5G services have been launched in India with much fanfare. But the ecosystem around mobile handsets, enterprise use cases and devices is yet to fully develop.
Airtel became the first telecom player to launch 5G services in 8 cities, although only a few could experience 5G owing to software and other technical issues on mobile devices. Reliance Jio also announced the beta launch of 5G in 4 cities.
Both telcos will gradually expand their 5G network coverage to a pan-India level by the end of 2023. Vodafone Idea has not announced any date of 5G launch yet.
“The initial phase will be a lot more on enhanced mobile broadband. Most of the operators will go and launch a fixed wireless access device. This will be the most popular thing in the short run. Operators are rolling out wireless access in the beginning which will give a taste of 5G to consumers. There’s going to be a very, very big uptake from a B2B perspective on the 5G but that is far away,” said Peeyush Vaish, partner and telecom sector leader, Deloitte India.
With ultra-low latency and ultra-high reliability, 5G will enable consumers to enjoy enhanced 4K video, cloud gaming, XR applications and live sports. But, the adoption of 5G hinges on a developed and affordable ecosystem.
Premium offering such as consumption of immersive content ie virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) and the metaverse itself is at a nascent stage in India with quality VR headset priced between Rs 2,500 to over a lakh rupees, according to experts.
The content available for consumption on VR also remains low. Another area of development remains the IoT devices. India has a good and affordable smart-watch ecosystem which is likely to benefit from the 5G services. However, advanced IoT use cases such as smart cars at affordable pricing remain distant, Aniket Dani, Director, Crisil Research said.
5G USE CASES SHOWCASE BY INDIAN OPERATORS
At the India Mobile Congress (IMC), all the telecom players, equipment makers and startups showcased various use cases related to 5G.
Health, education, gaming were three main themes of the use cases by all telecom players that were on display and trials/tests done. A commercial rollout is far away and would depend on various factors including partnership with state governments and other strategic tie ups.
Jio with Medulance, an emergency medical response service provider, launched a 5G-connected ambulance. The ambulance is equipped with cameras and smart devices that allow real-time, two-way audio and video communication, high-definition footage transmission, ambulance location tracking, and real-time streaming of patient health data to a distant doctor over the high- speed 5G network. Airtel demonstrated a 5G-connected ambulance use case in partnership with Apollo Hospitals and US-based networking gear maker Cisco.
The 5G ambulance will allow real-time transmission of patient’s vitals and other health data from the vehicle directly to the hospital, from where doctors can instruct the paramedic staff through a seamless digital connection. With this, the patient can be administered treatment even during the commute to the hospital, within the critical ‘golden hour’.
Cloud gaming was the other main use case displayed at various stalls in the IMC. It is expected that gaming will pick up but will be a niche offering in India.
GLOBAL 5G USE CASES
As per information from Ericsson, few global implementations in the enterprise segment include
- Telefónica, Ericsson and Mercedes-Benz are building the world’s first 5G mobile network for automobile production at its “Factory 56” in Sindelfingen, Germany. Factory 56 will be the blueprint for all future vehicle assembly facilities worldwide
- Ericsson and Volvo Cars have carried out a successful test handover of connected cars between two mobile 5G networks in different countries at the AstaZero test track in Sweden, proving that seamless continuity on 5G networks when driving across borders is possible
- Telia in Sweden will build and manage a dedicated 5G-ready mobile network for mining company Boliden at Aitik, the world’s most efficient open-pit copper mine in the north of Sweden.
In the consumer segment, some of the use cases that have been deployed globally include:
- Ericsson and Ooredoo showcased an immersive sports demo that was broadcast live to a Virtual Stadium at the Mall of Qatar where consumers experienced the VR and immersive experience of the match remotely
- In collaboration with Warner Bros, Ericsson worked on creating a tailored VR experience as a proof of concept for Harry Potter, Chaos at Hogwarts
- A ‘Green Planet’ AR experience was achieved for the first time in the UK. Using 5G-powered augmented reality, visitors were taken into a beautifully rendered digital rainforest in real time, teeming with tropical trees, plants, and wildlife
WAY AHEAD
5G network deployment is quite capital intensive. 5G network infrastructure will need to support up to 10 times more bandwidth than what 4G infrastructure currently supports.
Current statistics show that at least 70% of towers need to be fiberised from the existing level of 33% for the launch of 5G services. Besides, investments in network densification through the provision of fiber, small cells, and active infrastructure sharing is the need of the hour.
Globally, around 70 countries have already deployed 5G since the deployment of commercial 5G networks began in 2020. 5G networks could reach 12% of world mobile connections (1.1 billion) and generate revenues up to $1.3 trillion by 2025 for telecom operators.
That said, global operators are earning a miniscule 2-3% revenue from 5G services as of now. In India, 5G is expected to become a revenue growth driver only after three to four years, when there is an established ecosystem.
The infrastructure issues, lack of relevant use cases and affordable ecosystem could pose initial hurdles in the 5G launch.
For the consumer segment, the key to conversion/upgradation remains in providing not just the services but also the devices at affordable prices. The lack of an affordable ecosystem is expected to limit robust 5G subscriber additions in the near term. “We expect the top tier 4G subscribers accounting for 5-10% of the 4G base to be the early adopters of 5G,” Dani said.
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