisparentsarehavingnightmares
about his board result that’s going to
changeSahil’sfutureofgoingtoareputed
college and picking up a desired stream.
“He stayed hooked up with his mobile
during late night when we all go to sleep,”
says her mother sounding nervous. This
PUBG has destroyed our hopes and my
son’s future, claims his father. This was
the kind of narratives that keep coming to
us during our research.
TheeightmonthsoldPlayerUnknown’s
Battlegrounds or the famously called
PUBGismarredbycontroversiesinIndia.
The very recent news came from PUBG
the pubg has taken the internet and smartphone generation
by storm and is making them sway to its tunes resulting in
getting bad publicity among the moral police and authorities.
there are much more in it to explore and make it a win-win
situation for game developers, chipset and mobile makers as
well as internet service providers. we took a deep dive into
the world of pubg mobile to experience it more.
MYMOBILE
Limelight
The Facets of
PUBG
By Haider Ali Khan

Limelight
India that it will only allow a user only six
hours of usage per day, though not yet
confirmedbythecompany.Soonafterthis
newshitthestandthePUBGMobileIndia
camewithclarificationthatnosuchruleis
in place and users can play uninterrupted
game till they can.
Thegamehasrisentopopularitycharts
within months of its launch in India more
than double of what had happened with
PokémonGo.Theyoungstudents,college
goers which are mostly smartphone users
are among the fans of it.PUBG in India
was released by Tencent Games and
PUBG Corportaion as PUBG Mobile in
2018. In this format unknown players
can interact, engage, execute and kill to
bethewinner.Atleast100playerscanget
engaged at a time and the last player/s or
team standing wins the game. Primarily,
PUBG requires a good internet speed and
atleastadecentsmartphoneofmorethan
3GBRAMtosustainthegraphicintensive
game. To an estimate, PUBG Mobile has
over 200 million downloads and over 30
million active users in worldwide in just 8
months. This figure excludes the number
of users in China.
Controversies
The most wide spread backlash of PUBG
came from Gujarat where playing of it
was made a punishable offence. Few
districts of the Gujarat such as Rajkot,
Surat, Gir Somnath, Bhavnagar and
Ahmedabadhave implemented this ban
and had arrested or apprehended dozens
of youths for playing PUBG under IPC
188. The administration had to issue
notificationjustifyingthisbanonPUBGin
Gujaratsayingthatthebanwasnecessary
as these games were leading to violent
behaviour among children and youth and
that it is adversely affecting the studies
and the overall behaviour, conduct and
language of children.Following this ban
the developers of PUBG had to issue a
clarification stating; “PUBG MOBIlE is a
game.Itismeantmerelyforentertainment
and should be enjoyed in a healthy and
responsible manner. In consonance with
our endeavor to continue promoting
responsible gaming experience, we are
working on the introduction of a healthy
game-play system in India to promote
balanced, responsible gaming, including
limiting play time for under-aged players.
We were thus surprised to learn that local
authorities in a few cities have decided
to impose a ban on playing our game.
We are working to understand the legal
basis of such bans, and hope we can have
a constructive dialogue with relevant
authorities to explain our objectives and
that they withdraw the prohibition. To
PUBG Mobile players, we want to assure
you that we are on your side and we will
try our best to find a reasonable solution.”
The Mumbai High Court has sought for
the State Government’s response on this
matter when an 11 year old filed a PIl
seeking ban on PUBG in Maharashtra.
Notonlyarreststhemadrushofplaying
PUBG has claimed lives of at least three
youngstersindifferentpartsofthecountry
as per media reports available but, we are
not confirming it. Similar incidents have
also reported around the world too. We
have to admit that the very basic nature
of PUBG is based on violence so the ill-
effectsofitcan’tbedenied.Especially,the
youthsarepronetoitduetotheexcitement
and thrill it offers over other competitive
games such as Asphalt and TEKKEN.
LEADSTORY

Limelight
But, it would be very inappropriate to just
blame PUBG for these extreme or foolish
steps.Any sane individual knows the right
and the wrong of a technology and the
after effect or ill effect of anything done
outofproportion.OnlyPUBGcouldnotbe
blamed for the behavior of an individual
but, their surroundings, peers, school
and colleges, parents and social media
play equally into their lives. There are
other tools that can be attributed for the
behavioral change, not only PUBG.
Award
This is a completely different aspect of
PUBG where youngsters in group or as
individualareearningmillionoutofit.The
Tencent Games and PUBG Corporation
havebeenorganizingmegagamingevents
across the globe in which participants
beat down their opponents; team or an
individual and end up winning millions
of dollars. This trend has also begun in
Indian too. Recently, PUBG Mobile in
association Oppo Mobiles have organized
a mega gaming event in Hyderabad,
India in which three teams won a prize
money of more than Rs 30,00,000 lakhs
each. Not only in India, there are events
happening across the world with huge
winning amount. Good enough to change
someone’s fate and future completely.
Inoneofthemostengagingpreliminary
rounds of any eSports event, PUBG
MOBIlE India Series 2019 witnessed
over 400,000 games played across in-
game qualifiers and 3 online rounds with
over 575,000 registrations from across
the country. The winning team, S0Ul,
led by Naman Mathur A.K.A Mortal,
took home a cash prize of Rs 30,00,000
LEADSTORY

Limelight LEADSTORY
along with Oppo smartphones. The event
was equally supported by Government of
Telangana.
Post event, General Manager, Tencent
GamesIndia,AneeshAravind,said,“With
India Series 2019, we delivered a world
class tournament partnering with Indian
esports companies, which we are sure,
will cultivate the industry with many
more to come. The India Series garnered
35 million views on YouTube, Facebook
and Sony liv at a peak concurrent of
260,000, establishing itself into prime-
time entertainment category. Also, we
extend our heartfelt thanks to Oppo, our
titlesponsorfortakingtheinitiativetogrow
esports in India.”
The success and the interest of the
PUBG can be verified by the fact that the
India Series garnered 35 million views
on YouTube, Facebook and Sony liv at
a peak concurrent of 260,000, as per
Aravind. This is a win-win situation for
the game developers, internet service
providers, participants, organizers, social
media platforms, etc. Companies such
as Samsung and Oppo are quite keen
in promoting the PUBG Mobile backed
events and competition which is a good
sign for the future and acceptability of it
in a country like us.
On the tournament, Aneesh said, “We
setoutwiththeobjectiveofmakingesports
accessible to all segments of the PUBG
MOBIlEfanbasebykeepingitopen-to-all.
AfterlaunchingIndiaSeriesinJanuary,we
received a massive 575,000 registrations
who played 400,000 games across 4
rounds,outofwhichthetop80havemade
it to the finals. The sheer dedication, skill
and temperament of these players are
commendableastheymakethetransition
from being gamers to esports athletes.”
Opportunities
Truly speaking, PUBG Mobile has opened
thenewcareeravenuesfortheyoungsters.
In India where employment opportunity
is becoming so scarce that gaming and
online gaming could prove vital for the
country’s economy and growth. Rather
than investing their years of education
on rhetoric education system youngsters
must try their hands in becoming the
champions of PUBG and represent India
on to the renowned world gaming forums,
events and competitions. Similarly, this
new esporting domain is also going to be
very crucial for game developers in India
andthosewhowanttopursueitasacareer.
There are numerous indigenous gaming
companies and startups into this domain
and the popularity of PUBG Mobile can
be very encouraging for them. India has
been one of the major suppliers to the
gaming industry but most of them remain
unaccounted. With the advent of PUBG
Mobile, they can contribute into making
India as a gaming hub out of China.
Similarly,theinternetserviceproviders
willalsohavetorevamptheirinfrastructure
to cope with the growing needs of PUBG
generation. The transitional shift in
telecom industry can also be termed as
one of the catalysts that brought a new

Limelight
LEADSTORY
technology such as PUBG. The next push,
5G, will have to play an important factor
in popularizing PUBG and making it as an
alternative career option for the youths.
Mobile makers are already working on it.
We have seen number of mobile makers
comingupwithgame-centricsmartphones
with a special mention of PUBG into
it. The increased RAM and ROM, the
super clocked processor, heat reducing
technologies such as liquid Cooling in a
smartphone, etc. these all are thanks to
the gaming generation. No presentation
of any mobile seller in this country
would end without mentioning of PUBG
and its compatibility on their respective
smartphones. This is the craze of PUBG in
India. Both, the internet service providers
and the mobile makers must play hand in
hand to encash this new emerging trend
in the country. There are individuals who
are making decent money out of it per day
depending upon their skills.
Conclusion
Despite the controversies around PUBG is
goingtostayinIndia.Yes,weallareinfavour
of clear cut guidelines if the government
feels so.There are numerous other gaming
optionsavailable online whichsomewhere
somehow violates rules and regulation but
theyarestillflourishing.Theonlinebetting
websites are prime examples to it. In the
pasttoowehaveseenchildrencommitting
stunts during the days of Shaktiman but,
that wasn’t banned. It all depends upon
the environment around us. If we create
anatmosphereoftensionandunnecessary
thoughts these untoward accidents are
bound to happen. Yes, overdoing anything
can be harmful and destructive.
The PUBG players must also realize
their social responsibilities and maintain
disciplineintheirlivestomaintainapeace
of mind. They will have to balance work
and play and define the time frame for
both. There are competitions going live
around the year for the enthusiasts to
participate and win millions of amount
and accolades. The ban is simply
unwarranted in this scenario as we cannot
judge the influence as such as it would
be very premature to say the least. The
Sanskari ban should not be implemented
or rather forced on every aspect of today’s
life such as PUBG. There’s no doubt
that the pure nature of PUBG is based on
violence but that doesn’t allow us to paint
itinblueandblack.Wedowatchgruesome
violence on televisions but that really
helps in becoming a criminal. Yet we can
be influenced by anything or anyone. We
have to restrain ourselves from overdoing
it like anything else that can be harmful
to us. PUBG Mobile holds a great future
for both the developers and the youths
unless they understand the ill-effects of it.
like we all say, every coin has two sides to
it, PUBG too has the potential of making
us more efficient, sharp, tech savvy and
more than that it opens a new plethora of
opportunities for employment seekers and
generators. We did reach out to Tencent
Games India for further quotes but, they
did not respond to our mail. n
haider@mymobile.co.in

70 | APRIl 2018
D
ata consumption in India
will grow from the level of
71,67,103 million MB in
2017 to 10,96,58,793
millionMBin2022growingatacompound
annual growth rate (CAGR) of about
72.6%, according to an Assocham-PwC
joint study.
With lower than ever data tariffs
and increasing number of smartphone
penetrationinthecountry,whichisaround
40% as of 2017, it is safe to assume
that the Video on Demand (VoD) market
will be a significant beneficiary of these
developments. Internet consumption
is clearly on the rise in India. While the
averageIndianusedtospendmoreonvoice
services than on mobile data services until
2013, the majority of an average mobile
bill is now spent on data.
According to the report, the average
monthly spend on voice services in 2013
was Rs 214 compared to Rs 173 spent
on data. In 2016, the spend on voice fell
to Rs 124, while data spends rose to Rs
225. Video streaming constitutes roughly
65-75% of the traffic, according to the
Nokia Mobile Broadband Index 2018.
While Internet penetration is increasing
in the country, with mobile Internet
penetration set to reach 56.7% in 2022
from a mere 30.2% in 2017, connectivity
and consistency in speed issues need to
be addressed, noted Assocham-PwC joint
studyon‘VideoonDemand:Entertainment
reimagined’.
Video consumption is heavily reliant on
quality/Internet connectivity. Therefore,
there is a requirement for considerable
investmentinInternetinfrastructureinthe
country to maintain consistent high-speed
connections.
In a country where approximately 65%
to 70% of the population resides in rural
areas, no service meant for the masses
can afford to ignore this market. Internet
connectivityandspeedissuesaresignificant
in rural areas as against urban areas. It is
important for OTT players to cater to the
rural market if they wish to stay relevant.
Thus, apps like YouTube, which support
low Internet connectivity, will
beabletopenetratefaster
intoruralareas,asperthe
joint study.
Another important
factor for the VoD industry is
the availability of devices that are
compatible with online video viewing.
A large volume of consumption occurs on
smartphones. As of 2017, the number
of smartphones in the country stood at
468 million. This is expected to grow at
a CAGR of 12.9% to reach 859 million
smartphones in 2022. At the same time,
non-smartphone ownership in India will
MYMOBILE
Trendz CONSUMERINSIGHT
while the average indian used to spend more on voice services than on
mobile data services until 2013, the majority of an average mobile bill
is now spent on data, says an assocham-pwC joint study
Data Usage in India to Grow
at 73% CAGR by 2022

decreasefrom701millionin2017to504
million in 2022 at a CAGR of -6.4%.
As more and more people opt for
smartphones, it is evident that data
consumption will be on the rise, which
will eventually lead to an increasing
number of hours spent on mobile devices
for viewing content online. Tablets are
another promising device for the VoD
industry. However, India has just about
5.3% penetration as of 2017, and this
is expected to go up to just about 10% in
2022. The low penetration is definitely a
missed opportunity for players as tablets
offer fairly larger screens which are better
for consuming HD content as compared
to smartphones.
WhiletheIndianvideoOTTmarketisat
afairlynascentstage,thevideoOTTmarket
globallyhasenteredintothegrowthphase
of the market life cycle. With a CAGR of
22.6% during the period of 2017–2022,
the Indian video OTT market is poised to
outperform the global video OTT market,
whichispeggedtohaveaCAGRof10.1%
during the same period. Also, by 2022,
the Indian video OTT market will be
amongstthetop10marketsglobally
with a market size of USD 823
million (Rs 53,630 million).
Further, a comprehensive
policy embracing learnings
from other markets
globally would help
in building a stable platform
for OTT service providers
to grow. In this digital age,
an upgrade to the IP laws
along with strict implementation
is needed more than ever before.
Clarifications under IT and taxation
laws would also go a long way in
providing certainty. Rapid convergence
in the entertainment and media
industry has led to consolidation of
companies which operate in different
segments of the industry. In fact,
consolidation is not just confined to
the entertainment and media industry—
with telecom players also increasingly
showing interest in investing in media
businesses. OTT services are one such
segment which has recently managed
to garner a huge amount of interest from
various players within the industry as well
as outside of it.
Five fundamental drivers of change
have ensured that segments such as VoD
will continue to flourish in the long run.
With ongoing investments in technology
and broadband, consumers are promised
ubiquitous connectivity. low data tariffs
and increasing smartphone penetration
have ensured that consumers and their
devices are always connected and
on. Mobile devices are becoming the
consumer’s preferred choice to consume
content. This has made it crucial for
content creators and distributors to
tailor their content and services for
the mobile consumer. Diversifying
revenuestreamsisoneofthemost
essential aspects of survival in
the increasingly competitive
entertainment and media
space. Many businesses are
seeing OTT services as a
reliable investment option, as
theyrealisethepowerofdigital
viewing.
As a result, there has been
a value shift to platforms. Social
media and technology platforms,
insteadofcontentcreatorsandpackagers,
haveemergedastheprimarybeneficiaries
oftheincreaseinusertimeandspending.
AnothermajoraspectinthejourneyofOTT
players would be the ability to personalise
experiences. Emerging technologies
would help companies create unique
experiences that add value to the services
provided to users. n
team@mymobile.co.in
CONSUMERINSIGHT
Trendz
WhiletheIndian
videoOTTmarketisatafairly
nascentstage,thevideoOTTmarket
globallyhasenteredintothegrowth
phaseofthemarketlifecycle.Witha
CAGRof22.6%duringtheperiodof
2017–2022,theIndianvideoOTTmarketis
poisedtooutperformtheglobal
videoOTTmarket,whichispegged
tohaveaCAGRof10.1%during
thesameperiod
Withlowerthaneverdatatariffsandincreasingnumber
ofsmartphonepenetrationinthecountry,whichis
around40%asof2017,itissafetoassumethattheVideo
onDemand(VoD)marketwillbeasignificantbeneficiary
ofthesedevelopments

42 | MARCH 2019 MYMOBILE
Trendz MARKETINSIGHT
I
ncontrasttothesmartphonemarket,
whichcontractedforthefirsttimein
2018,thefeaturephonemarkethas
continuedtogrowoverthelastthree
years. latest research from Counterpoint
Research estimates that in 2019, a little
morethan400millionfeaturephoneswill
be sold globally. Further, feature phone
shipmentsareexpectedtocrossonebillion
units by 2021.
According to Peter Richardson,
Research Director at Counterpoint
Research, India and the Middle East
Africa region will drive the growth of the
global feature phone market by capturing
nearlythree-quarterofthemarketsharein
2019. “India and the Middle East Africa
region will see cumulative shipments of
around 800 million feature phones out
of more than one billion global feature
phone shipments over the next three
years.Globally,thefeaturephonesegment
is forecast to generate around US$16
billioncumulativelyinwholesalehardware
revenues over the next three years,” Peter
says.
While India remains the largest market
in terms of feature phone volumes, it
is closely followed by Bangladesh and
Nigeria. In Africa, growth is led by brands
like itel and Tecno.
Much of the growth of feature phones
in India has been driven by the revival of
the Nokia-branded features phones and
the popularity of the Jio Phone, a smart
feature phone which packs a chipset and
an operating system that can support
sophisticated smartphone-like features
in a traditional feature phone form-factor.
TheJioPhoneusesKaiOSastheoperating
system. KaiOS has also been expanding
its reach in Africa. At the recently held
Mobile World Congress in Barcelona,
KaiOS announced partnerships with
globally, the feature phone segment is forecast to generate around
us$16 billion cumulatively in wholesale hardware revenues over the
next three years. india remains the largest market in terms of potential
feature phone volumes followed by bangladesh and Nigeria, says a
report
Over 1 bn Feature Phones
to be Sold in 3Years

Trendz
African operator Orange to launch KaiOS-
powered smart feature phones priced at
US$20 across 16 countries in Africa and
the Middle East.
There are several reasons why feature
phones are the preferred mobile phone
in many markets globally, despite the
tremendous adoption of smartphones.
An important factor is affordability.
The bottom of the pyramid population
across the world simply cannot afford a
smartphone.
“There are more than three billion
people across the world who live on an
income of less than US$2.50 per day.
This segment can neither afford a
smartphone nor the data services
demanded by the growing advancement
in smartphone use-cases. Thus, a
feature phone, coupled with basic
mobileserviceshasbeenthego-tooffering
for these users to communicate and
connect.Mostoftheseusersareprevalent
across Africa, parts of Asia and latin
America,” says Tarun Pathak, Associate
Director at Counterpoint Research.
There is also a business case for
network operators to push feature
phones. In most markets, network
operatorswantcustomerstoupgradefrom
2G/3G to 4G networks. “The problem is
most of these users still cannot afford a
4G smartphone. Therefore, operators and
the mobile industry players need to offer
4G VolTE feature phones and move users
to the more efficient 4G network,” says
Pathak.
Counterpoint Research believes the
rise of 4G capability in feature phones
will be one of the key trends moving
forwardwhichwillallowthefeaturephone
segment to remain relatively resilient in
the medium term.
Further, there are also several use
cases that are driving the sales of feature
phones. For example, industry segments
like construction require rugged devices
with technologies like PTT (Push-To-Talk)
to cope with the hostile environment.
Feature phones offer a viable alternative
for this segment.
Similarly,thereisalsoaneedforlonger
battery life. Varun Mishra, Research
Analyst at Counterpoint Research,
explains, “The emerging markets of
India and Nigeria have the greatest
number of people without access to
electricity. However, the phone remains
an important part of people’s lives
in these regions as well. Amid the
dearth of electricity, in some cases, the
user is dependent on public charging
stations (shops giving facilities to charge
phones in return for a payment). long
battery life becomes crucial in such
situations.”
Counterpoint Research believes that
markets in Africa, especially Kenya,
Ethiopia, and Tanzania have the highest
potential for feature phones. In terms of
the total addressable market opportunity,
India,Bangladesh,Nigeria,Pakistan,and
South Africa remain the key markets. n
team@mymobile.co.in
MARKETINSIGHT
“Therearemorethan
threebillionpeople
acrosstheworldwho
liveonanincomeof
lessthanUS$2.50per
day.Thissegment
canneitherafford
asmartphonenor
thedataservices
demandedbythe
growingadvancement
insmartphoneuse-
cases.Thus,afeature
phone,coupledwith
basicmobileservices
hasbeenthego-to
offeringfortheseusers
tocommunicateand
connect”
– Tarun Pathak,
Associate Director,
Counterpoint Research
Muchofthegrowthof
featurephonesinIndia
hasbeendrivenbythe
revivaloftheNokia-
brandedfeaturesphones
andthepopularityof
theJioPhone,asmart
featurephonewhich
packsachipsetandan
operatingsystemthat
cansupportsophisticated
smartphone-likefeatures
inatraditionalfeature
phoneform-factor

Mobile Magazine April 2019 Issue Review

Mobile Magazine April 2019 Issue Review

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