Of late, 5G has come to take centre stage in industry discussions. The year 2021 was a landmark year for 5G in various aspects. While operators pushed the pedal on carrying out trials of the new-age technology, the government on its part took steps to offer regulatory support by making available the required spectrum. Yet another key development in this area was the introduction of local 5G standards or 5Gi standards. The 5Gi standards were developed by IIT Hyderabad and IIT Madras under the guidance and support of the Telecommunications Standards Development Society of India (TSDSI). Following the announcement of 5Gi standards, the industry got embroiled in a debate regarding its adoption in India.
A look at some of the key developments that took place during the year in the 5G space and the way forward…
800 MHz band witnesses high interest during auctions
The government finally conducted auctions for the sale of spectrum for Indian telecom operators in early March 2021. A total of 2308.8 MHz of spectrum across seven bands, worth about Rs 3.92 trillion, was put up for sale. While the auction witnessed moderate participation by telcos, both in volume and value terms, it can be considered a qualified success as the revenue earnings exceeded industry expectations. The exchequer netted Rs 778.14 billion, almost double the initial estimates, even though only 37 per cent (855.6 MHz) of the total spectrum was sold.
Reliance Jio emerged as the highest bidder, winning 488.35 MHz of spectrum for Rs 571.22 billion, followed by Bharti Airtel, which picked up 355.45 MHz for Rs 186.98 billion, while Vodafone Idea acquired 11.8 MHz of airwaves for Rs 19.93 billion.
The higher-than-expected revenue generation in the recent auctions can be largely attributed to the surprise demand for spectrum in the 800 MHz and 2300 MHz bands. The 2300 MHz band recorded the highest interest, followed by the 800 MHz band.
Spectrum in the 2300 MHz band is ideal for augmenting network capacity. Given that it was cheaper than the sub-GHz airwaves on offer, telcos snapped it up to meet the surging data demand from mobile broadband users. Meanwhile, the 800 MHz band is ideal for deploying 5G services in the future.
However, spectrum in bands such as 700 MHz and 2500 MHz, considered to be premium and most suitable for 5G, had no takers at all. Notably, the 700 MHz band coupled with the 3.5 GHz band has the potential to accelerate 5G roll-out in a big way.
One step forward – Operators initiate 5G trials
In a big move, in early May 2021, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) gave permission to Indian telcos to carry out 5G trials in the country. Following this, the incumbent telcos, in partnership with various vendors, conducted trials on the new-age technology and explored several use cases based on 5G.
In the 5G space, Airtel raced ahead of other telcos in carrying out live 5G demonstrations over a commercial network in Hyderabad and became the first telco to conduct 5G trials. Further, Airtel’s 5G trial network went live in Gurugram’s Cyber Hub and Mumbai’s Phoenix Mall, among other regions. Besides conducting 5G trials, the operator carried out India’s first cloud gaming session in a 5G-based setting and partnered with TCS to demonstrate 5G-based remote robotic operations and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven quality inspection for factories.
Reliance Jio too made giant strides in the 5G domain by conducting many trials and focusing on indigenous manufacturing of 5G equipment. In June 2021, the telco commenced field testing for 5G networks across four circles in the country. The tests were conducted jointly with partners using its own technology and demonstrated speeds in excess of 1 Gbps. The telco also conducted trials for immersive high definition virtual reality meeting using its home-grown 5G new radio and 5G core network and connected robotics over its indigenous 5G radio access network (RAN) and 5G SA core network.
To enhance indigenous manufacturing of 5G, Jio Platforms collaborated with Qualcomm Technologies for local manufacturing of 5G critical equipment in India and started working with original equipment manufacturers on standardising 5G device configurations. Another collaboration was forged with Google Cloud with the goal of powering 5G in the enterprise and consumer segments. Further, the operator partnered with Spirent Communications to validate its cloud-native 5G SA core network for real-world workloads and traffic conditions using Spirent Landslide.
On its part, Vi too initiated 5G trials in Pune and Gandhinagar to catch up with its peers in the 5G space. Further, the telco deployed several 5G-ready technologies such as massive multiple, input multiple output (MIMO), dynamic spectrum refarming and cloudification of core. Towards the end of the year, Vi, along with its technology partner Nokia, conducted a 5G trial to enhance rural broadband connectivity in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. Around the same time, the operator demonstrated secure network slicing using Nokia’s 5G RAN and 5G core.
In its endeavour to promote innovative, home-grown 5G applications, Vi tested 5G-based solutions on the aerial traffic management and motion capture system. Vi partnered with Vizzbee Robotics Solution, Tweek Labs and DoT for this endeavour. Additionally, Vi partnered with Athonet to test 5G-based solutions in several areas including smart construction, smart warehouse, smart agriculture and smart workplace. Similarly, Vi partnered with Larsen & Toubro for a pilot project to test 5G-based smart city solutions.
5G standardisation debate
In 2020, the localised version of 5G standards, called 5Gi, was introduced and approved by the International Telecommunications Union. While this was a big milestone for the Indian telecom industry, the adoption of 5Gi standards received a lot of criticism from various segments of the industry.
There are some supporters of the indigenous 5G standards who perceive this as a great opportunity to expand network coverage in the rural hinterland of India in a cost efficient manner. However, many operators and vendors are concerned about issues such as non-interoperability between global and domestic 5G standards and the absence of a device ecosystem, which will hinder the adoption of 5Gi standards.
International trade and technology bodies based in the US and the UK have opposed the mandatory adoption of the Indian 5G standards. The industry bodies had warned that doing so would jeopardise vital collaborative work on supply chain security, vendor diversification, and alternative network architectures such as Open RAN, which relies on globally harmonised standards. Moreover, the bodies informed DoT that establishing global specifications for 5G technology is a necessary first step in displaying greater collaboration among “QUAD” states. They requested DoT and the Telecommunication Engineering Centre to do “appropriate technical due diligence to confirm” the stated capabilities of 5Gi during the assessment process. The representatives of these bodies stated that adopting 3GPP’s 5G specifications as a national standard will improve India’s position as a manufacturing base for ICT goods and services.
Taking into consideration the concerns expressed by the global community, the decision to merge India’s 5Gi standards with 3GPP’s global 5G standards was taken towards the end of the year. The decision was taken at the 3GPP TSG RAN plenary session. A plan of action was agreed upon at the 3GPP TSG RAN plenary to allow the merger of 5Gi into 5G, with specific milestones set for both 3GPP and TSDSI.
Outlook 2022
Going forward, 5G is expected to take more concrete shape as the industry continues to make efforts towards developing a robust ecosystem for it. As per industry reports, the relief package recently announced by the government, coupled with the increase in tariffs announced by incumbent operators, is set to put India back on track to roll out 5G services by 2022. The sector is projected to see Rs 1.3 trillion to Rs 2.3 trillion of investments in the coming years in creating robust infrastructure, and building telecom and network products that have been incentivised by the government through the production-linked incentive scheme and other initiatives.
The tariff hike, alongside the government’s relief package that included a four-year moratorium on payment of dues, has provided an impetus to investments in the new-age technology. With the government promising more reforms, the industry is keen to see a positive outcome on 5G spectrum pricing at the auction.
Diksha Sharma
