TOP ADVERTISERS SET TO SPEND BIG ON IPL AFTER RELIEF FROM SUPREME COURT Pritha Mitra Dasgupta, Mumbai,

March 29, 2014 The Economic Times Top advertisers are set to spend big on the Indian Premier League after the Supreme Court on Friday indicated that it will not stop Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals from playing the twenty20 tournament this season. Expressing relief at the court verdict, Rohit Gupta of IPL's official broadcaster Multi Screen Media (MSM) said the firm is confident that old advertisers will come back to IPL this season. "We expect to close all pending deals in the next one week," he said. Gupta, who is president (network sales, licensing) at MSM, admitted its sports channel Sony Six had been facing trouble closing on-air advertising deals. Some top advertisers such as Vodafone and Idea Cellular confirmed they would now invest in IPL.

RESOLVING PATENT WARS THROUGH COMPETITION LAW Pradeep S Mehta, March 31, 2014 The Financial Express The recent orders of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) asking its director general to investigate Ericssons alleged anticompetitive conduct raises issues lying at the crossroads of IP rights (IPR) and competition. The order also raises the issue of third-party access on fair and reasonable terms, which our judiciary is yet to comprehend. Indian companies Micromax and Intex are the respective complainants in the two CCI orders directing investigation. One issue specific to the Micromax case relates to the overlapping jurisdiction of various agencies. As reported, Ericsson and Micromax had engaged in negotiations and litigation before the complaint was filed before the CCI. Earlier parleys included Ericssons requested royalty rate, an interim royalty agreement and mediation between the parties. Such mediation did not succeed, partly because of Ericssons refusal to reveal licensing agreement terms with similarly situated parties. Another off-putting development on this is the order by the Delhi High Court directing CCI director general and CCI not to issue report and final orders on the Micromax case. The author is secretary general of CUTS International. Saket Sharma of CUTS Institute for Regulation & Competition contributed to the article

RELIANCE JIO TO OFFER HIGH-SPEED DATA, VOICE SERVICES USING 4G TECHNOLOGY Kalyan Parbat, Kolkata, March 31, 2014

The Economic Times Reliance Jio Infocomm has said it would use the mix of airwaves it owns to offer both high-speed data and voice services, while scoffing at analyst comments that the company could find it tough to attract customers without providing voice options. The company is building "futuristic high-capacity infrastructure to handle huge demand for data and voice" using fourth-generation technology, a Reliance Jio spokesman said. "In addition to high-speed data, the 4G network will provide voice services," he said. According to some analysts, since the company owns spectrum in the 2300 Mhz and 1800 Mhz bands - which are non-standard and more suitable to carry data - its cost to roll out services will go up by 35-40 percent, limiting the ability to offer low-cost voice services that account for 80 percent of the industry's revenue. The situation could get grim if Reliance Jio is driven to sell customised phones amid weak mass-market availability of devices that work on 4G technologies, analysts at HSBC said in a report.