Openreach on benefit of FTTP in UK; Full Fiber rollouts increasing
A new report commissioned by UK fixed line infrastructure provider Openreach has concluded the UK would be £59 billion better off with full FTTP.
The report -‘Full fibre broadband: A platform for growth’ – was compiled by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR). The conclusion is that if the UK were to achieve ubiquitous fibre to the premises (FTTP) by 2025, UK productivity would increase by almost £59 billion, due to smarter ways of working and better public services made possible by FTTP.
It appears that the CEBR had a look at the effect FTTP has had in places where it’s already available and scaled that up to the whole country. It also tried to factor in other disruptive technological events such as mass ICT and even railways to get a sense of the transformative effect of everyone having faster broadband than they currently do.
“Full fibre is a vehicle to turbocharge our economy post-Brexit, with the power to renew towns and communities across the UK,” said Openreach CEO Clive Selley. “We’re proud to be leading the way with over 1.8 million homes and businesses already having access to our full fibre network. We’re currently building full fibre to around 22,000 premises a week– which is one every 28 seconds. But we want to go even faster and further – to 15 million premises and beyond if we can get the right conditions to invest.”
“Through our Fibre First programme, Openreach is now building to 103 locations across the UK and we’re on track to build to four million premises by March 2021. With the right policies and regulation, we can build a better, more reliable broadband network faster than any other country in the world and unlock the benefits for the whole UK. If that doesn’t happen, then many people will be locked out of a more connected future and the UK could lose its status as a global digital leader.”
Openreach believes the telecoms sector should be exempt from paying business rates for the foreseeable future, be granted better access to blocks of flats and other such buildings and get a regulatory environment more conducive to investment.
To read the full report as well as Openreach’s thoughts on how the roll-out of full FTTP can be speeded up, please click here.
To some extent Openreach is pushing at an open door here, since no one thinks faster broadband is a bad idea. This report is just part of the ongoing lobbying campaign to get the UK state to be a bit more helpful when it comes to fibre infrastructure and, presumably, to maintain the momentum created by Boris Johnson’s enthusiasm for fibre.
Meanwhile, the pace of Openreach full fiber roll-outs is increasing. There are now 1,604,178 premises where the Openreach FTTP services can be ordered from assorted retailers. This is an increase of 110,247 compared to the previous month and gives a build rate of 25,724 premises a week.
Splits for Openreach FTTP and changed in category since 12th September 2019:
- 463,391 premises via BDUK/gap funded or other rural intervention (increase of 10, reality in the 6000-7000 range)
- 764,521 premises in Fibre First areas (increase of 129,876)
- 270,774 premises via New Build since January 2016 (increase of 29,784)
- 107,468 premises via commercial/old roll-out (decrease of 47,447)
The big take-away should be for the increasing number of full fibre operators both big and small, that if you need high levels of take-up to sustain your business model in the short to medium term you need to do a lot of community engagement and pricing needs to be the same or lower than the price people are paying today even if your speeds are significantly higher.
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About Openreach:
Openreach works on behalf of communications providers to build and maintain the UK’s digital network — the lines, poles and cables used to provide phone, broadband and TV services. We don’t provide phone, broadband or TV services directly to consumers. To get these services, you should contact a communications provider below to find out about the packages they can offer you.
References:
https://www.openreach.com/full-fibre-impact
http://telecoms.com/500272/openreach-explains-why-fttp-is-such-a-great-idea/
https://www.thinkbroadband.com/news/8565-pace-of-openreach-full-fibre-roll-out-may-be-increasing
https://www.openreach.com/fibre-broadband/fttp-providers
France announces 11 mmWave trials at 26G Hz: Many different use cases and multiple tech companies participating
The French government has announced details of 11 trial 5G projects that will be awarded to use 26GHz spectrum. The government and telecom regulatory agency (Arcep) said it had received 15 applications for projects, with 11 approved to be progressed. Logistics, smart city, mobility, sports events coverage: more than a dozen projects responded to the call to create trial platforms.
Projects will be awarded 26GHz spectrum for a period of three years. They must have a working network by January 2021 and they must make that network available to third parties. Arcep said it would be announcing more projects in the coming weeks.
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Background: In January 2019, the French Government and Arcep issued a joint call for the creation of 5G trial platforms that would be open to third parties, and using the 26 GHz band – aka the millimetre wave band. The aim of this call was to pave the way for all players to embrace the possibilities this frequency band provides, and to discover new uses for 5G. Agnès Pannier-Runacher, France’s Secretary of State to the Minister for the Economy and Finance, and Sébastien Soriano, Chair of the Electronic Communications and Postal Regulatory Authority/ Telecom Agency (Arcep), presented the first eleven projects that have been selected.
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The 11 trials of mmWave technology in France will include several different use cases, while also involving different technology companies. Several of the projects are being led by enterprise tech companies which do not specialize in telecommunications:
The first project will be led by Universcience, at the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie, and will focus on public engagement. The La Cité des sciences et de l’industrie 5G trial platform will showcase use cases to the public, through open events, as well as temporary and permanent exhibitions.
The second, at the Vélodrome National, will bring together Nokia, Qualcomm, Airbus and France Television to understand how 5G can aid sports media. Low latency and increased bandwidth will be key topics here, as will the integration of artificial intelligence for operational efficiency and augmented reality to improve consumer experience.
The third trial will pair Bordeaux Métropole, the local authority, with Bouygues Telecom and will endeavor to capitalize on public lighting networks to deploy new infrastructures.
The Port of Le Havre will lead the fourth trial alongside the Le Havre Seine Métropole urban community, Siemens, EDF and Nokia. This initiative will explore 5G applications in a port and industry-related environments, with use-cases such as operating smart grids and recharging electric vehicles.
At the Nokia Paris-Saclay campus, trials will be conducted in a real-world environment, both indoors and outdoors, thanks to Nokia 5G antennae installed at different heights on the rooftops, and in work areas. This project also includes a start-up incubator program.
The Paris La Défense planning development agency and its partners have submitted another interesting usecase. With 5G CAPEX budget strained already, the Government department will test the feasibility and viability of owning infrastructure and selling turnkey access to operators. This might erode coverage advantages which some telcos might seek, though in assuming ownership (and the cost) of network deployment, the 5G journey might well be a bit smoother in France.
The seventh trial will pair Bouygues Telecom with France’s national rail company, SNCF, at the Lyon Part-Dieu train station. Tests will focus on consumer applications, such as VR and AR, as well as how transportation companies can make best use of data and connectivity to enhance operations. The eighth trial will also be led by Bouygues Telecom, focusing on industrial IOT in the city of Saint-Priest.
Orange will oversee two trials at part of the wider scheme, with the first taking place in Rennes railway station with SNCF and Nokia. Once again, part of this trial will focus on consumer applications, making waiting a ‘more pleasant experience’, with the rest focusing on industrial applications such as remote maintenance using augmented reality.
The second Orange trial will focus on various 5G use cases in heavily trafficked areas, such as enhanced multimedia experiences for people on the move and cloud gaming. This trial is supposed to be generic, and another opportunity for start-ups to pitch and validate their ideas in a live lab.
“The 26GHz spectrum band will allow us to explore new services based on 5G,” said Mari-Noëlle Jégo-Laveissière, Chief Technology and Innovation Officer of Orange. “We are aiming to set-up experimental platforms that will stimulate collaboration on these new use-cases across all economic sectors.”
With the spectrum licenses live from October 7th, the trials are now officially up-and-running. Each of the projects must have a live network operational by January 2021 at the latest and have to make it available to third parties to perform their own 5G trials.
This is perhaps one of the most interesting schemes worldwide not only because of the breadth and depth of the usecases being discussed, but the variety of companies which are being brought into the fray. Although the telco industry does constantly discuss the broadening of the ecosystem, realistically the power resides with a small number of very influential vendors.
This is a complaint which does seem to be attracting more headlines at the moment. If you look at the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) being championed by Facebook, the aim is to commoditize the hardware components in the network, while decoupling them from software. Ultimately, the project is driving towards a more open and accessible ecosystem.
France’s initiative here could have the same impact. By designating enterprise companies and local municipalities as leaders in the projects, instead of the same old telcos and vendors, new ideas and new models have the potential to flourish. This looks like a very positive step forward for the French digital economy.
References:
https://en.arcep.fr/news/press-releases/p/n/5g-6.html
http://telecoms.com/500186/france-pushes-forward-with-trials-of-much-hyped-mmwave-airwaves/
http://the-mobile-network.com/2019/10/arcep-picks-a-first-xi-for-5g-mmwave-trials/
China’s big 3 mobile operators have 9 Million 5G subscribers in advance of the service; Barron’s: China to lead in 5G deployments
According to Beijing News, the three major (state owned) China mobile network operators have already signed up 9 million advance orders for their yet to be launched 5G service. As of October 5th, China Mobile’s 5G subscribers have reached 5.32 million, China Unicom has 1.75 million, China Telecom has 1.76 million, and the total number of committed 5G users is nearly 9 million.
The three China network operators haven’t set a date for the start of service, but will reportedly commence simultaneously, most likely later this month of October. However, there are not many 5G smartphones (only two or three models) and no other endpoints (none announced yet) available from the three major China network operators. The preferential price is between 150 yuan and 550 yuan.
On September 20, Xu Ximing, deputy general manager of the marketing department of China Mobile Group Corporation, said at the China Mobile 5G+ Innovation Cooperation Conference that China Mobile is accelerating the pace of 5G commercialization. The 5G package will be officially released in October, including basic packages and CPE packages. And upgrade plans for old users. Customers will enjoy the “three different fast” login to the 5G network, that is, the 5G terminal does not need to change the card, does not need to change the number, does not need to register, and multi-channel fast order 5G network service.
- The China Unicom prices web page shows that the current campaign supports two mobile phones, Samsung Note 10+5G version offers 500 yuan, and vivo’s iQOO Pro 5G version offers 400 yuan. Telecom’s purchase discounts are 150 yuan for iQOO Pro, 300 yuan for ZTE Axon 10 Pro, and 550 yuan for Samsung Note 10+.
- For China Mobile’s preferential prices, Xiaomi 9 Pro 5G version is offered for 300 yuan, China Mobile’s pioneer X1, Samsung Note 10+ 5G version offer is 500 yuan. China Mobile told the Beijing News that more 5G models will be added in the future.
China Mobile Pioneer X1 is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset, a 6.47-inch AMOLED display with a waterdrop notch. The display supports FHD+ resolution and also houses an on-screen fingerprint scanner. Housed inside the waterdrop notch is a powerful 20MP camera.
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Note: Although Samsung continues phone sales in China, last week the handset maker ceased its mobile phone production operations in China as it closed its last factory in the country, according to Reuters.
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China’s 5G network coverage is progressing rapidly and the 5G network is increasingly equipped with a formal commercial foundation. Recently, the official statistics of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Economics and Information Technology state that the three major network operators have completed more than 8,800 5G base stations in Beijing, covering areas along Chang’an Avenue, the World Expo, CCTV Broadcasting Center, and Shougang Park.
According to a message released by the Beijing Communications Administration, it is expected that by the end of 2019, Beijing will build more than 10,000 5G base stations. According to the current construction progress, the number of 5G base stations in Beijing is expected to reach 12,000 by the end of the year. Among the other three first-tier cities, Shanghai plans to build 10,000 5G base stations in 2019 and 20,000 5G base stations in 2020; Guangzhou proposes to complete no less than 20,000 5G base stations in 2019, and 5G will be built in 2021. The base station is 65,000; the plan for Shenzhen is to build 15,000 5G base stations by the end of 2019.
With the spread of 5G networks, innovative applications in various 5G environments are emerging and even landing. On September 25, Daxing International Airport was officially opened. Eastern Airlines, Beijing Unicom and Huawei jointly released a 5G-based smart travel integrated service system at Daxing International Airport. Under the system, the user does not need to present the ID card and the QR code as usual, and only needs face recognition to complete the travel process such as ticket purchase, check-in, check-in, security check, and boarding.
China’s government is partially subsidizing 5G deployments as we note in several paragraphs below:
- The Shenzhen city government is offering to pay operators RMB10,000 ($1,398) for every standalone 5G base station deployed, with a maximum payout of RMB150 million ($20.9 million). Its 5G plan issued last month promises support for site acquisition and subsidies for base station electricity costs. The tech-dominated Chinese city, home to Huawei, ZTE and Tencent, plans to install 15,000 5G base stations by the end of 2019 and 45,000 by next August (more on this below).
- Almost every Chinese city or provincial government has a 5G development plan. While many are light on specifics, some reveal big ambitions. For example, the government of Zhejiang, the wealthy province near Shanghai, expects to have 30,000 base stations next year. It plans to complete its 5G rollout by 2022, by which time its coverage will “lead the country.”
- The north-west province of Shanxi — not known for its advanced tech industries — has also made 5G a top priority. It has bench marked its 5G rollout against other provinces and, like Zhejiang, has set a target of 30,000 base stations by 2022. And the city is also offering subsidies for base station power costs and help in site selection.
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From an article titled, “The Real 5G Winner Could Be China,” in the October 7, 2019 print edition of Barron’s:
Multiple Wall Street analysts are getting more optimistic about China’s 5G build out. For instance, Rosenblatt Securities notes that local governments in the Asian country are providing subsidies to “speed up 5G network deployments.” As a result, Rosenblatt says, more than 300 cities in China will have 5G networks by the end of next year. Even Hall, the Goldman Sachs 5G skeptic, expects 120 million 5G smartphones to ship next year, largely because of China’s aggressive build out.
In a report this past week, Piper Jaffray analyst Harsh Kumar cited a Chinese think tank that sees China-based companies spending $411 billion on 5G networks from 2020 to 2030. Of the 600,000 5G base stations expected to be rolled out worldwide next year, Kumar says half will be deployed in China: “We expect 2020 global [5G] deployments to largely be driven by the Chinese market.”
5G may come together slowly in the U.S. market, but China is serious about winning the race.
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References:
https://tech.sina.com.cn/t/2019-10-06/doc-iicezzrr0343842.shtml
https://www.lightreading.com/asia-pacific/china-telcos-rack-up-9m-5g-advance-subs/d/d-id/754643?
https://www.barrons.com/articles/the-real-5g-winner-could-be-china-51570228459
https://www.wsj.com/articles/in-the-race-to-dominate-5g-china-has-an-edge-11567828888
3GPP Release 16 Update: 5G Phase 2 (including URLLC) to be completed in June 2020; Mission Critical apps extended
NOTE: This article is intended as a reference, which is especially important to debunk claims made about current pre-standard 5G deployments which are almost all based on 3GPP Release 15 “5G New Radio (NR)” for the data plane with LTE signaling and LTE mobile packet core (EPC) for Non Stand Alone (NSA) operation. 5G pundits continue to site 3GPP as the standards organization responsible for 5G which is doubly wrong because it’s not a standards body and submits its 5G/IMT 2020 proposals to ITU-R WP 5D via the latter organizations member entities. As we’ve stated many times before, ITU-R is responsible for the radio standards for IMT 2020, while ITU-T is working on the non-radio aspects of IMT 2020.
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Summary:
3GPP Release 16 is a major release for the project, because it will bring the specification organization’s IMT-2020 RIT/SRIT submission (to ITU-R WP 5D) for an initial full 3GPP 5G system to its completion. Release 16 will be put in a “frozen” state in March 2020 with a targeted completion date of June 2020.
3GPP work has started on approximately 25 Release 16 studies, which cover a variety of topics: Multimedia Priority Service, Vehicle-to-everything (V2X) application layer services, 5G satellite access, Local Area Network support in 5G, wireless and wireline convergence for 5G, terminal positioning and location, communications in vertical domains and network automation and novel radio techniques. Further items being studied include security, codecs and streaming services, Local Area Network interworking, network slicing and the IoT.
Here are the new features planned for 3GPP Release 16:
Details of the features and work items under each 3GPP Release are kept in the corresponding, on-line, list of features and study items.
- Enhancement of Ultra-Reliable (UR) Low Latency Communications (URLLC)
- 5GS Enhanced support of Vertical and LAN Services
- Cellular IoT support and evolution
- Advanced V2X support
- 5G Location and Positioning Services
- UE radio capability signalling optimization
- Satellite Access in 5G
- Enablers for Network Automation Architecture for 5G
- Wireless and Wireline Convergence Enhancement
- Mission Critical, Public Warning, Railways and Maritime
- Streaming and TV
- User Identities, Authentication, multi-device
- (Network) Slicing
- Other cross-TSG Release 16 Features
- NR-related Release 16 Features
- Release 16 Features impacting both LTE and NR
- LTE-related Release 16 Features
From 3GPP’s July 18, 2019 Webinar:
“For the (industry) verticals, there are three distinct pillars that we are focused on: Automotive, Industrial IoT and Operation in unlicensed bands. For 5G based V2X, which builds on the two iterations of the LTE-V2X, we are now adding advanced features – primarily in the area of low latency use cases.
The second focus is industrial IoT and URLLC enhancements. Factory automation, in particular, is a strong pillar for 5G going forward. We are trying to ensure that the radio side covers all of the functions that all the verticals need for factory automation. What this means in practice is that we are trying to make sure 5G NR can fully replace a wired ethernet – currently used – by adding time sensitive networking and high reliability capabilities.
The third pillar is operation in unlicensed bands. We have seen different schemes for generic 5G licensing strategies in Europe and in other parts of the World. We have seen in some countries that certain licensed bands have been allocated for vertical use cases, though that is not the case for a majority of countries. The use of unlicensed bands provides a great opportunity – where licensed spectrum is not an option. We are now focused on not only what we have with LTE, which is the licensed assisted access scheme, but also on standalone unlicensed operation – to be completed in Release 16.
Release 16 also delivers generic system improvements & enhancements, which target Mobile Broadband, but can also be used in vertical deployments – Particularly; positioning, MIMO enhancements and Power consumption improvements.”
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Technical Reports (the result of the study phase) are also being developed on broadening the applicability of 3GPP technology to non-terrestrial radio access (initially satellites, but airborne base stations are also to be considered) and to maritime aspects (intra-ship, ship-to-shore and ship-to-ship). Work also progresses on new PMR functionality for LTE, enhancing the railway-oriented services originally developed using GSM radio technology that is now nearing end of life.
As part of Release 16, Mission Critical (MC) services will be extended to address a wider business sector than the initial rather narrow public security and civil defense services for which they had originally been developed. If the same or similar standards can be used for commercial applications (from taxi dispatching to railway traffic management, and other vertical sector scenarios currently being investigated), this would bring enhanced reliability to those MC services through wider deployment, and reduced deployment costs due to economies of scale – to the benefit of all users.
IMT-2020 – Final submission
- Calibration for self evaluation
- Prepare and finalize initial description template information that is to be submitted to ITU-R WP 5D#29.
Step 2: From early 2018 to Sep 2018, targeting “update & self eval” submission in Sep 2018
- Performance evaluation against eMBB, mMTC and URLLC requirements and test environments for NR and LTE features.
- Update description template and prepare compliance template according to self evaluation results.
- Provide description template, compliance template, and self evaluation results based on Rel-15 in Sep 2018.
Step 3: From Sep 2018 to June 2019, targeting “Final” submission in June 2019
- Performance evaluation update by taking into account Rel-16 updates in addition to Rel-15
- Update description template and compliance template to take into account Rel-16 updates in addition to Rel-15
- Provide description template, compliance template, and self evaluation results based on Rel-15 and Rel-16 in June 2019.
Some Background on Release 16
- See the full Release 16 Description – TR21.916 (Available at Release freeze)
- RAN Rel-16 progress and Rel-17 potential work areas (July 18, 2019)
- Early progress on Rel-16 bands for 5G (April 2, 2019)
- “Working towards full 5G in Rel-16”…See 3GPP webinar presentation (July 3, 2019)
- Preparing the ground for IMT-2020
- SA1 completes its study into 5G requirements
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References:
https://www.3gpp.org/release-16
https://www.3gpp.org/news-events/2058-ran-rel-16-progress-and-rel-17-potential-work-areas
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Addendum (December 14, 2020):
https://www.3gpp.org/news-events/2098-5g-in-release-17-%E2%80%93-strong-radio-evolution
Massive MIMO Deployments in India: Bharti Airtel vs. Vodafone Idea?
by Danish Khan (edited and augmented by Alan J Weissberger)
The deployment of massive MIMO [1] technology has led to a series of claims and counter claims between India wireless network operators Vodafone Idea Ltd. (VIL) and Bharti Airtel. Both privately held telcos claim that they lead in terms of the deployment size of this pre-5G technology.
Note 1. Massive multiple-input, multiple-output, or massive MIMO, is an extension of MIMO, which essentially groups together antennas at the transmitter and receiver to provide better throughput and better spectrum efficiency.
Moving from MIMO to massive MIMO, according to IEEE, involves making “a clean break with current practice through the use of a large excess of service antennas over active terminals and time-division duplex operation. Extra antennas help by focusing energy into ever smaller regions of space to bring huge improvements in throughput and radiated energy efficiency.”
Many different configurations and deployment scenarios for the actual antenna arrays used by a massive MIMO system can be envisioned (see Fig. 1). Each antenna unit would be small and active, preferably fed via an optical or electric digital bus.
Figure 1. Some possible antenna configurations and deployment scenarios for a massive MIMO base station.
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In a statement, Huawei said that Bharti Airtel has deployed more than 100 hops of enhanced MIMO microwave link based on the latest MIMO technology developed by the Chinese gear maker. The deployment, Huawei said, will deliver 1Gbps capacity over a single 28 Mhz spectrum, improving the backhaul capacity by four times.
“Bharti implements the largest-scale MIMO deployment around the world,” Huawei said in the statement. Airtel had made its first commercial deployment of massive MIMO in September 2017.
Bharti Airtel today (Sept 26, 2017) announced the deployment of India’s first state-of-the-art Massive Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) technology which is a key enabler for 5G networks. As one of the few commercial deployment of Massive MIMO globally, the deployment puts India on the world map of technology advancement and digital revolution. Airtel is starting with the first round of deployment in Bangalore & Kolkata and will expand to other parts of the country.
Deployed as part of Airtel’s ongoing network transformation program, Project Leap, the Massive MIMO technology will expand existing network capacity by five to seven times using the existing spectrum, thereby improving spectral efficiency. Customers will now be able to experience two to three times superfast speeds on the existing 4G network. Data speeds will now also be seamless, offering enhanced user experience even indoors, in crowded places and high rise buildings. It would enable multiple users and multiple devices to work simultaneously without facing any congestion or experience issues especially at hotspot locations.
But in an interview with ET last week, Vodafone Idea chief technology officer, Vishant Vora had claimed that it was the leader in MIMO deployments in India. “We have deployed over 10,000 massive MIMOs in India. This is the largest deployment of massive MIMOs in India and neither of my two competitors has that. They are 100-200 and we are at 10,000 plus. This is the largest deployment outside China and in the world,” Vora said.
Vodafone Idea told ET this past March:
Vodafone Idea has deployed more than 5000 massive MIMO, small cells and TDD sites across Church gate, Prabhadevi, Pali hill, Lokhandwala, Versova, Andheri, Jogeshwari, Bandra and Dadar among other regions. The telco has also installed over 1900 indoor coverage solutions for high rises and commercial places.
“With meticulous pre-merger planning and rigorous post-merger execution, we have ensured that our customers remain confidently connected and enjoy uninterrupted services even as we integrate and optimize our network in a phased manner across circles,” said Vishant Vora, CTO, Vodafone Idea.
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Huawei is also providing 4G equipment and massive MIMO technology to Vodafone Idea in seven circles. Huawei didn’t provide additional information.
The MIMO technology achieves four times capacity with same spectrum, allowing a telecom operator to build a 5G-ready transport network without investment in additional spectrum . MIMO deployment also allows telcos to address the capacity-related network issues in urban areas in India, besides deploying new sites to provide coverage in rural parts.
Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio has also started to deploy massive MIMO technology in some of the metro cities that are seeing huge traffic growth resulting in bad data speed experience.
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References:
Far EasTone Telecommunications 5G Indoor Trials; Chunghwa Telecom 5G Field Trial for Driverless Cars
The telecom hopes the trials help companies transit to 5G technology more smoothly, vice president Philip Tseng told reporters in Taipei.
Far EasTone Telecommunications Co Ltd of Taiwan said yesterday that it plans to set up an indoor 5G trial field next month at Neihu Technology Park for 100 enterprises or research organizations. The announcement came a day after the telecom won the first approval to install a 5G-based Proof of Business network. The Taiwan National Telecommunications Commission has approved six 5G proof-of-concept trials and is still reviewing other applications, it said, adding that it welcomes more applications to explore business opportunities or business models on 5G networks. Telecoms that win 5G spectrum licenses are expected to launch commercial 5G services in July next year (2020) at the earliest, the commission said.
The telecom said it plans to offer the trials in collaboration with Ericsson Taiwan at the Neihu Sports Center on a commercial 5G network using the 3.5 gigahertz band. As part of the trials, Far EasTone is to supply free 5G SIM cards, routers and a 5G applications enablement platform (undefined?), allowing firms to test Internet of Things (IoT) business opportunities from this month to December 2019. The average download speed of the 5G network will be at least 10 times faster than a 4G LTE network, the company said.
“We hope the trials help upstream and downstream companies transit to 5G technology more smoothly,” Far EasTone vice president Philip Tseng told reporters on the sidelines of a news conference in Taipei. The telecom is teaming up with Taipei’s Smart City Project Management Office, Department of Information Technology and Department of Economic Development, as well as the Taiwan IOT Technology and Industry Association to launch the 5G trials.
Notebook computer maker Compal Electronics Inc and smartphone maker HTC Corp are to provide the 5G endpoints to be tested, the telecom said.
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Ericsson — Taiwan to beat Europe in 5G deployments:
In August, Ericsson said it expects Taiwan to ramp up 5G services faster than Europe once the nation’s 5G spectrum is auctioned, thanks to its strong position in the communications components manufacturing supply chain.
“Taiwan has an industry that manufactures a lot of components. That is not the case in many countries in Europe or elsewhere,” Nassif told a media briefing in Taipei. “Here you have the possibility of creating all kinds of ecosystems. You have a better chance of rapidly achieving scale.”
“Taiwan is getting ready and I have a good feeling that 5G will be here in Taiwan next year, thanks to the many initiatives that have been planned by local telecoms even before December’s 5G spectrum auction,” Nassif said.
Taiwan’s National Communications Commission plans to auction 2,790 megahertz (MHz) of bandwidth for 5G services, including 270MHz in the 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) band, 2,500MHz in the 28GHz band and 20MHz in the 1,800MHz band. The commission has not yet set the floor price.
Taiwan has shown a readiness to embrace 5G services, given its high data usage — 20 gigabytes per month, one of the highest in the world — and its tech-savvy mobile users, said Peter Fung, head of networks for Ericsson in Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau.
Ericsson, which has secured 47 contracts from telecoms worldwide, is collaborating with Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信), Far EasTone Telecommunications Co (遠傳電信) and Asia Pacific Telecom Co (亞太電信) in the deployment of their 5G networks.
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About Far EasTone Telecommunications:
Far EasTone Telecommunications (FET) is a leading company in Taiwan which provides telecommunications and digital application services. Since its establishment in 1997, FET has strived to close the gap between people to achieve the objective of “Closing the distance”. As the 5G era approaches, FET has set its sights beyond telecommunications and has reinterpreted the brand statement in 2019, setting a new milestone with ” For Every Thought, We Go Further”. FET’s aim is, through Big Data, AI, IoT and other digital applications, to not only bring people closer together in mind, also to reduce the gap between people and new technology.
Since its establishment in 1997, FET has continued to introduce new products and services utilizing access technologies, including 2G, 3G, 4G and WiFi. As the popularity of smart devices grows rapidly, FET is investing heavily in the improvement of internet infrastructure, actively enhancing the speed and quality of mobile networks, upgrading base stations, and expanding the channel range.
FET has collaborated with the telecom equipment giant Ericsson to establish the first 5G Lab in Taiwan. In 2018, FET announced the establishment of the “FET 5G Pioneer Team,” the first in Taiwan to drive development of 5G connected vehicle technologies and ecosystem in Taiwan. In the future, it will further take on the challenge of reaching the fastest network speed with 4-band dual technology. We will also continue to develop IoT applications and polish our mobile services to become the preferred partner in the digital life and pave a solid path forward to the future of 5G roll-out.
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References:
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2019/10/05/2003723392
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2019/08/13/2003720368
https://www.fetnet.net/corporate/en/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Communications_Commission
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In a related development — Chunghwa Telecom holds 5G field trial for driverless cars:
Chunghwa Telecom yesterday (October 3, 2019) conducted a 5G spectrum-based field trial for autonomous vehicles at a lab in New Taipei City’s Banciao District to demonstrate vehicle-to-infrastructure technology developed by a subsidiary. The telecom expects to provide more autonomous vehicle tests and trials using 5G networks at its lab in the future.
“Our aim is to help grow this 5G value chain ranging from chips and small cell stations to all kinds of applications,” Chunghwa Telecom chairman Hsieh Chi-mau told reporters on the sidelines of the field trial.
The company focuses on the delivery of real-time information, such as traffic data to vehicles using high-speed and low-latency 5G technology, while Kingwaytek Technology Co (勤崴), a 26 percent held subsidiary, is helping to develop autonomous driving systems, particularly for shuttle buses, Hsieh said. Kingwaytek is a supplier of high-definition (HD) electronic maps and vehicle navigation systems.
“We are developing a decisionmaking system for self-driving vehicles and a traffic prediction system, which will be combined with our HD electronic maps to complete our self-driving solution,” Kingwaytek chairman Alfred Ko said. Kingwaytek plans to conduct a series of self-driving field trials next year in collaboration with Automotive Research and Testing Center via a sandbox program in Changhua County, Ko said.
The trial, if successful, would pave the way for the company to sell its self-driving solutions overseas in the next two to three years, injecting new revenue growth momentum into the business, he said. Southeast Asian nations would be ideal markets, as Chunghwa Telecom’s strength in the region could provide leverage, he said.
President Tsai Ing-wen, sitting, tries out 5G-enabled technology at a news conference in New Taipei City yesterday. Photo: Lai Hsiao-tung, Taipei Times
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Kingwaytek operates one autonomous vehicle trial field in Changhua County and another in Taoyuan’s Hutoushan.
Chungwha Telecom and Taiwan Mobile Co both said separately that they have submitted their applications to bid for 5G bandwidth and are prepared to substantially invest in 5G network deployment. Asked if Taiwan Mobile still aims to secure 100 megahertz of bandwidth at the auction, Taiwan Mobile president Jamie Lin (林之晨) said: “Only for a reasonable price.”
“Taiwan Mobile will make 5G [services] available in the second half of next year,” Lin said.
The telecom is in talks with multiple agencies about launching 5G trial fields, he said, adding that the company has one trial field in the baseball stadium in New Taipei City’s Sinjhuang District.
Reference:
http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2019/10/04/2003723337
Altice Portugal Interview: 10Gbps services to build the ultra-connected future
Interview of Alexandre Fonseca, CEO of Altice Portugal by Chris Kelly of Total Telecom
Portugal is one of the most ambitious nations in Europe with regards to FTTH penetration targets. How are you progressing with this and what challenges are you facing?
Due to the work developed by Altice Portugal in the last years, Portugal is today an international case study with proven experience in several countries, such as USA, France, Russia, New Zealand, India, the UK or Brazil, regarding FTTH projects. Altice Portugal presents one of the best and largest next generation network infrastructures, reaching 4.8 million of households in Optical Fiber, moving closer to the 2020 target of 5.3 million. This brings Portugal as one of the first countries in Europe to reach nearly 100% of the population. We deployed FTTH throughout the country, both in urban and rural areas, boosting the economic development and digital inclusion.
Despite the significant investment performed, it is important to underline that Portugal still awaits for a 5G Roadmap, regarding the availability of frequencies and licenses in order to launch 5G commercial networks. The country needs a clear strategy and vision for 5G, to continue to take the lead, as in previous technology generations of telecommunications.
Does Europe need to agree a single unified switch off date for its existing copper networks?
The optical fiber infrastructure is more robust and more reliable in technological terms, being more immune to adverse weather conditions, thefts or vandalism, with a much lower failure rate than the copper networks and, consequently having better operational responsiveness, besides the significantly better performance it brings to Services.
The replacement of copper by optical fiber, being a natural evolution both for technological and business reasons, depends on each country´s dynamics, not being determinant the existence of a single date for this to happen. However, this change is essential for Portugal to remain at the forefront of Europe and is also sustained by the fact that copper networks are obsolete and unable to support new innovative services. Optical fiber is undoubtedly the technology that makes it possible to offer a set of new future proof services and features that copper no longer supports. Altice Portugal has started a pilot project in parishes of six Portuguese municipalities that were 100% covered by fiber. The project contributes to digital inclusion growth, broadening access to advanced services, promoting economic development and modernization and of course, copper decommissioning.
With the emergence of new technologies, what scope is there for delivering 10Gbps services?
10Gbps services will help us build the ultra-connected future we all require. The predicted increase in number of devices and data volumes requires intelligent networks with a new level of speed and capacity. Homes with 50-100 connected devices will drive unprecedented demand. Now, life-changing technologies for connected health, augmented and virtual reality, will deliver incredible experiences and require significant speed, low latency and high capacity. 10Gbs services are becoming more crucial for the enterprise market, namely for data center access, data center interconnection and trunk circuits to collect high bandwidth traffic from data, video & voice under virtual private networks.
The launch of new technologies is not a goal in itself – what really matters is the experience provided by services and the added value for customers. That’s the world we are building, one in which everything is connected everywhere.
What role will fibre play in underpinning 5G mobile network rollout in Portugal?
5G technology is not simply about faster internet connections, it will bring huge changes in network architecture and services. It will enable a step change of ultrafast broadband connections, boosted by low latency, ultra-reliable communications, massive machine-type communications and slicing capabilities. The major characteristics introduced by 5G can be summarized in the Throughput, Latency and Density of the connections.
Fibre optics will be a key enabler of 5G, especially as a backhauling technology, once it provides the extremely high speeds, capacity and low latency required to connect each 5G station. FTTH rollout is a key differentiator for providing nationwide 5G coverage and Altice Portugal is ready and prepared for 5G rollout, with over 95% of its mobile stations already connected through fiber. Besides the FTTH deployment, Altice Portugal performed the first 5G live demonstration in a commercial network environment with pre-commercial terminals in July 2018 and the first live television broadcast in Portugal using the 5G network in real environment in June 2019.
How much of a game changer is 5G going to be in regard to IoT uptake?
5G will have a fundamental role boosting the era of smart connectivity, capable of taking advantage of unreachable response times with today’s technologies, to grant new scenarios of digital interactivity on multiple devices. 5G will reinforce applications for B2B, B2C and B2B2C markets, especially in areas as IoT, or IIoT, industrial automation and critical services, especially in Healthcare, Smart Grids, Smart cities, Industry 4.0 or Autonomous Vehicles, being a relevant factor in the development of the economy of each country and the world in general.
Altice Portugal has been exploring, for a long time, the opportunities related to IoT. In 2018 we opened the Golabs.IoT, a live technology Lab that generates synergies between developers, universities, startups and industry players.
Altice Labs, our R&D unit, also has projects in 5G and IoT landscape, with several national and international institutions, including Portuguese municipalities, such as the city of Aveiro, with 5G being available for the development of early adoption services for cities or citizens, on an open community enviroment.
What predictions do you have for the industry over the next 12-18 months?
Companies and businesses are undergoing a very important digital transformation process…the telecommunications sector is amongst the ones suffering the most, but also well positioned to have a leading role on this transformation.
We will surely see a transition´s process from automation to true digitalization. Digitalization has accelerated information production and distribution, innovation and process disruption, together with the integration of the physical and virtual worlds and the use of real time data. All this has a huge impact on organizational structures, business models, logistics operations and products and services themselves.
But this is not just a business-level transformation. This represents a social transformation, with new ways for people to relate themselves, to learn, to work and providing all equal access to technologies.
The process of digital transformation and technological development requires us to always innovate and our effort and commitment must be dedicated to always bring more and better services to the Portuguese.
We believe that the Smart Living concept will bring forward a set of new and combined technologies, for personal and business usage that will improve our live, generate the opportunity to save time and therefore improving our work life balance. Technology will continue to improve people’s life’s and business productivity, providing quality time to individuals, families and communities, turning content and experience the most relevant killers Apps in this new technology generation.
https://www.totaltele.com/503944/Altice-Portugal-10Gbps-services-will-help-us-build-the-ultra-connected-future-we-all-require
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Backgrounder:
Altice Portugal is the largest telecommunications service provider in Portugal. Since June 2, 2015, the company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Altice Group, a multinational cable and telecommunications company with a presence in France, Israel, Belgium, Luxembourg, Portugal, French West Indies/Indian Ocean Area, the Dominican Republic (“Overseas Territories”), Switzerland, and the United States. Its assets in Portugal were sold to Altice in 2015 per request of, Oi SA,[4] to reduce debt. The African assets were mostly sold for the same reason. Portugal Telecom, SGPS SA was split in separate companies: PT Portugal (now Altice Portugal) and Pharol (formerly PT SGPS), which owns a 27,5% stake in Oi.
The company owns MEO, the largest landline operator in Portugal. Its operating brands include MEO, a quadruple play service provider and SAPO, an ISP and producer of web content. Portugal Telecom also owns Altice Labs (formerly known as PT Inovação), an IT services and research and development company; PT Contact, focused in the business of managing contact centers.
Altice Portugal Building in São Jorge de Arroios
Reference:
Nokia successful field trial of single-carrier, 50.8 terabit-per-second on Etisalat’s WDM fiber optic network
Nokia and Etisalat (UAE) report the completion of a multi-terabit-per-second, single-carrier data transmission over an operator-deployed fiber network in a field trial. Nokia said in a press release that a terabit-per-second is enough bandwidth to download the entire “Game of Thrones” video series in HD in under two seconds.
Using Etisalat’s wavelength division multiplexing network, the companies were able to reach a transmission speed of 50.8 terabits per second over 93 kilometers of optical fiber.
Nokia said the trial successfully transmitted a record 50.8 terabits per second using multiple wavelengths, each with a net information rate of 1.3 terabits per second, over a 93-kilometer fiber route of Etisalat’s wavelength division multiplexing (WDM) network.
The Nokia field trial showed that Etisalat’s existing network could support the higher optical wavelength bit rates that will be required to support high-bandwidth services such as 5G extreme mobile broadband, fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) and data center interconnect (DCI) cloud services.
Here are the key points:
- Trial is the world’s first terabit-per-second, single-carrier data transmission over an operator deployed fiber network.
- New transmission capacity record comes as Etisalat invests in core network infrastructure in anticipation of a new generation of high-bandwidth services.
- Results move Nokia Bell Labs’ experimental lab records of terabit-per-second single-carrier transmission to a deployed operator network.
In addition to the speeds, higher bit rates per wavelength enable power and space savings, improved network simplicity, as well as increased spectral efficiency and capacity. It also enables reduced cost per bit compared to optical networks composed of lower rate channels, according to Nokia.
Using a single optical carrier operating at 100 Gigabaud, the terabit wavelengths tapped into Nokia Bell Labs’ probabilistic constellation shaping (PCS) to intelligently shape the signal to achieve maximum capacity for the specific fiber route. Nokia said its Photonic Service Engine 3 was the first coherent digital signal processor to implement PCS.
Esmaeel Alhammadi, Senior Vice President, Network Development at Etisalat, said:
“We are pleased to have partnered with Nokia Bell Labs to demonstrate that our optical network is capable of transporting a terabit per second over a single wavelength, and a total per-fibre capacity of over 50 terabits-per-second. Increasing network capacity helps us to provide bandwidth-hungry services such as 5G extreme mobile broadband, fibre-to-the-home and DCI for enterprises.”
Sam Bucci, Head of Optical Networking at Nokia, said:
“The introduction of 5G will require a network that can support dramatic increases in bandwidth in a dynamic fashion. This ground-breaking trial with Etisalat is testimony to Nokia’s commitment to continue to invest in coherent and optical component technologies required to meet the 5G networking challenge at the lowest total cost of ownership for our customers.”
Nokia has a long history of advancing the frontiers of optical transmission. It was the first to demonstrate single-carrier 100G transmission in a deployed production network in 2007, and the first to commercialize single-carrier 100G and 200G wavelengths in 2010 and 2013, respectively. More recently, the Nokia Bell Labs optical research team published the world’s first terabit-per-second transmission lab trials in 2015 and 2017. By extending these records to a deployed operator network, Nokia Bell Labs is bringing the age of terabit wavelength networks a big step closer to reality.
Details of the Nokia trial with Etisalat were published in a post-deadline co-authored paper at the European Conference on Optical Communication (ECOC), held last week in Dublin, Ireland:
1.3-tb/s Single-Channel and 50.8-tb/s WDM Transmission Over Field-Deployed Fiber
Authors: Fred Buchali 1, Karsten Schuh 1, Roman Dischler 1, Mathieu Chagnon 1, Vahid Aref 1, Henning Buelow 1, Qian Hu 1, Florian Pulka 1, Massimo Frascolla 2, Esmaeel Alhammadi 3, Adel Samhan 3, Islam Younis 4, Mohamed El-Zonkoli 4, Peter Winzer 1
Affiliations: Nokia Bell Labs 1, Nokia 2, Etisalat UAR 3, Nokia UAR 4
- TIM PSE-3 trial: Nokia and TIM break European record for long-distance data transmission over high-speed network – laying groundwork for 5G
- Netia PSE-3 trial: Nokia and Netia conduct first field trial of Photonic Service Engine 3 super coherent technology over live production network
- M-net PSE_3 trial: Nokia and M-net conduct first field trial of probabilistically shaped wavelengths using Nokia Photonic Service Engine 3 super coherent technology
- PSE-3 press release: Nokia pushes optical network capacity to theoretical limits with Photonic Service Engine 3 chipset; massive scale and radical simplicity for video, cloud and 5G growth
- PSE-3 Bell Labs video: “What Limits Us, Inspires Us”
Keysight Technologies, Qualcomm extend 5G Collaboration to Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS) Technology
Keysight Technologies has extended its collaboration with Qualcomm to accelerate commercialization of Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS) technology, which will enable mobile operators to quickly and cost-effectively roll out (3GPP Release 15) 5G new radio (NR) data services (independent of 4G LTE or 5G IMT 2020 signaling/ control plane or mobile packet core).
DSS enables a mobile operator to flexibly allocate existing spectrum across low-, mid- and high- frequency bands, by dynamically switching between 4G LTE and 5G NR coverage based on traffic demand. Mobile operators can leverage DSS to deliver the best possible performance and coverage for a mix of 4G and 5G devices. Mobile operators are expected to start deploying DSS on the prevailing 4G LTE base stations by 2020, thereby accelerating 5G services worldwide. As such, DSS will greatly expand the capability of 3GPP Release 15 – 5G New Radio (NR) devices, according to Keysight.
Keysight’s 5G network emulation solutions was said to accelerate the development of Qualcomm Snapdragon 5G Modem-RF System to support DSS. This collaboration bodes well for Qualcomm’s Snapdragon technology as the latest 5G network emulation solutions is enabled to support speed, latency, reliability and the emerging 5G infrastructure.
“Our continued collaboration with Keysight on 5G technology, which was initiated in 2015, has enabled Qualcomm Technologies to accelerate the implementation of DSS, a critical feature that will help mobile operators quickly transition to 5G,” said Jon Detra, vice president, engineering, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc, in a statement.
“Keysight helps us develop and validate our Snapdragon 5G Modem-RF System designs at a pace that will help accelerate 5G commercialization.”
“Our extended collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies on 5G technology enables device makers and mobile operators to cost-effectively build out 5G coverage”, said Kailash Narayanan, vice president and general manager of Keysight’s wireless test group.
Earlier this year, Keysight announced that the company’s 5G collaboration with Qualcomm resulted in several industry breakthroughs: the industry’s first Global Certification Forum (GCF) validation of 5G NR conformance test cases for radio frequency (RF) demodulation and radio resource management (RRM); and the industry’s first announced 5G NR data call in the Frequency Division Duplexing (FDD) mode.
Many Other Companies Working on DSS:
Ericsson has also collaborated with Qualcomm by making the world’s first 5G data call using DSS as we reported in this IEEE Techblog post. Also, Verizon is said to be working with chip makers and equipment vendors to advance DSS, which its CEO Hans Vestberg envisions applying across its full spectrum holdings. The carrier identified DSS as a key feature for their broader 5G deployment.
Paul Challoner, vice president of network solutions for Ericsson North America, said that he expects “multiple large customers” to use DSS around the second half of the year. While he noted that Swisscom mentioned using DSS in its recent announcement about its 5G deployment, he said the operator isn’t necessarily going to be the first to use it. DSS will only work with 5G-ready equipment, so operators that haven’t upgraded their network gear in the past couple of years won’t be able to use DSS. Challoner said that most of the large operators have upgraded their networks with 5G-ready equipment, but he noted that smaller operators may need to look at DSS as an extra incentive to upgrade their networks quickly. “This is a capex friendly way to get to 5G,” he said.
Qualcomm is already developing chips for consumer devices that will enable them to make use of DSS-enabled spectrum. Dean Brenner, senior vice-president of Spectrum Strategy and Technology at Qualcomm, has called DSS a game-changer. Phones that use DSS will need chips that support the different cellular standards. It’s not completely clear when the chips needed for the flexible phones will be commercially available.
Steve Scarlett, head of technology for Verizon customer business at Nokia, said that the timing of DSS deployment really depends upon the availability of 5G handsets that have the spectrum sharing capability because existing LTE handsets won’t be able to take advantage of the network upgrade, and operators need to be careful so DSS doesn’t impact existing LTE customers. Scarlett also said that he believes DSS will eventually be critical for 5G roaming because the spectrum bands where LTE is deployed are already being used globally for LTE roaming. Once 5G becomes more pervasive, operators will need to figure out a way for users to roam and still get the same 5G services. “There are timing signals in LTE that can’t be messed with,” Scarlett added.
Ed Gubbins, senior analyst with GlobalData, said that the value of DSS really depends upon the operator’s spectrum assets and their 5G rollout plans. Some operators aren’t planning to use overlapping spectrum for 4G and 5G, so they won’t need DSS. He also noted that DSS is really intended to be used by each vendor’s existing 4G customers. In other words, Ericsson customers will likely use Ericsson’s DSS product and Nokia’s customers will use Nokia’s product. The same will occur with Huawei and Samsung, which also offer spectrum sharing solutions.
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References:
https://about.keysight.com/en/newsroom/pr/2019/26sep-nr19123.shtml
https://www.fierceelectronics.com/iot-wireless/keysight-qualcomm-seek-to-speed-ramp-up-dss-for-5g
https://www.networkcomputing.com/wireless-infrastructure/dynamic-spectrum-sharing-promises-bridge-5g
Ericsson 5G data call using dynamic spectrum sharing with Qualcomm 5G Modem-RF System
UBS: 5G capex at $30 billion for India telcos; 5G spectrum auction by January 2020?
UBS analysts say that India’s top three telecom operators will have to spend a little over $30 billion on 5G base stations and fiber infrastructure. According to UBS, the need for a dense site footprint and fiber backhaul for 5G access networks will likely shift the balance of power towards larger and integrated operators with strong balance sheets.
Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea would need $10 billion capex each over the next five years.
“Bharti has solidly defended its market share and has narrowed the gap with Jio on 4G network reach, with improving 4G net adds. The company recently revamped its digital offering and launched converged digital proposition ‘Airtel Xstream’ offering digital content across TV, PC and mobile devices along with IoT solutions for connected homes. Further, Jio’s recently announced fixed broadband plans starting at Rs 699 are not as aggressive as we (and the market) feared and, therefore, do not pose significant pricing pressure on Bharti’s broadband average revenue per user,” UBS said in a research note to clients.
Reliance Jio’s incremental 5G capex is estimated somewhat lower at around $8 billion. That’s because Jio already has more 5G-ready fiberised towers than the incumbents, having already spent around $2 billion on tower fiberization.
Analysts were skeptical about Vodafone Idea’s ability to sustain such big-ticket capex spends given its continuing market share losses and weak financials, which they said could limit its 5G deployment ambitions.
They also said the need for a dense site footprint and fibre backhaul in 5G would shift the balance of power towards larger and integrated operators with strong balance sheets like Jio and Airtel, while those with high gearing levels are at risk given the sustained high capex needs.
“Airtel and Vodafone Idea will each need to spend $2 billion annually on 5G radio and fiber capex spread across 5 years,” UBS said in a report, implying 65% and 85% of Airtel’s and Vodafone Idea’s current annual India capex run rates respectively.
By contrast, Jio’s 5G capex, “would be lower due to its larger tower footprint and higher proportion of towers on fibre backhaul compared with Airtel and Vodafone Idea.” The brokerage firm also expects Jio to transition to 5G in a “time-efficient manner,” given its in-house data centres and investments in a content distribution network (CDN).
“Vodafone Idea’s stretched balance sheet will limit its participation in the 5G opportunity, and the company will require a significant improvement in network quality to arrest market share loss and revert to revenue growth,” UBS said.
Credit Suisse backed the view, saying, “Vodafone Idea will lose the most market share, and will need additional equity capital by FY2021, given our expectation of no price increase”.
UBS estimates that Airtel’s India mobile revenue will grow 5-6% in this financial year and the next even if interconnect usage charges – a source of revenue for incumbents – get scrapped from January 2020.
According to analysts, the India telecom sector can reduce overall estimated $30.5 billion 5G capex spends by 15-20% if Airtel, Vodafone Idea and Jio share towers and fiber resources. However, there is currently no progress on that front.
“We estimate the sector can reduce overall capex by 15-20 per cent if the three Indian telcos share towers and fiber (either commercially or driven by the regulator) – third-party tenancy poses upside risks to our estimates,” UBS said in its report.
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India’s Department of Telecommunications wants to hold a 5G spectrum sale by January 2020 at the latest, according to referenced sources.
Credit Suisse doesn’t expect that 5G spectrum sale to attract much interest. That’s due to a mix of “high reserve prices, telcos’ focus on monetising 4G investments, stretched balance sheets, a nascent 5G ecosystem and lack of significant 5G use cases for mass consumption.”
Rajiv Sharma, co-head of research at SBICap Securities, said that Vodafone Idea is unlikely to bid for 5G spectrum at current base prices “as the telco doesn’t have an existing pan-India 4G network that is essential for any telco planning to spend top dollars on 5G,” according to the report.
Analysts believe that Reliance Jio will probably take part in the process, as it is the only profit-making telco in the Indian market.
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had recently asked the Trai to lower the starting prices, which the regulator refused. “There was a chance for the Trai to reduce 5G prices. Let’s see what the DoT does now. But at current rates, Airtel won’t buy,” Airtel’s executive reportedly said.
Vodafone Idea CEO Balesh Sharma has previously said that the prices recommended by the regulator were ‘exorbitant.’ The telco said it will participate in the next auction but did not confirm if it would buy 5G spectrum.
Hemant Joshi, partner at Deloitte India, said it would be “prudent to defer the 5G auction till 2020 at least since at Trai’s recommended base prices, the industry response may be very lukewarm.” He also said that the reserve prices need to be lowered, taking into account the experiences in countries where 5G spectrum was recently auctioned.
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Analysts said there are three things that India’s Centre for Telecom Excellence (within the DoT) must do immediately to hasten the adoption of 5G:
First, lay down a clear roadmap of spectrum availability and specify frequency bands aligned with global standards (IMT 2020 from ITU-R). Given that 5G services will be supporting massive data applications, operators will need adequate spectrum.
Editor’s Note: India’s TSDSI has proposed a candidate IMT 2020 RIT based on Low Mobility Large Cell (LMLC), but it hasn’t yet been accepted by ITU-R WP 5D. TSDSI posted a revised and more comprehensive proposal on 10 September 2019, which will be evaluated at the next ITU-R WP 5D meeting in December.
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Second, there is a need to move away from the existing mechanism of pricing spectrum on a per MHz basis. 5G services require at least 80-100 Mhz of contiguous spectrum per operator. If the Centre were to fix the floor price based on the per Mhz price realised in the last auction then no operator would be able to afford buying 5G spectrum. The pricing, therefore, will have to be worked out anew, keeping in mind the financial stress in the telecom sector and affordability of services.
Finally, the Centre must rapidly complete the national fiber optic network rollout as 5G high speed services will require huge back-haul support for which existing microwave platforms will not be sufficient.