Cellular networks have been witnessing a major transformation since the launch of the first-generation mobile services. The first-generation (1G) mobile services in the early 1980s were capable of transmitting only voice calls. The present generation of mobile networks, i.e., fourth-generation (4G), is capable of handling higher data speeds required for multimedia streaming. It also provides basic network operations like voice calls, messages, and web-browsing. However, as the connectivity needs are changing, there is a rise in the mobile data traffic, and there is a new category of connected ecosystem products. This calls for yet another new generation of mobile network which would provide even higher data speeds at low latency and enhanced throughput. The fifth-generation (5G) mobile network would be able to handle more simultaneous connections without causing disruptions.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is expected to send its recommendations on crucial aspects of the 5G spectrum auctions by March or April 2022. The sale of airwaves would be held by the end of 2022 to facilitate 5G services rolled out in 2023. The 5G network will further improve network connections with 100 times faster data speed, compared to 4G network. The 5G network will transmit data with a network latency of less than 10 milliseconds.
During the Union Budget 2022, the Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman announced that the spectrum auctions for 5G services would be conducted during 2022. The Union Minister of Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, stated that the development of 5G network project was in its final stages. While addressing ‘India Telecom 2022 Business Expo’, the minister said that India had developed its own indigenous 4G core and radio network and was participating in the development of 6G standards. The project has costed about Rs. 224 crores.
The 5G services will be rolled out initially in the metros and big cities across the country. People in metro cities will also find the 5G-service affordable though the initial cost would be high.
The public 5G networks would serve telecom users at large. Private 5G networks would be used for captive applications in the ‘Industry 4.0’ concept which has been billed as a major use-case of 5G networks. (Industry 4.0 is the realisation of the digital transformation of the field, delivering real-time decision making, enhanced productivity, flexibility, and agility) Industry 4.0 will see sectors like manufacturing and logistics adopt 5G networks to automate their processes.
The government has recognised spectrum bands of frequency 526–698 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300–3670 MHz and 24.25–28.5 GHz for both public and private 5G networks.
The 5G Technology
The 5G is the latest upgrade in the long-term evolution (LTE) mobile broadband networks. It mostly works in three bands: low- mid- and high-frequency. These three bands have their advantages and limitations.
Low-band spectrum The low-band spectrum has shown great promise in terms of coverage and speed of internet and data exchange. The maximum internet speed is limited to 100 Mbps (megabits per second). The telecom companies can use and install it for commercial cellphone users who may not have specific demands for very high-speed internet. However, the low-band spectrum may not be optimal for specialised needs of industries.
Mid-band spectrum The mid-band spectrum offers better speed than the low-band spectrum. This spectrum may be used by industries and specialised factory units for building captive networks. But, it has limitations in terms of coverage area and penetration of signals. Speed ranges from 100 to 900 Mbps.
High-band spectrum High-band spectrum offers the highest speed among the three of bands, but has extremely limited coverage and signal penetration strength. Speed in this spectrum has been tested to be as high as 20 Gbps (gigabits per second). In comparison the highest internet speed in 4G has been recorded at 1 Gbps.
Initial Sites of Trials
To rollout 5G services, Telecom Service Providers (TSPs), including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea have established 5G trials sites in Gurugram, Bangalore, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chandigarh, Delhi, Jamnagar, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Pune, Gandhinagar, etc. These sites have been working with telecom equipment makers, such as Ericsson and Nokia, and conducting trials in these cities due to their telecom services penetration to easily convince more people to upgrade from 4G. Big cities provide all kinds of suitable locations for testing various 5G-bands, such as walled complexes and open spaces.
All the three private telecom players have been urging DoT to lay out a clear roadmap of spectrum allocation and 5G frequency bands.
Benefits of 5G Network
One of the major changes due to 5G would be in terms of rich experiences on users’ phones and other connected devices. Users would be able to stream videos with multiple camera angles while watching sports videos. They will be able to play video games using VR headsets or other accessories. It will also enable a mesh of connected internet of things (IoT)-enabled devices and services with zero-fail-rate. The 5G could also spawn high-speed mobile broadband connectivity to replace existing broadband services. The applications of 5G are across a wide range of sectors, such as agriculture, education, health, transport, traffic management, multiple applications of IoT, smart homes, and smart cities.
With regard to commercial smartphones, newer devices in the market claim to be 5G-ready. Equipment makers like Ericsson believe that within five years, India would have 500 million 5G subscriptions.
Setting up Mobile Towers
The government is planning to give a massive push to telecom infrastructure across the country. It is planning to add as many as eight lakh new mobile towers over the next two years, which would be more than double the current strength. Three out of four of the towers are to be connected through optical fibre to increase their data-carrying capacity. Thus, the density of mobile towers will go from 0.4/1000 population to 1/1000 population by March 2024 end.
The major hurdle in setting up of towers is the objection from the resident welfare associations (RWAs) over radiation concerns. Presently, 6.8 lakh towers have been installed across the country. More than 15 lakh towers are expected to be installed by 2024. Currently, around 34 per cent of the towers have been fibrised in India and by the end of March 2024, around 70 per cent of the towers are expected to be fibrised. As per minister of state for communications, the government plans to take optical fibre to all 6,00,000 villages by 2025. Till now, 2.6 lakh villages have got optical fibre.
Global Scenario
Global telecom companies have started building 5G networks and rolling it out to their customers on a trial basis. In the USA, companies like AT&T, T-mobiles, and Verizon have taken the lead. In China, some of the telecom companies such as China Unicom had started 5G trials as early as 2018. They have already rolled out the commercial services for users.
South Korean company Samsung, which started researching on 5G technology in 2011, has been building the hardware for 5G networks for several companies.
© Spectrum Books Pvt Ltd.