Telecom gear makers Ericsson and Nokia initiate 5G talks

NEW DELHI: Telecom gear makers Ericsson and Nokia have begun talks with Indian telcos and policy makers for possible engagements in fifth-generation (5G) technology. 5G is still in standardisation phase and is likely to be ready for commercial deployment in 2020.
Initial talks revolve around telcos’ interest and preparedness for 5G, besides identification of relevant spectrum band to support it. Global executives from both vendors, known for their rivalry, have been in India recently for discussions with industry stakeholders with workshops and meetings.

Magnus Ewerbring, chief technology officer of the APAC region at Ericsson, who was in India to meet telco customers and government officials, said, “It's important to start to think about it now and ensure that step by step we are prepared for it both from network and regulatory perspectives.” Ewerbring said there is already a good understanding of 5G in India.

“I can’t say when operators will start, but India is a huge country and can start very early with a limited deployment.” He added that possible 5G trials could happen here around mid-2018. Although 5G standards are planned to be completed for first commercial deployment in 2020, many operators in the US, South Korea and Japan are preparing to pilot or try out 5G in 2016 and commercially launch the first 5G solutions from 2017 onwards.

In India, telecom operators are yet to achieve full-scale 4G networks and are still in the process of deploying networks that are focused on urban and semi-urban areas, besides expanding their 3G footprints in the country. Amit Marwah, Nokia India’s head of E2E sales solutioning, said the company, part of the Telecommunications Standards Development Society, which is working on 5G, is in talks with operators to understand India-relevant use cases.

Milivoj Vela, technology vision lead for MEA/India at Nokia Networks, said 5G technology will guarantee delivery of 100 megabit per second speed at homes and will be capable of handling 1,000 times more data traffic when it will be commercialised by 2020. Besides enhancing mobile broadband speeds, 5G will also support industrial Internet, which will lead to higher uptake of Internet of Things (IoT) and related applications.

“It would be good for Indian operators to invest in 5G and offer in the market,” Ericsson’s Ewerbring said. Both Ericsson and Nokia have also begun engagements with government officials and policy makers to push for regulatory framework, including identification of relevant spectrum bands.

“If a country uses a band which is very common with the rest of the world, there will be more focus and technology will come out much quicker. It is better for India to be on the same balance as the rest of the world,” Ewerbring said, adding that the regulatory side has to be looked at now. “Spectrum is the important element for 5G. India has to come up with those rules and terms. They (policymakers) can look around the world and see examples on allocations. It’s important India gets good allocation of spectrum.”

Ewerbring said 5G requires very high bands and every telco should have at least 100 Mhz each for 5G, considering what they have in India today. A number of telcos in matured markets are looking at bands around 3.5 Ghz and 4.8 GHz.

“If you go higher around 28 Ghz, there is also lot of interest,” Ewerbring said. South Korea’s Samsung is working with the likes of SK Telecom and US’ Verizon for 5G tests in 28 GHz for 5G services. At present, spectrum bands between 700 Mhz and 2.6 Ghz are available for mobile services in India. Wi-fi services are generally used between 2.4 Ghz and 5.9 Ghz.