The telecom industry has been navigating a rapidly evolving market landscape, where the focus has shifted from merely providing network bandwidth to delivering value-added services. The year 2023 saw an expansive roll-out of 5G networks in India, along with a massive uptake of state-of-the-art technologies by telecom companies. Operators leveraged technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), cloud and virtualisation to transform their services and infrastructure. During the year, telcos made further progress towards open radio access network (ORAN) deployment to support 5G networks, lay the foundation for 6G networks and remain future-fit.
A look at the key technology trends that shaped the telecom sector in 2023…
Network automation and AI
The conventional methods of network management and maintenance are rapidly evolving with the emergence of AI. Telcos are shifting their focus to network automation with the aim of leveraging AI’s capabilities in data processing, real-time adaptation, issue prediction and network operation optimisation, giving them greater flexibility and control over network management, and improved consumer response times. AI is also facilitating the adoption of zero-touch provisioning (ZTP), an approach that enables devices to be automatically configured and provisioned with minimal manual intervention. ZTP is particularly useful in scenarios such as remote branches, where deploying new equipment is logistically challenging. The implementation of 5G technology has further underscored the significance of intelligent networks and the symbiotic relationship between the two concepts. AI-enabled automation serves as the backbone for the rapid deployment and configuration of 5G networks and its components such as small cells, millimetre-wave frequencies and massive MIMO arrays. In turn, the advanced capabilities of 5G provide the technological framework and platform for intelligent automation.
In September 2023, Reliance Jio partnered with NVIDIA to build AI infrastructure that, the companies claim, is over an order of magnitude more powerful than the fastest supercomputer in India at present. The AI infrastructure will be hosted in AI-ready computing data centres that will eventually expand to 2,000 MW of capacity. Additionally, Jio Platforms Limited (JPL), the technology and product provider for Reliance Jio, has built a modular automation and integration framework to support Jio’s autonomous operations. At the bottom of the stack, the infrastructure deployment automation is delivered through the key cloud network domains to enable automation of the underlying cloud infrastructure operations, such as installing and commissioning cloud software. JPL’s management and orchestration platform is connected to the network domains via application programming interfaces. It is integrated with various operations support system functions such as the network management system, which provides unified observability and a single-pane-of-glass view across Jio’s 4G and 5G networks.
Meanwhile, Vodafone Idea Limited (Vi) signed an exclusive partnership with Route Mobile to provide application-to-person (A2P) SMS monetisation solutions. These solutions will be provided through an AI/machine learning (ML)-driven analytical firewall solution and aggregate international A2P SMS traffic on the network.
5G expansion and adoption
India has witnessed a remarkable pace of 5G rollout since the launch of the technology in October 2022. Telcos have deployed 397,923 5G base stations across the country as of November 2023, making this one of the fastest 5G roll-outs anywhere in the world. 5G services in India have been expanded to 738 districts with around 100 million users so far. Jio and Airtel have committed to achieving the target of pan-India coverage by March 2024.
One of the biggest advantages of a developed 5G network is the improved broadband experience. According to Ookla, India has ascended to the 10th position in the global 5G speed rankings within a year of launching its 5G network. With a median download speed of 312.26 Mbps, the country has surpassed advanced countries such as the UK and Japan. Further, both Jio and Airtel have launched their fixed wireless access (FWA) services, a connection that provides primary broadband access through mobile network-enabled customer premises equipment. 5G FWA is likely to further improve the broadband network in the country. However, as per experts, it will still take a few more years for real business-to-consumer use cases to emerge in the mainstream as this would require 5G capabilities, such as ultra-reliable low latency communications, enhanced mobile broadband and massive machine-type communications.
Even as 5G continues to expand, the adoption of private 5G networks is yet to take off in the country. Although there have been a few deployments, the lack of clarity on how spectrum would be allocated to enterprises – through auctions or administratively – has delayed the uptake of private 5G networks in the country.
Open network architectures
Amidst the burgeoning deployment of 5G, telcos are moving beyond siloed legacy network architecture to adopt new-age, virtualised and software-centric ORAN architecture. The shift towards open networks is driven by its numerous benefits such as a more vibrant ecosystem, network simplification and a reduction in capital and operational expenses. Apart from interoperability and disaggregation of hardware and software, ORAN helps inculcate self-healing and self-configuration properties across the network. It also makes deployments cloud-native, thereby enabling easy and affordable maintenance and upgradation of any future technology, resulting in a potential cost reduction of up to 30 per cent.
Jio has deployed its own 5G ORAN solution in several cities, while Airtel is conducting trials for 4G and 5G ORAN solutions in select sites of Haryana. The telco plans to commercially deploy the solutions across multiple locations in India over the next few quarters. Airtel has also partnered with Meta to jointly work on increasing the operational efficiency of ORAN. Vi too has conducted trials for ORAN technology.
Telecom SaaS
Telecom software-as-a-service (SaaS) is reshaping the technological landscape in the 5G era. It is delivered with a fully digitalised business experience and a fully automated services lifecycle that is designed for any carrier-grade network. Telecom SaaS, with its inherent scalability, is becoming crucial in managing the complexities of the expanding IoT network and ensuring seamless communications. It allows telecom operators to scale their services rapidly, accommodating the rising demands of 5G connectivity. As a majority of data processing shifts to the edge, SaaS solutions tailored for edge computing will allow operators to optimise network performance and significantly reduce latency, a crucial factor in the success of 5G applications.
SaaS solutions, with embedded security protocols and AI-driven threat detection, also facilitate in timely neutralising cyberthreats. This proactive approach to security safeguards the integrity of communication networks and contributes to maintaining uninterrupted service delivery, thus supporting faster time-to-value.
Network virtualisation
Network function virtualisation (NFV) and software-defined networks (SDN) are key technology disruptions driving the transformation of telecom networks. SDN focuses on separating the network’s data and control planes, enabling efficient network management, resource utilisation, and enhanced network agility. NFV virtualises network services, including routers, firewalls and load balancers previously deployed on proprietary hardware. The shift to virtual networks comes with many operational benefits, including higher potential for automation, flexibility in resource utilisation, scalability, advanced redundancy and lower cost.
Telcos are rapidly transitioning to virtualised networks for greater scalability, agility and cost optimisation, leading to significant growth in the SDN and NFV markets. At present, most 5G core network implementations are virtualised. NFV and SDN help meet the performance requirements of 5G, offering scalability, flexibility and interoperability. The expansion of cloud-enabled services and increased complexities of network traffic are further accelerating the adoption of these technologies. In early 2023, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) initiated an exercise to frame
security standards around NFV. The National Centre for Communication Security, a unit under DoT, has started work on framing security standards for the technology.
Tapping IoT
Telecom operators mainly use two protocol technologies to connect internet of things (IoT) devices to their networks. These are long-term evolution machine-type communication (LTE-M) and narrowband IoT (NB-IoT). Internally, telcos may use IoT technology to streamline their business, curb energy usage in facilities, and make fleet and supply chain operations more efficient. Modern IoT solutions allow telcos to use wide area networks that establish energy-efficient communication between machines while optimising energy consumption. These low-power global radio networks in IoT devices allow the telecom business to generate an additional source of revenue.
Indian telcos are turning their attention towards IoT to boost their enterprise revenues. Airtel recently announced that its B2B division has become the first ICT service provider in the country to connect over 20 million devices through its IoT solutions, cornering around 52.8 per cent of the Indian IoT market. The smart utilities (smart meter) segment is among the top three largest IoT use cases for Airtel, along with the fintech and automotive segments. It has won a contract to power 200,000 smart meters in India with its proprietary IoT platform, Airtel IoT Hub. Airtel has also introduced its “Always On” offering, which uses its regular cellular spectrum and guarantees constant connectivity for IoT devices over predetermined time slots for the devices being connected. According to the telco, its network is ready for pan-India NB-IoT deployment and its platform is scalable to 5G.
Meanwhile, JioThings Smart Utility Platform, an IoT solution from JioThings, has partnered with Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) to deploy 1 million smart prepaid meters in Bihar. Vi Business has implemented smart mobility, smart infrastructure and smart utility IoT solutions across sectors. Additionally, the company has partnered with EESL to install 5 million smart meters across Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. Vi and the Centre for Development of Telematics have also signed a memorandum of understanding to leverage each other’s expertise in developing and deploying IoT/machine-to-machine solutions in India.
Transition to cloud
Cloud technology is a core component of O-RAN deployment by telcos. Cloud computing in O-RAN allows the network to be realised in software by helping operators leverage cloud-native architectural principles and enabling the deployment of RAN functions as microservices in containers over bare metal servers, supported by orchestration technologies such as Kubernetes. The key functionality is provided by containerised network functions – software that can run on virtually any commercial off-the-shelf server. The resulting cloud-native model can enable workflow orchestration and network automation to deploy, scale and heal without intervention. The technology offers operators with long-term benefits such as ZTP, continuous integration/continuous delivery, and AI/ML-enabled network monitoring and optimisation. The integration of ORAN in a cloud framework can facilitate a multitude of innovative use cases, with service providers, telecom operators and enterprises envisioning market opportunities for cloud-native open RAN technologies across various domains, including 5G and the network widow.
In terms of offerings, Airtel has launched its contact-centre-as-a-service platforms, an industry-first omnichannel cloud platform that offers a unified experience for all contact centre solutions required by an enterprise. Meanwhile, JPL has collaborated with NVIDIA to build a state-of-the-art cloud-based AI compute infrastructure to accelerate India’s position as a growing force in AI. As part of the collaboration, NVIDIA will provide Jio with end-to-end AI supercomputer technologies and frameworks for building the most advanced AI models. Jio will manage and maintain the AI cloud infrastructure and oversee customer engagement and access.
Metaverse-ready
The metaverse is still in its early stages of development in India but is poised to grow exponentially in the coming years. Indian businesses, particularly telecom operators and equipment manufacturers, are well positioned to leverage opportunities in the metaverse domain given their experience in providing connectivity and services. Telecom operators can utilise the metaverse to charge for using special services, content, or premium service level agreements either to the end-user or the enterprise offering services on the metaverse.
Globally, telcos have started preparing for the upcoming metaverse boom. For instance, to future-proof its business, MTN purchased 144 plots of digital land in Ubuntuland, part of the African metaverse Africarare. This move is part of MTN’s strategy to engage its customers in new and innovative ways, and offer them new experiences in gaming and music.
Meanwhile, South Korea’s SK Telecom has launched its own metaverse platform, ifland. The platform allows users to create their own avatars and explore a variety of virtual worlds, from concerts and sporting events to educational and business simulations. The app is optimised for users to interact with each other’s “digital homes”. SK Telecom has also partnered with other telecommunications operators, such as Deutsche Telekom and e&, to expand ifland into other markets. SK Telecom, Deutsche Telekom and T-Mobile US will also produce content customised to local preferences and will jointly promote the metaverse offering.
In India, Vi partnered with Tech Mahindra to explore the use of the metaverse for education, while Jio is working towards developing its own metaverse platform and has also partnered with Microsoft to develop metaverse solutions. Further, Airtel has partnered with Nasscom to set up a metaverse lab in Bengaluru. Airtel has also become the first company in India to launch a multiplex on the Partynite Metaverse platform to offer an immersive content experience with multiple engagement layers.
These are just a few examples of telecom operators and equipment manufacturers using the metaverse in 2023. As the metaverse continues to evolve, telcos will play an increasingly prominent role in the sector. However, capitalising on this opportunity will also necessitate complex structural changes and technological advancements. To carry out the significant infrastructural developments required for the metaverse to function at scale, telcos will need to form partnerships and work closely with companies industry-wide.
6G roadmap
The next generation of mobile technology, 6G, is expected to be rolled out by 2030. However, the groundwork is already being laid. The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) has published the framework for the development of standards and radio interface technologies for 6G technology. ITU’s Radiocommunication Sector is now focusing on defining technical requirements, the submission process, and the evaluation criteria for potential 6G radio interface technologies.
The features of 6G encompass intelligent network management and control, along with seamlessly integrated wireless sensing and communication capabilities. 6G is expected to redefine the communication technology landscape by introducing bandwidths of 1 Tbps, a monumental leap surpassing 5G by a factor of 100. The potential ramifications are profound, offering the possibility to reshape human interactions, machine communications and data interactions.
India has launched the Bharat 6G Mission to design, develop and deploy 6G network technologies. It already boasts 127 patents in 6G, mainly around radio and core components, making it a frontrunner in the development of the new communications standard. The country also launched the Bharat 6G Alliance, a collaborative platform comprising public and private companies, academia, research institutions, and standards development organisations. By getting into the 6G race at its inception, India could become a major influencer, in addition to being one of the world’s largest markets.
Sarah Khan
