5G faces a 'towering' problem

Contiguous spectrum & fibre optics linking of towers are major challenges, say experts

Are Indian telecom companies ready for the fifth generation (5G) service roll-out that is expected by 2020? The government took the first steps on Tuesday with the department of telecommunications announcing the setting up of a high-level forum on 5G which has been given the job of preparing a roadmap to roll out the new technology so that it can be launched by 2020. Communications Minister Manoj Sinha said the technology would target 50 per cent of the Indian market. And, just a few weeks ago the country’s regulator, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), came out with a consultation paper asking for comments from the industry on the road ahead for 5G.

For the uninitiated, 5G enables data speeds that are phenomenal, making 4G look passé. While the numbers differ, experts point out that 5G will offer speeds of at least 10 gigabits per second (gbps) but could go up to 100 gbps depending on the nature of the spectrum and advancements in technology. In simple terms, that means it will be a staggering 100-1,000 times faster than your current 4G, which offers speeds of up to 100 mbps.

While that might look like magic, there are serious challenges to 5G’s roll-out in India, the most important being that the backhaul from the towers has to be driven by fibre optics and not by microwave communication, say experts. According to telecom companies, while the country has over 450,000 towers, only around 18 per cent to 20 per cent have a fibre optics backhaul. Of course, the number slightly improves if you are looking only at the metros, which obviously are the places where 5G will be launched initially. However, even in these cities only about 35 per cent of the towers are supported by a fibre optic network.

For this situation to change telecom companies say they will need at least another three to four years, and of course, substantial incremental investments. At the moment, most of them are engaged in investments, despite financial stress, to ensure that more and more towers are at least 4G-enabled so that they can expand their services across the country. According to the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), only 35 per cent of the cell towers in use are 4G-enabled and it will take at least three years to even reach 90 per cent.

However, that is not the only challenge. For 5G to be possible, telecom companies will need a lot of contiguous spectrum and not in separate blocks. That is only available in the higher frequency band of spectrum in the country.  Telecom companies point out that for 5G to offer fast speeds, one would require anything between 50 MHz and 100 MHz of spectrum compared to blocks of 5 MHz for operating 4G services. The Trai has identified the 3300-3400 MHz and 3400-3600 MHz bands in the country for 5G. But the coverage of the spectrum at these bands is lower, which means one would require many more towers to offer 5G compared to 4G. Of course, these towers backed by a fibre network can be much smaller as they do not have to take the weight of microwave communication hardware. But it will again mean more investments.

Telecom companies say the launch of 5G in India could happen sometime in 2021-22. Says a senior executive of a leading Indian telecom company: “Our assessment is that the first 5G roll-out, mostly in the metro cities, will happen sometime in 2021-22.” He argues that a lot of technological developments are currently taking place around the globe — for instance, with advancements in radio frequency equipment, it is possible to reduce the additional need for towers and change the economics of the business. Also, he says companies may initially begin by launching wi-fi services in hotspots in the big cities with 5G.

Currently, perhaps Reliance Jio has an edge over the competitors in launching 5G services, primarily because its entire network is based on packet switching and is already 4G Volte-enabled. More importantly, about 60 per cent of its towers have a fibre optic backhaul. And its radio frequency equipment has the ability to be upgraded to and tuned for 5G. Also, the network is more software-controlled, a key requirement for 5G networks.  

The country’s largest telecom company is also taking quick strides. It entered into a strategic alliance just a few weeks ago with South Korea’s SK Telecom to together build technology and software-defined networking for the roll-out of 5G. It is deploying massive multiple unit output technology, first in Bengaluru and then in Kolkata, which expands the capacity of a network by five to seven times and improves customer speeds by two to three times, and is the first step towards moving to 5G. 

FAST-FORWARD TO FIFTH GENERATION

• Download time of a hi-definition movie will become less than a second, a 4K (ultra HD) movie 10 seconds and about 250 songs in the same time 

• Experience of participating in multi-player gaming would be heightened because of very low latency

• Virtual reality will be enhanced in a big way

• Remote surgery can become a reality. A surgeon in Boston can operate a patient who is at a hospital in Mumbai. It can also transmit tactile sensation, so you         can feel you are touching the body

• It will power smart vehicles and connect cars as well as enable autonomous cars (without drivers). A little latency could lead to disastrous consequences  

• It will be able to connect different devices — smart home appliances, cars, wearables, etc