Indian domestic smart pad/tablet

Hi,

For those of you that remember a blog I did about 3g and LTE (4g) in India a few months ago (http://telcotom.blogspot.com/2011/07/3g-and-lte-4g-in-india-oh-and-and-my.html) I am pleased - no delighted - to see that there is now a smart pad device available that is made domestically and is affordable - this is indeed fantastic news and all invloved should be congratulated on what they have achieved as should the government for seeking this solution.  See the article in the New York Times at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/13/opinion/sunday/friedman-the-last-person.html

So this is a fantastic move - a device like this makes not only education more achievable but also can be used for medical triage, mobile banking and for the growth of commerce.  Producers can check prices and even sell on line, farmers can learn of better techniques and even get better weather information - in short this is a major strategic step in the ecconomic growth of India.

It is vital now then that the Government, the telecommunication / wireless operators and also the tower companies work hard to ensure that the infrastructure is build to support these smart pads nationwide.  Not just geographic coverage either - capacity for data volume needs to be built in now and not considered much later.

This will mean using smarter and innovative materials not only for the actual the towers (where carbon fibre is the obvious answer) but also the power systems and backhaul for the networks.  This clearly cant be done overnight - it is an immense but vital project.

It might even be an idea in villages to look at a complete solution that has a quickly deployable 30m monopole along side a reliable hybrid solar/wind/ bio diesel genset plant that not only provides power for the tower but also for the village itself??

This smart pad is a great thing for India and it will be a life changer for so many locked in poverty just now. Fantastic!!

"Vorsprung durch Technic"

Vorsprung durch Technic or as it translates advancement through technology is a very well known advertising slogan used by Audi and I thought it was a great way to start this blog.

Its a real bugbear of mine that in the wireless and telecommunications world technologies fall into two categories - the actual communications technology that gets perceived as "smart" technology - all the fancy new gizmos with their flahing lights offering untold bandwidth, speed, capacity whatever and then there is what what is perceived as the "dumb" technology - all the infrastructure that supports, powers and essentially makes the smart stuff work. 

The problem is that the industry gets very excited about the new "smart" technologies - in mobile/ cell we see that now with LTE etc - state of the art technology, fantastic throughputs, great true broadband capacities, using remote radio units to solve feeder loss issues etc etc and, in all, every wireless/ cell equipment vendor has some really sexy new technology out there in LTE or WiMax right now - small units highly efficient - fantastic.

Fantastic that is until we review how this new technology is being supported - thats when we see ineffecient straight mains or diesel gensets for power with very limited renewable (or even hybrids with deep cell battery technologies) in sight, clumsy old design steel lattice towers and massive concrete foundations that need to be cast in situ - in short not much in the way of technology advancement in this area.

Its a shame because substantial savings can be made in both CAPEX and OPEX by looking at some new infrastucture options.   As operators try (need?) to save that last cent in both those areas to drive profits up and keep call costs down they need to break the mould of procurement for these types of product and use a "whole of network" cost rather than a cheapest unit cost model. 

Operators can make their networks even more efficient and cost effective to deploy and operate if they adopt the very latest in all the technologies used for the infrastucture and the actual communications equipment.

Or - to put it another way - how would Audi fare if they were selling cars that had all the latest computer controlled advanced engine management systems and superior ancillary equipment if they put it in the bodyshell of a 1970's car with pressed steel narrow wheels and no seat belts?

"Vorsprung durch Technik" - worth remembering...

Telco power and carbon taxes....

So Australia has the dreaded carbon tax.....

For those of you not in Australia and may not be aware of this, the government here introduced a carbon tax / pricing scheme last weekend and it prompted me to have a think about how legislation like this might affect wireless/mobile telcos.

The most obvious area is in power for sites.  Power consumption of base stations is certainly not as bad as it used to be but it’s still a twofold problem; firstly getting the power to the site, particularly in regional areas and secondly the operational cost of the power bill, be it either from a power supplier or in fuel for gensets.  This ,I think, has to be the main thrust of using renewable energy sources in Telco networks in that it’s not really about carbon taxes at all but simply about getting reliable supply to the site and trimming back the opex.

Regardless if its due to a price on carbon or just good operational business management, reducing costs and emissions has to be a good thing – it’s a well documented statistic that in India the mobile/wireless industry is one of the top five consumers of diesel fuel in the country so it doesn’t take a scientist to see the savings that even cutting fuel bills in half would make to network profits especially with the low ARPU’s there.  Here in Australia most sites are connected to mains power – why? Simply because they have always been and solar is only really getting a look in at remote locations where the cost of installing power lines is frightening.  It’s the same principal though – if smarter solutions are deployed that save power then the network operational costs go down and profits rise.

It’s important to understand as well that there is no single solution to this – adopting just renewable energy such as solar is not the whole answer – it needs to be a complete rethink on parameters of site designs.  A “whole of site” solution that involves wireless base stations that are heat ruggedized to a higher level, the use of free cooling units and fans, the use of shade (really cheap, really effective!!) through the range of solar panels and wind turbines powering batteries to keep the site running at a consistent and optimal power level.  In some cases this might be enough but if it is combined with a hybrid solution of either a cut into the mains or a genset start-up when the battery levels reach a predetermined level then the site will run very reliably with significant savings in energy costs.  There will be less emissions and less carbon used.  This should be at all sites, including urban rooftops, IBC’s and not just remote or rural sites – just the mix of solutions used may change to suit the site conditions.

All these solutions will be presented in detail at the “Smart Power for Smart Telecom Networks” conference and workshops in Sydney on 12 -13 September – http://bit.ly/mdCOWa

Of course in more rural areas using some surplus power to run common good infrastructure such as water pumps and the like is always a good side effect as well.

So where do I think carbon pricing/ taxes will impact us in the world of wireless and mobile networks – simple answer is steel towers.  The steel industry in Australia is getting compensation for a while due to the carbon pricing but most towers here are imported from Malaysia or China – so when these countries introduce a price on carbon, which they will, then steel prices will rise and so will tower costs.  In India this will have a bigger effect, depending upon when a carbon price / tax is introduced, given the huge numbers of towers currently manufactured there for the domestic and export markets. 

3g and LTE (4g) in India - (oh, and and my next speaking event!!)

One of the biggest drivers of change with the Indian economy will be the advent of data rich mobile/ wireless networks and data being available at affordable rates.  Abundant data availability will trigger entrepreneurs to sell their goods direct and on-line world wide and real steps will be made in mobile banking – this will cause a wave of growth and prosperity throughout the country.  Other benefits such networks allow are a comprehensive medical triage system using telemedicine and also educational uses.  In short the impact these networks shall have in India will be truly remarkable.

So why is even 3g taking so long to get out of the cities?  The reasons are many and complex but I see there being three main holdups:

Spectrum – the allocated spectrum was planned when the incredible explosion of data usage could not have been foreseen – therefore the spectrum bands are too narrow for effective deployments

Infrastructure – the costs of rolling out towers and power in particular to regional and remote areas makes little economic sense in terms of RoI and the Opex in power costs are unworkable.

Smartphones – the costs of iphones and blackberry devices is too high as it is for laptop computers with mobile broadband connectivity.

The mobile phone operators and the tower companies are doing what they can but they are basing roll-outs on this tight spectrum and also on outdated vertical infrastructure designs and even site layouts. 

So what is the solution?  OK let’s just for a minute “park” any political or commercial elements and look at pure solutions for these issues.

1. Spectrum – each operator has narrow spectrum availability and when the spectrum was first planned it was a different market – what would work is all the spectrum being handed back and re-farmed into decent options that allow high speed mobile data to be accommodated in sensible network planning.   Spectrum collaboration will allow better networks all round.

2. Infrastructure – the issue here is the cost and speed that network infrastructure is needed even to keep up with growing 2g (voice) subscribers. Newer, faster and more cost effective means of site roll-outs need to be adopted and in rural areas perhaps a government/ private partnership for the infrastructure would be the only way to make this work.  New materials, designs and renewable / hybrid power systems need to be adopted.

3. Handsets – It must surely only be a matter of time before a really affordable smartphone type product emerges from within India – maybe some manufacturers need to work together on this idea?

How could all of these things be achieved – well this is the biggest step – the current mobile operators and any new entrant would become Mobile Virtual Network Operators on a network that is rolled out as a single Government / Private (PPP) type model.  Spectrum would be amassed and used effectively in a single roll-out along with a single network build out.  Differing vendors could supply to different circles etc but with interoperability of standards this should be fine.  The tower companies would still be needed to roll-out sites of course and indeed would perhaps play a more pivotal role in this deployments model.  The operators would see savings in capex and opex and achieve their coverage quicker – and they would then be competing more openly on call rates as well. 

Throw an Indian made, affordable, smartphone into the mix and you would have more people connected to advanced networks faster than using the current methods.

If there was an appetite for this kind of solution (and I by no means think my ideas are the perfect solution – far from it!!) the time to start moving toward it will have to be sooner rather than later.

Anyway – closer to my Australian home – I’m speaking at the Smart Power for Smart Telco Networks in Sydney in September.  Ticket sales are now open and there are some pretty good speakers lined up and I understand tickets are selling well so I would get in quick!! Details can be found at

http://www.abovetheparapet.com.au/events/smart-power-for-smart-telecom-networks-2/

The Mobile Carriers Forum, a division of the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association are also doing their worldwide launch of the “Mobile Networks Energy Efficiency Training Programme” at the event and I, for one, can’t wait to see and hear details of that at the event

enquiries @ they dont want our business .com!!!

Apologies for the “off Telco” topic this time – but as a business owner this is something that has me puzzled – and I get a bit wound up about it!!!

I’m looking for two things for my business just now, one a product and the other is a service and I can’t find them locally or in my normal contact base so I have been doing a bit of Googling and the like to find some potential suppliers.

 It’s fantastic – straight to potential suppliers websites I go and have a little look around see that they do what I am interested in and then I find (sometimes not so easily) the “contact us” page –  that’s where two things can happen – either there is a prescriptive form to fill in that doesn’t really quite fit who I am or what I am looking for or, often, there is the option to email “enquiries@______”  

So far so good, but the problem is that out of the ten or so emails that I have sent to different companies “enquiries@” over the past three months I have had only three responses.  The three that came back did so within 24 hours, asked lots of questions to understand what I was looking for and hey, guess who’s getting the sales.

Now I have got that off my chest here is the point of my ramblings this week –if you owned a shop you certainly wouldn’t keep your door locked to turn customers away– but these companies not responding to “enquiries@” emails are, in this modern age of on-line business, doing just that.

Interestingly of the seven emails that remain unanswered I got four read receipts which is even worse than just thinking the emails were not actually being delivered to a person.   Four companies I would now never use and would positively steer people away from.  Some of these are not small companies either – in fact the SME’s are the ones that tend to get this right

For most businesses operating today a web page is the front door  to the shop and its becoming the customers first point of contact, their first impression.

That said, I am in the process of getting my own webpage revamped just now because it’s not so flash  – but I like to think we do answer our enquiries emails at least.

Back soon with more Telco ramblings.

Telstra is on the move....

For those who read my last blog - heres a bit more about Telstra's activities.  I would like to think that the impact of LTE has been fully taken into account for the NBN - particularly as the current growth in broadband subscriber numbers is all in wireless - because people enjoy the flexibility of a "anywhere"  connection - and even if its not offering 100Mbs its still pretty good for video streaming on ipads and laptops etc.

Article at : http://www.theage.com.au/business/telstra-launches-4g-in-capital-cities-20110524-1f1ix.html

Wonder whats next - Apple bidding for spectrum in the 700 MHz range and opening their own iphone, ipad and mac device network???

If I ruled the world - or a tale of NBN builds

The other day I was in a forum meeting and to get the communication going our moderator asked one of these “keys of the castle” type questions – in this case it was what would you do if you had all the money in the world?  I don’t think I answered very well but it did make me think – how would I build a National Broadband Network anywhere in the world? – so that’s what today’s blog is all about!!

Starting in my own backyard, as it were, Australia – well the big problem here is that of course there kind of is a default wireless NBN that reaches 98% of the population – and that is Telstra’s Next G network – now I’m not normally a fan of Telstra but what they and Ericsson put together is a pretty robust wireless network that is mobile broadband capable and can, in places give 20mbps (the NBN Co target for wireless is 12 mbps).  Given that Telstra is now re-farming their 1800Mhz spectrum to roll out a LTE solution and you would have to assume they will end up with a mobile network with broadband capability (Next G) and a pure mobile broadband network (LTE) – and will have ditched fixed line with its falling revenues and the universal service obligation to NBN Co – nice work if you can get it!!. 

That said I do get the need for fibre roll-outs for eventual capacity – but it’s a bit surprising that NBN Co spent a lot of dollars on the old Austar wireless spectrum that covers a fair chunk of Australia and yet only intend to use it for something like 4% of the population – and that leads me to how I would roll-out NBN’s anywhere

Fibre will undoubtedly offer greater speeds and capacity over wireless – but only when demand reaches a tipping point – before you reach that subscriber number, wireless works just as well and where there is no existing infrastructure, copper or fibre, then it’s a clear winner.  There has to be a combination of both fibre and wireless but you will cover the ground quicker and cheaper with wireless than you will with fibre – particularly if you are covering rural/ regional areas.

So – what’s Telcotom’s plan for a “anywhere NBN”?  Well its basically use wireless technologies to create an “umbrella” wide area coverage in conjunction with fibre for backhaul combined with fibre to key areas that have proven demand – then as subscriber numbers build you can correctly match your fibre roll-out to the demand.  To play “build fibre and they will connect” is naive and commercially challenging at best, politically suicidal at worst. Progressive rolling out of fibre where you already have increasing numbers of subscribers on wireless allows the best match of dollar spent to coverage required.

Mind you – the subscribers might find that they don’t really need 100mbps to download a full length movie in 3 minutes (because they can’t watch it that quickly!!) and they might just like the flexibility of an anywhere connection they can get from wireless – which brings me back to what Telstra are doing here in Australia....

The problem with telco infrastructure is.....

Much is said about the huge advances in wireless and mobile phone technologies these days - 3g and LTE offer data rates that were unimaginable when the mobile industry first started.  This data rate will bring huge advances in things like mobile banking, education, health and even in "real time" reporting of natural (and man made) disasters.

The advances in electronics in base stations and in antenna science are truly daunting - yet as we advance more and more along the "hi tech" aspects why are only a few of us questioning elements of network builds such as:

1. Why are we using basically the same towers as those designed decades ago and why are we building them in the same way?

2. Why is renewable power sources such as solar and wind become the last and not first choice to power sites? - its proven now that properly engineered sites can run very well on these!!

3. Why are so many sites, particularly in urban areas (rooftop and tower) basically pretty ugly structures?

There are many, many great things happening with wireless but the passive infrastructure is being left behind - and its ironic that this is the area that can dramatically reduce the operating costs of a network by reduced footprint = reduced real estate costs and elimination of power bills? 

Operators need to revisit passive infrastructure to reduce operating costs so they can do things like keep their tarrifs lower than their competitors and increase network proffitability, particularly in rural areas.

By the way - this is the first in my blogging experience - every few weeks I hope to provide insight or question elements of the telco world - particularly the bits of it that relate to wireless.