>> pg 8 THE ECONOMIC TIMES, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 2012 ADVERTORIAL & PROMOTIONAL FEATURE Telecom: A wider spectrum of hope The way forward Buoyed by new technologies and As the telecom sector looks forward to a new dawn, the soon-to-be-implemented telecom policy is all set to transparent policies, telecom create a transparent and level playing field with impetus for high growth operators in India are looking forward to another glorious aving passed through a turbulent needs of the community. With the power period of growth period in the recent past, the tele- of information and software technology, com industry in India is looking there will be opportunities to explore in s India advances further in the new century, Hforward to high growth in some the areas of education, healthcare, skill A the telecom services are expected to play a of the latest communications technologies development and other relevant communi- key role in its socio-economic development. that have recently emerged. The ET Tele- ty concerns. Particularly important is their role in bridging com Awards 2012 presented by Global Adding to all this will be India’s national- the rural-urban divide by bringing a host of Group, now in its second edition, therefore electronic manufacturing policy that will services at low costs in the hands of consumers. came as a welcome opportunity for indus- aid in making the country a hub of manu- India has an envious scope of scale com- try leaders to meet at a common platform facturing of hardware products. Mr. Sibal pared to the rest of the world. Last year saw an to recognise and honour innovative work expressed his confidence in the conver- addition of over 800 million subscribers. Dereg- and discuss the issues that concern the gence of technologies, hoping that the ulation and progressive policies from TRAI have telecom industry at large. convergence will help disseminate infor- stimulated the industry, which has just emerged Delivering the keynote address at the mation and provide seamless data flow to out of the 2G auction related crisis. event, Mr. Kapil Sibal, Minister for HRD, the consumers. Riding on the back of such Communications and IT, outlined his vision stimuli, we can therefore look at a robust for the industry’s next steps and shared his growth for the telecom sector in the next views on the various issues affecting the 20 years. evolution of the sector in India. Observing that the telecom sector has OVERCOMING CHALLENGES been the real symbol of India’s growth The telecom sector has been ridden with story, he dismissed the gloom and doom many problems in the past, and many of scenario that had been painted for the the government decisions had been industry in view of the recent 2G auction Mr. Kapil Sibal, Hon’ble Union Minister of HRD, Communications & IT, Government of India knee-jerk reactions arising out of particu- related cases. The telecom sector has emerged out of this scenario and is look- com companies to use any technology market in the next twenty years. ing ahead at a brighter future. A framework they wish to utilise. A long term license will The new policy framework, apart from Nearly 14 million people for taking the sector forward at an expo- allow entrepreneurs to fully capitalise on being liberal in very sense of the term, use 3G today. By 2020 Mr. Kapil Sibal interacting with some of nential speed has therefore been worked the market potential for the next 20 years. including the auction terms, will set the this number may go up the dignitaries upon to revive the growth story of the tele- With a transparent policy in place, the tele- stage for using spectrum for any technolo- to 600 million – you can com sector. com auction is likely to take place this year, gy. With the ability to buy more spectrum Some of the key drivers of India's telecom after a final clearance from the Supreme in the years to come, the task on the imagine the enormous sector in the near future will be transparent poli- ROADMAP FOR THE FUTURE Court. The base shoulders of tele- opportunities for the cies and new technologies such as cloud com- A liberal policy framework which instills price for the new com entrepre- telecom operators in the puting, smart device targeted services and intro- investor confidence, allows for free play 2G auction for the neurs will be to future. duction of 4G bandwidth. The 'One Nation, One and minimises the role of bureaucracy has 20-year period utilise the infra- License' policy will eliminate the difference in been the need of the day. According to Mr. will be Rs 14,000 crore, and with aggres- structure not just for promoting their busi- local and STD calls with no roaming charges, Sibal, a 20-year policy framework will bring sive bidding by industry players, may touch ness, but also taking care of the needs of lar problems faced. A particularly compli- making telephony and data usage even cheaper. in the required certainty, along with similar Rs 20,000 crore. the nation, Mr. Sibal noted. cating case arose from the granting of As the industry looks forward to a better con- policies for IT and manufacturing. The tele- The telecom industry is thus clear on fixed term licenses to various players dur- nected future, it must also gear up to improve where it wishes to go. This will indeed be a THE UNTAPPED POTENTIAL ing different years, creating multiple peri- on the quality of services offered. Increasing the Time has come for us to zoom significant change from where the industry Though India still has a long way to go in ods of expiration with different reach to rural areas, capital expenditure and was seven years ago, Mr. Sibal noted. voice telephony, it has a wide mobile dis- spectrums. taking mobile broadband to a wider consumer and boom. That is what is A major upshot of the new framework tribution network with nearly 90 crore According to Mr. Sibal, the new policy base are some of the challenges at hand. going to happen in the next will be the huge cost benefit obtained people having access to cell phones. How- tries to amalgamate all of this within an 20 years. from buying a 20-year license at rates ever, there is still a huge chunk of nearly effective framework, taking care of all sec- IMPORTANCE OF ET TELECOM AWARDS available this year. Given the rate of 600 million people who are yet to be con- tors without hurting anybody and without The ET Telecom Awards plays an important role growth of the telecom sector in the last nected. The market therefore has a large holding out undue benefits to anyone, in the growth of India's telecom industry by com policy has been announced, and by decade, entrepreneurs will thus be able to hidden potential that can be exploited in thus creating a level playing field. Mr. Sibal recognising innovation and contributions made September 2012, all three policy frame- make use of the spectrum in a far more the years to come. concluded on a positive note by hoping across the industry, and by bringing key person- works will be announced. efficient and profitable way. The amount Stressing on the community factor, Mr. that the next 20 years will turn into a alities and professionals on a common platform Making way for the next phase of auc- spent by investors would thus be piffling in Sibal pointed out that this market opportu- tsunami of opportunities for the telecom to formulate the way ahead for this sector. tions, a unified license will thus allow tele- the context of the evolving nature of the nity must be placed in the context of the industry. What They Said GLOBAL MASTER CLASS on KAPIL SIBAL ‘Relevance of 3G & 4G Technologies in India’ Hon’ble Union Minister of HRD, Communications & IT, The Indian telecom industry has weathered tough situations in the past. It is now slated to be one of the Government of India booming sectors with a huge scope for growth in the near future The implementation of a policy has to be done by the he ET Telecom Awards country must be worried market. I can give you an 2012 presented by Glob- about its future competitive- al Group, brought togeth- ness.” environment in which you T er some of the leading figures should act. It is now for you from top telecom companies THE ROAD AHEAD to decide and use that policy to discuss the current sce- Some of the major challenges to enhance your product and nario and prospects of the faced by the telecom industry reach out to the telecom sector in India. Also that came up for discussion consumer. on the agenda was the role of were: price and lack of spec- 3G and 4G technologies in trum, affordability and the SANJAY KAPOOR paving its future growth. high debt levels. The panelists invited for the The panel discussion con- CEO (India & South Asia), Bharti Airtel Limited discussion were: Mr. Marten cluded with a Q&A session The data line business in Pieters, MD and CEO, Voda- with the audience. Mr. Kapil India will continue to grow fone India; Mr. Sanjay Kapoor, From Left: Mr. Fredrik Jejdling, Regional Head India & President Ericsson India; Mr. Sanjay Kapoor, Sibal, while taking up ques- at an even faster pace, and CEO —India and South Asia, CEO (India & South Asia), Bharti Airtel Limited; Mr. Kapil Sibal, Hon’ble Union Minister of HRD, tions from the audience, out- will bring in a revolution, Bharti Airtel Ltd; and Mr.