At 1.1 billion, India has the second highest number of telecom users in the world. Of these, 740 million are 4G customers. The 5G rollout in the country has started and is spreading fast. It is expected to create new value through hyper-connectivity and catalyse digital transformation across sectors. Here going crystal gazing to see how 5G will change in 2023, biggest trends and more.
5G phone shipments to hit 100-million mark
The cumulative 5G smartphone shipments is expected to cross the 100-million mark in the second quarter (Q2) next year, as per Counterpoint Research. 5G has been a driving force and will continue to push smartphone demand in 2023 as well, it added.
Sale of 5G phones may exceed that of 4G
Cost of 5G phones may come down
The cost of an entry-level 5G smartphone came down to below Rs 10,000 in 2022 with the launch of the Lava Blaze 5G. The year 2023 may see more brands offering 5G phones in this price bracket.
Airtel so far has no plans to charge more for 5G
Airtel so far has no plans to charge a premium rate for 5G services. The same has not worked in several countries that tried to do so. The company says that it will closely watch rivals on 5G pricing.
Bharti Airtel reportedly plans to invest Rs 27,000-28,000 crore in telecom network with a focus on 5G rollout. The company earlier had an annual average capex in the range of Rs 24,000-25,000 crore. The official said that capex is being largely spent on radios (mobile antennas), fibre, broadband and enterprise technology data centres.
Reliance Jio may not charge more for 5G
It is unlikely that Reliance Jio will charge users more for 5G services. Presently, both Airtel and Jio offer users 5G on existing plans, and the same may continue.
BSNL to get Rs 62000 crore spectrum for 5G rollout
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has decided to allocate spectrum worth about Rs 62,000 crore to state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) for rolling out its 5G services by August 2023. The company is scheduled to start 4G services from next month in select cities. Officials said that a committee of DoT has approved a proposal to give a 10 MHz block in the premium 700 MHz spectrum band worth about Rs 40,000 crore along with 70 MHz in the mid-band (3600 MHz to 3670 MHz) worth about Rs 22,000 crore to BSNL for 5G. The allocation of 700 MHz spectrum to BSNL assumes significance as it would allow the state-run firm to offer 5G services at scale across the country, including rural areas, and better compete with private telecom operators such as Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel, said experts.
5G tech that Reliance Jio and Airtel use
In India, Reliance Jio is rolling out 5G using the standalone mode (SA) with a combination of 700 MHz and 3300 MHz spectrum bands. Rival Bharti Airtel, on the other hand, uses the non-standalone mode (NSA) for its 5G network by using spectrum in the 3300 MHz band combined with the 1800 MHz band for providing the coverage layer.
Reliance Jios 5G deployment will be complete in 2023 Mukesh Ambani
Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani has confirmed that Jio 5G services will be rolled out pan-India in 2023. Speaking at the Reliance Family Day function, Mukesh Ambani said that “Jio’s 5G deployment will be complete in 2023.” He also said that rural-urban divide will be erased. “Since every single village will have 5G connectivity, India has a historic opportunity to completely erase the rural-urban divide which has plagued our country for so long,” he said. Earlier this week, Jio launched its 5G services in Bhopal, Indore, Lucknow, Andhra Pradesh in Tirumala, Visakhapatnam, Vijayawada and Guntur. The company invested over Rs 6,500 crores in deploying the 5G network in the state. Reliance Jio True 5G is already available in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, Varanasi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Nathdwara and in all 33 district headquarters of Gujarat.
5G Enterprise use cases to go up
Enterprise use cases of 5G tech are likely to go up in 2023; especially in healthcare, hospitality and aviation sectors. We may see more 5G corporate VPNs.
Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bengaluru among 50 towns to get 5G
Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bengaluru are among 50 towns across 14 states where 5G services have started, minister of state for telecommunications Devusinh Chauhan had informed Parliament last month. Other states including, UP, Gujarat, MP and J&K. These states have 5G services in some areas. "Telecom service providers have started providing 5G services in the country from October 1, 2022 onwards and as of November 26, 2022, 5G services have started in 50 towns distributed over 14 states and Union Territories," Chauhan said.
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