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With the government getting ready to stamp the spectrum policy, telecom operators have framed strategies to roll out WiMax-this time both fixed and mobile-services. Main operators who are investing in WiMax technologies include Bharti Airtel, Idea, Aircel, Reliance, BSNL, VSNL and MTNL, Sify, among others. And, equipment makers are readying to grab the top slots.

Fixed WiMax based on 802.16d standard is already in vogue in India. But will WiMax restrict itself to broadband? Can mobile WiMax be a reality in India? Will WiMax confine to rural or urban areas? Though the industry is apprehensive about the delay in announcing the spectrum policy, telecom bigwigs do not want to miss the technology evolution as India is seen as the pioneer and front-runner in WiMax technology adoption.

Operators' Plans
BSNL, India's top telecom operator by revenue which is re-inforcing its commitment in India's rural belt, is keen to spend huge funds on WiMax roll out. BSNL is planning to connect 1,000 towns.

The WiMax roll out plan would be on a non-exclusive revenue sharing basis with equipment makers. This means that BSNL would be able to control the cost of network, while equipment makers will also be under pressure to maximize revenue streams.

Initially, BSNL will offer high-frequency data and later move towards voice. "We are talking about multiple-play services. At present, WiMax is not a substitute for mobile, but it is evolutionary. Voice services on the WiMax platform will automatically find space in our gamut of service," says AK Sinha, chairman and MD, BSNL.

BSNL did not disclose investment plans as the company is in the process of issuing tenders to procure equipment. "This will be a major tender and let the operators come out with a price," Sinha adds.

Bharti Airtel is one of the first few operators to invest heavily in WiMax. Its fixed WiMax network is up and running in top sixty cities, and will be catering mostly to enterprises offering high-end broadband. As for mobile WiMax, equipments are yet to be made available by equipment makers. "We will be doing trials as and when we get mobile WiMax equipment," says Jagbir Singh, group chief technology officer, Bharti Airtel.

Idea Cellular, one of the leading operators, which is aggressively expanding following the successful initial public offering, is also investing in WiMax, primarily focusing on the fixed part.

The other operator, which is actively looking at WiMax is Reliance. Pilot project is currently on in select cities across the country. "We are looking at launching any permissible services using WiMax technologies. We feel that WiMax increases possibilities of elimination of huge investments on our networks," says a top Reliance official.

Aircel, which became the first in India to launch services on the WiMax platform, had announced its plan to invest in WiMax infrastructure. The focus of Aircel is on wireless Internet.

The current solution of Sify, one of the largest fixed wireless operators in India with close to 14,000 customers on wireless, is based on 802.16d-based WiMax radios, and is actively looking at rolling out to major cities. Sify feels that allocation of 3.5 GHz would boost deployment and would be in line with 16.e readiness. "As of now, base station radios are expensive, hence, it would make sense for all operators to deploy at high potential areas. For rural, it would be used as a backhaul technology," says PK Saji, VP, Technology, Sify.

Does Voice Make Sense?
BSNL's Sinha says that voice extension would be natural and automatic. But can mobile WiMax offer quality voice solutions as compared with other available options?

According to industry experts, there is a long way to go for actual implementation of mobile WiMax. "Considering the current market scenario in India, offering voice solutions on the WiMax platform will take a long time. On top of that we have lot of other options," says Makarand Pawar, deputy GM, VAS and New Technologies, Idea Cellular.

A recent Gartner report said strong vendor support exists for mobile WiMax, but there are equally strong market concerns regarding its true potential. In the meantime, while cellular technology continues to evolve and improve, there will be similarities in terms of capabilities. This poses a strong challenge to mobile WiMax proponents. In urban and developed markets, with high broadband and cellular reach, the challenge facing mobile WiMax is one of value creation. However, the most promising prospect lies in delivering broadband services to unserved or underserved markets. However, challenges in developing markets revolve around end-user affordability issues. Also, cellular operators are already able to provide broadband.

"We will be doing trials as and when we get mobile WiMax equipments"		"At present, WiMax is not a substitute for mobile, but it is evolutionary, and voice services on WiMax platform will find space in our gamut of service automatically"		"Voice still remains a major revenue stream for telecom operators"
-Jagbir Singh, group chief technology officer, Bharti Airtel		-AK Sinha, CMD, BSNL		-Ramdev Sharma, CTO/CMO, Huawei India

"WiMax emanates from the data network technology domain. Voice over IP (VoIP) is one of the many applications of WiMax, unlike the conventional 2G networks, that support TDM voice. Voice still remains a major revenue stream for telecom operators. However, as research studies predict, this trend might reverse in a next few years when voice may just be offered as a freebie in a multimedia service package to consumers," says Ramdev Sharma, CTO/CMO, Huawei India.

In India, where telecom infrastructure is not strong enough and last-mile connections are typically through copper cable, DSL and fibre optic, installation costs are high. The ability to provide these connections without wires, therefore, greatly lowers the cost of providing these services. "This is why WiMax is an attractive alternative for providing last-mile connection in wireless metropolitan area networks, especially in cellular backhauls," says Ganesh Guruswamy, country manager and director, Freescale Semiconductor India.