India's 5G potential is now unfolding: Ericsson's Nunzio Mirtillo

You have a significant number of startups, approximately 100,000, and now the 5G infrastructure in place, says Nunzio Mirtillo

Nunzio Mirtillo, head of market area, Southeast Asia, Oceania and India, Ericsson, believes India’s vast startup ecosystem will create a plethora of 5G-oriented applications as developers tap into the unique characteristics of 5G. In India to attend the 7th India Mobile Congress, Mirtillo told Subhayan Chakraborty, in an interview in Delhi, that telcos can take a segmented approach to monetising 5G services in the country. Edited excerpts:

Telecom service providers have said enterprise use cases of 5G will be monetised slowly. How long do you think it will take?

You have a significant number of startups, approximately 100,000, and now the 5G infrastructure is in place. So, the key is to ensure that application developers can access the unique characteristics of 5G. This is precisely what we are achieving with our Vonage platform, allowing all developers to leverage 5G's attributes. These applications will have user-specific characteristics and will be used by both enterprises and consumers. Many individuals and teams are actively working on this, and one day, it will become apparent. However, just a year ago, this was not possible. There was no 5G infrastructure, and there was no platform. In essence, what was being developed was akin to having a car but no road or having roads but no car. At this point, the roads have been built, and the potential is unfolding.

Can a segmented approach be taken by telcos trying to monetise 5G use cases in India?

Of course! The whole country is growing and the GDP is growing. So, if it is possible in Singapore, where you have 5 million people, in India, where there are around 1.4 billion people, you have a lot of people who can afford it right now.

India is now the second largest contributor to revenue for Ericsson. What do you see happening, going forward?

Firstly, we could significantly increase our market share in India with the contracts we secured two years ago. However, what’s even more crucial is that India is the ideal location. The progress made in 5G over the last 12 months is remarkable. 

Ericsson has reported that 5G deployment in the US is slowing down. Is there still enough room to grow?

It's important to consider both the short-term and medium-to-long-term perspectives. Undoubtedly, a significant amount of progress has been made between 2020 and 2023, achieving impressive results in record time. However, looking ahead, there's still much work to be done. The core of our industry lies in the fact that the demand for traffic will continue to rise.

What about in India?

In India, we already boast the highest average data consumption in the world, currently at 26 gigabits. And, this is projected to increase to 62 gigabits in the next four or five years. The number of mobile devices is also set to grow from 800 million to one-two billion. 

Furthermore, the deployment of 5G technology will surge from the current 100 million to a staggering 700 million by 2028. With the introduction of new applications, there will be an additional strain on network traffic. 

What are your expectations from private 5G?

You can address the private needs of connectivity with different solutions. You can use the macro network for developing specific apps for that vertical or in some cases you need to use a private network or a mission critical network. That depends on the business case or the specific industry. There will be both private networks, and macro networks that can be used. In some cases, there will be use of wireless LAN, which means that you simply buy a router, and then you provide connectivity to the company. Or in the case of fixed wireless access, you provide connectivity to your house actually.

How do you see the market changing in India over the next five years?

Upon my arrival in 2017, I had stated this was the ideal place to be. The signs of India’s willingness to embrace new technology were obvious. What has transpired since then is nothing short of astonishing. In 2015-16, India was a prominent country for mobile data usage. Today, it stands at the forefront, as either the number one or number two, depending on how you frame it. This signifies remarkable progress.

How will 6G be different from 5G?

We are actively engaged in research, aiming to establish the definitive requirements for 6G in a country where 5G is already in progress. Of course, the primary use case for 6G revolves around harnessing the potential of new spectrum resources. Since 6G will introduce new spectrum bands, there's a need to optimise the technology to effectively leverage this spectrum. This optimisation will require a different technological approach.