According to Ajay Madan of Essar Infrastructure, the IP-1 players have an advantage as they will take care of timely delivery and also provide good uptime. Whereas Arun Kapur, group president and CEO, QTIL says, "With the focus on newer technologies, the quality of IP-1 towers is significantly higher (as they do not have any legacy network)." ST Rizvi, head, Business Development, TVSICS says, "We have to build in one year what service providers have built in 8-10 years." So, there is a huge opportunity for IP-1 players.

Apart from organic growth, IP-1 players are also looking at inorganic growth. And, as and when these opportunities do come up for evaluation, IP-1 players would take up these opportunities to increase their dominance in their category, thereby helping them to grow at a fast pace in this fast growing Indian communications market.

The Innovation Mantra
In order to reduce Capex and Opex, tower subsidiaries and IP-1 players are focusing on a lot of innovation activities including site design, shelter design, power management, use of non-conventional energy, and others. Not only this, the players also have to grapple with a lot of engineering, business and technology complexities as and when they talk about coexistence of 2G, 3G, and WiMax under the same roof. The players also should do a lot of balancing to provide error-free service in both urban and rural areas. In urban areas, the focus would be more on providing interference-free service irrespective of technologies. Whereas in rural areas, the focus would be more on providing increased coverage. So the players will focus on design, power management, and shelters, and this will decide who will top the table.

For cost reduction, Amit Sharma, executive vice president, Asia, American Tower, says, "We will focus on optimum design for multiple users, since we have the expertise."

For others, it is reduction on the power front. Since tower companies are focusing on passive infrastructure, the players can help operators in reducing power expenditure. For example, QTIL is focusing on windmill DG, inverter-based solution, and hybrid DG, while GIL is focusing on hydro cells and green shelter. The company has also formed an energy management cell for strategic tie-ups and is also looking at non-conventional energy from a long-term perspective.

Apart from innovation, the government also has to take decisions at a fast pace. The DoT is yet to give a final go ahead on backhaul sharing, which is long pending. And, this will also have an impact on USO projects, as IP-players are totally dependent on operators for backhaul sharing as well as spot frequency. For faster rollout of service, DoT has to give permission at the earliest to share backhaul.

The infrastructure-sharing project also requires huge investment and long gestation periods. And, finally, players with deep pockets and faster implementation will be successful in the long run.

Pravin Prashant
pravinp@cybermedia.co.in

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