The government of India recently confirmed that some 5G frequencies will be reserved to enable enterprises to deploy private mobile networks
Indian enterprises view 5G as the key enabler of their digital transformation, according to a recent research conducted by Omdia for Ericsson in India.
According to the Omdia survey, 32% of respondent organizations ranked 5G as the most important technology for their digital strategy over the next two years. They ranked 5G ahead of other technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning, cloud services, and robotic process automation. Fifty-six percent ranked 5G in their top three technologies, according to the survey.
“It is noteworthy that many enterprises cite the limitations of current wireless and other network technologies as a key barrier to improving efficiency through automation and digital transformation,” Ericsson said.
Omdia surveyed over 300 enterprises early this year in India across five industries—manufacturing, energy and utilities, transportation and logistics, sports and entertainment, and healthcare— to understand enterprise perception of 5G and their plans to implement the technology.
The Omdia survey found that vast majority of enterprises see 5G having a major or moderate impact on all major business processes and goals. “Indian enterprises expect 5G to enable new technologies and new ways of working, and even change their organization’s established business model. Many enterprises believe 5G will help improve productivity, drive revenue growth, improve sales and marketing processes, enable automation, and enhance security and customer service.”
More than 90% of enterprises surveyed stated they are very likely or likely to deploy multiple 5G use cases over the next two to three years. These include use cases like remote assistance, support or training of people, video recognition and analytics, automation including robotic process automation, remote control of machines, robots, vehicles, or drones, and enhanced streaming, Ericsson said.
The Omdia survey suggests that most companies in India plan to start using some type of 5G service by the end of 2023.
The government of India recently announced plans to hold an auction of 5G spectrum by the end of July and confirmed that some frequencies will be reserved to enable enterprises to deploy private mobile networks.
The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, announced it had approved a proposal of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to auction a total of 72 gigahertz of spectrum, with a validity period of 20 years.
The auction will offer frequencies in the 600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1.8 GHz, 2.1 GHz, 2.3 GHz, 3.3 GHz and 26 GHz frequency bands.
The Indian government has also decided to allow enterprises to deploy and run private networks. These firms will be able to acquire spectrum directly from the DoT to set up networks to test and build Industry 4.0 applications. The cabinet noted it decided to enable private networks to support a new wave of industrial applications in sectors such as automotive, healthcare, agriculture and energy, among others.
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) had recently told the Government of India that local carriers will not have incentives to deploy 5G networks if authorities allowed private companies to run their own private 5G networks.