Releasing its much-awaited recommendations, the telecom regulator said that all available spectrum in the existing bands of 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz and the new spectrum bands of 600 MHz, 3300-3670 MHz and 24.25-28.5 GHz, will be put to auction.
Issuing a statement, Trai said, “To provide flexibility to the telecom service providers, block size of 10 MHz for 3300-3670 MHz band and 50 MHz for 24.25-28.5 GHz band recommended. Spectrum to be assigned in a contiguous manner.”
In all, the reserve price across various bands works out to be nearly 39 per cent lower than that suggested last time.
For the prime 5G frequency of 3300-3670 MHz band, all-India reserve price adds up to ₹317 crore per MHz, which is over 35 per cent lower than the ₹492 crore/MHz suggested by Trai last time.
The base price for coveted 700 Mhz band works out to be ₹3,927 crore per Mhz, which is 40 per cent lower than that proposed last time.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) said that for the long-term growth and sustainability of the telecom sector, infusing liquidity and encouraging investment, the telecom service providers should be allowed easy payment options, including part payment with flexibility of moratorium.
Telecom players are increasingly looking to the gaming sector for new revenue opportunities, but disruptive and ground-breaking applications enabled by augmented reality (AR) and 5G’s combination of high data throughput and low latency and are yet to be developed, according to industry analysts.
With the heat now on for telcos to identify ways to get a return on their 5G investments and develop new opportunities using the capabilities the latest mobile broadband generation has to offer, there has been plenty of activity in this area in recent months. Last week, US operator Verizon unveiled work on an AR adventure thriller that uses volumetric video (modern 3D holograms) to provide “an unbelievable immersive experience.” The production, called Helios, is being developed in partnership with immersive studio Novelab and 30 Ninjas, a digital entertainment company co-founded by film director and producer Doug Liman.
Supported by Verizon’s 5G Ultra Wideband 5G service, the immersive experience will allow users of 5G-capable Android and iOS smartphones to follow the plotline of a missing character and uncover the mystery by navigating the story and piecing clues together.
In addition to Verizon, Deutsche Telekom, EE, Globe Telecom, Orange, SK Telecom, SoftBank Corp. and TELUS have joined Niantic’s Planet-Scale AR Alliance, which has a mission to create “amazing real-world AR experiences that demonstrate the possibilities of 5G,” including ultra-reliable low latency, enhanced mobile broadband, network slicing and edge computing.
We’ve already seen some interesting attempts this year, as Japanese operator KDDI touted a successful use of network slicing and 5G standalone (SA) for 8K PlayStation game streaming. The demonstration was announced in February and is part of an initiative with Sony to create new business use cases and entertainment services based on 5G SA.
At the start of the year, US operator AT&T joined forces with NVIDIA to offer 5G GeForce NOW subscriptions, which it claimed offers “one of the world’s best gaming experiences.”
Another example in the gaming and immersive content field involves South Korean telco SK Telecom, which claimed it turned the country into the first Asian market to offer Microsoft Xbox’s cloud gaming service in 2020: A year later it created an AR app based on 5G edge cloud designed to offer immersive experiences for tourists.
Analysts feel that the introduction of new features and services, such as gaming on the move, some AR apps and 8K videos, which require greater bandwidth and higher speeds, will help to highlight the merits of 5G.
Content will also have a huge role, as it is paramount in driving uptake and usage of next-generation networks. Therefore, expect all providers shouting as loud as possible about how good their fibre and 5G networks are, as rollout ramps up significantly.
After all, the big challenge for telecoms operators remains: How to find the right partnerships, content and marketing strategies to convince their existing and new customers that upgrading to the fastest network out there is, in fact, more needed than ever. (Telecom TV Report)
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