Mumbai: HMD, in collaboration with Free Stream Technologies (incubated at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur) and other D2M partners, has announced its plans to launch Direct-to-Mobile (D2M) phones in India, aiming to meet the rising mass consumer demand ahead of large-scale field trials. The announcement is set to be made at the World Audio Visual & Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025 at the Jio World Centre, Mumbai.
Direct-to-Mobile (D2M) represents a groundbreaking Next-Generation Broadcasting technology that delivers OTT content, live TV, video, audio, and text messages directly to mobile phones without the need for Wi-Fi or internet service. This innovation aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of a “Viksit Bharat” and supports the ‘Make in India’ and ‘Design in India’ initiatives.
Strengthening the country’s tech ecosystem, low-cost feature phones, smartphones, and tablets powered by Tejas Networks are part of the D2M-ready device lineup. The technology has been extensively tested in live networks by Prasar Bharati, in collaboration with IIT Kanpur and Tejas Networks, over several years.
On this development, Ravi Kunwar, VP and CEO, HMD India and APAC, stated, “HMD has always been committed to staying ahead of the innovation curve and delivering the best consumer experience. With this philosophy at the core of our mission, we’re excited to be a part of the D2M journey. This groundbreaking, first-of-its-kind platform worldwide enables our consumers to access a vast array of multimedia content.”
Sumeet Nindrajog, Director of FreeStream Technologies, added, “D2M is a technology that can transform how content & data gets consumed by the end users and the commitment from companies like HMD to establish the foundation for a robust device ecosystem is instrumental for our nationwide deployment strategy. Their ability to supply devices at scale demonstrates strong confidence in D2M’s future success.”
Parag Naik, co-founder of erstwhile Saankhya Labs and Executive Vice President, Tejas Networks, said, “The phones are powered by Saankhya Labs’ award winning SL-3000 chipset, which is the foundational D2M enabler. We have also developed the Core Network platform that will enable delivery of targeted Ads, CDN offload, educational content, emergency alerts and other apps that will empower the consumers furthering PM Modi’s vision of a digitally empowered India. Our collaboration with HMD has truly been path breaking and we truly expect the best out of it.”
Chris Ripley, President and CEO, Sinclair, Inc., remarked, “Large scale adoption of ATSC 3.0 in affordable mobile devices vindicates Sinclair’s forethought in leading US and global deployment of this broadcast standard as “mobile first” and in investing in Made by India technology. To meet future 6G goals, we are spearheading the next release of the standard – “Broadcast to everything” (B2X) which will unleash next generation broadcast apps for numerous verticals. We are proud to have companies like HMD as our partners in this initiative.”
The implementation of D2M technology will empower Indian consumers to access entertainment, sports, educational programming, and emergency alerts directly via terrestrial TV broadcast signals on mobile devices. With extensive field testing completed, HMD is positioning itself as one of the first device manufacturers ready to lead this new frontier in mobile technology.
