5G will be required for select use cases like virtual reality, high definition gaming or remote surgery, but they are still not the bulk of IoT services in India- says India’s leading telco.
Leading telecom operator Vodafone Idea has said that the most appropriate time to hold 5G spectrum auctions will be somewhere after 2020 as India does not need the airwaves yet.
It feels that 4G is more than adequate for most customers and Internet of Things (IoT) services in the near term, according to a report by ET.
“We are the largest IoT solutions provider today and we are doing it with 2G, 3G and 4G. There’s no need to do 5G for IoT in 95 per cent of these use cases,” ET quoted Vishant Vora, chief technology officer, Vodafone Idea, as saying.
He said that Vodafone Idea is working with its partners to develop India-specific use cases, and that it will take time. “The maturity of that (5G) technology will be there when it makes sense,” he asserted.
Only few 5G use cases in India
Vodafone Idea has been pushing the Government for postponing spectrum auctions until the health of the telecom sector is fixed.
According to Vora, 5G will be required for select use cases like virtual reality (VR), high definition gaming or remote surgery, as these use cases require lower latency and high throughput.
“For these services, yes, you may need some spectrum, but they are still not the bulk of IoT services,” he stated and added that most of the world will go for 5G services only by 2021-22.
Currently, Vodafone Idea is in the process of merging two networks and plans to exit from more than 90,000 sites to cut down on duplication and reduce capital and operational expenditure.
The telco has already finished integration in nine circles and aims to finish the integration in all 22 circles by June 2020.
