Supporting innovation

Direct-to-mobile has promise

Direct-to-mobile content, which could result in the convergence of the telecom and broadcasting sectors, is witnessing resistance from the industry even before the government’s go-ahead to the proposed technology. This shouldn’t come in the way of the government examining direct-to-mobile technology and a service around it on the basis of merit. The principle of giving a boost to innovation in all spheres of life should hold good here too, especially as direct-to-mobile is an indigenous initiative with promise. Among other areas where innovation plays a critical role, Indian startups have made a place on the global map. However, there aren’t too many examples of homegrown innovation in the country’s startup sector with the exception of the likes of UPI in the fintech world. In that context, direct-to-mobile, a collaboration between the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IIT Kanpur) and state broadcaster Prasar Bharati, should get a chance to prove its mettle once the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) and the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting clear the technology.
 

IIT Kanpur and Prasar Bharati have been working together for the past two years to develop a service that would work like listening to FM radio with a tap or accessing direct-to-home (DTH) broadcasting directly from satellites. Direct-to-mobile smartphones will be able to catch terrestrial digital TV along with other multimedia content, without having to use internet-based data or mobile broadband. The foundation behind the platform will be the radio frequency band of the 526-582 MHz range, which can work both with mobile and broadcast services. While telecom service providers, represented by the Cellular Operators Association of India, have opposed this technology in a communication to the Telecommunication Engineering Centre, a tech wing of the DoT, citing many challenges including loss of data revenue, some other industry players have raised doubts over device compatibility and complexity in introducing a platform which has not been tried elsewhere. The Indian Cellular and Electronics Association, for instance, has argued that introducing direct-to-mobile would adversely impact mobile manufacturing efforts as it’s not proven yet.
 

Even as the concern of the telecom industry, which is still facing the threat of a duopoly structure, must be heard, the policymakers should take an independent view on bringing on board a new technology. Resistance to most new technologies is common as India has witnessed in the past, from DTH broadcasting to over-the-top (OTT) platforms and more recently satellite broadband. Since IIT Kanpur’s proof of concept talks of allowing broadcasters to use direct-to-mobile as a data pipe for delivering various applications that are part of radio and TV, including educational content and disaster management alerts, without any need for internet or broadband data, the technology is likely to suit rural and far-flung areas of the country quite well. It is up to the government to frame a sound policy in consultation with the industry to ensure that a new technology gets its due while working out the commercial modalities in such a way that telcos’ revenue stream does not get eroded. At this point, the telecom ecosystem includes anything from 2G to 5G services, while stakeholders are already strategising on 6G services. Direct-to-mobile could add to the diversity of services, provided the government finetunes a policy that delivers.