BSNL

GSM operators add 6.3 mn subscribers in May

BSNL takes the final call on tariff war, slashes tariffs by almost 50 percent

Bytes from Telecom World

GRAMJYOTI - RURAL BROADBAND BY ERICCSON Once the 3G Spectrum Issue is sorted out 3G HSPA will become the default technology for operators to bridge

Video on demand, Triple Play(voice,data and video), Internet Television, the new age thing called IPTV.

Lets get started with what exactly is IPTV,

To provide broadband access across 7000 villages in India
Nokia Siemens Networks (NSN) today announced that it has won a contract from Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL), to deploy broadband access across 7000 Indian villages.

The contract is a part of the greenfield rural tender from BSNL. The new access network’s high bandwidth will allow BSNL to deliver high data and triple play intensive services such as Video on Demand, Video Multi cast, IPTV, Video Conferencing and VPN among others to its customers.

The network will also enable BSNL to provide connectivity to CSCs (Community Service Centres) and other e-governance locations, Nokia Siemens said in a statement.

The agreement includes supply, installation and commissioning, training and annual maintenance contract for five years. As part of the contract, NSN is deploying its Gigabit Ethernet-capable IP DSLAMs Surpass hiX5625 (Digital Subscriber Line Access Multiplexers) and chassis based access switch (Surpass hiD6615). NSN will also supply end-user devices that will enable BSNL to provide speeds of up to 24Mbps for ADSL2+ subscribers over its existing copper infrastructure. The first phase of new lines deployment will be completed by first quarter of 2008.

Kuldeep Goyal, chairman and managing director, BSNL, said, “BSNL is a pioneer in providing affordable high-quality communications services to Indian consumers and this mega broadband expansion initiative is another step in that direction. The BSNL rural broadband project will bridge digital divide and connect 20,000 villages in India.”

“Nokia Siemens Networks with its technology portfolio and its strong existing relationship with BSNL, is an ideal partner in our efforts to deliver world class broadband services and drive long termed sustained economic growth for India,” he added.

This is the second rural broadband access tender BSNL has awarded to Nokia Siemens Networks. The company is also in parallel deploying the urban broadband access for BSNL across 15 circles. First phase of that roll-out is in advance stages of completion for 800,000 ports.

IBM has announced that it has bagged Rs 70 crore BSNL deal from UTStarcom to provide networking solutions and services for the deployment of 2.8 million lines of DSLAM in 900 cities throughout India.

BSNL will use the network to deliver real-time applications and high-speed Internet, and to effectively handle increasing broadband subscriber traffic. The solution will enable BSNL to offer new broadband-based, multi-play services such as IPTV, video on demand (VoD), video multicast, VPN services, and high-speed Internet services across the country.

UTStarcom will serve as the turnkey provider for this deployment and will maintain responsibility for the design, planning, deployment, service roll out and maintenance of the network. IBM India will leverage its solutions to provide the necessary IT infrastructure for the network, including OSS/BSS components.

“The robust SOA-based architecture that IBM will implement will help BSNL meet the challenge of supporting a distributed OSS/BSS environment,” said Vivek Gupta, vice president of telecom, IBM India. “IBM brings experience and expertise through its large resource base in India and a proven credibility in our delivery model for telecom operators.”

Contract signed at the end of March 2007, IBM will implement an SOA architecture that will integrate the components of BSNL’s geographically dispersed operational support systems. The solution will leverage IBM’s Websphere Business Integration Suite message broker as part of the SOA connectivity and reuse strategy.

Yes, I believe so! The numbers, if one were to contend with those alone, DO NOT meet the expectations. Broadband was and is considered to be the new paradigm of India. However, are we anywhere near whatever growth we have been expecting? Let's see the stats for the various telecom segments.

According to the statistics made available by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the total number of telephone subscribers was 232.87 million at the end of July 2007, and the overall teledensity had increased to 20.52!

In the wireless segment, 8.06 million subscribers were added in July 2007 and the total wireless subscribers (GSM, CDMA and WLL (F)) base was 192.98 million. The wireline segment subscriber base stood at 39.89 million, with a decline of 0.20 million in July 2007.

And what about broadband? For broadband (≥256Kbps downloads), the total broadband connections in the country had reached only 2.47 million by the end of July 2007. In fact, during July 2007 there was an addition of 0.05 million connections!

Let's go back a few months! Venkat Kedalya of Convergent Communications had pointed out in an article to CIOL that India was nowhere on course to reach a target of 9 million broadband subscribers by this year! India has a target of achieving 20 million broadband subscribers by 2010, which now seems to be highly ambitious and well, unachievable!

Allocation of frequencies for BWA (broadband wireless access) is the immediate need of the moment. There is a need to look at WiMax and broadband over powerline (BPL) as far as technology is concerned. Some folks have entered the IPTV domain, so hopefully, we will get to see some content over broadband.
Even TRAI has urged the government to boost broadband growth. One of its suggestions has been to ask BSNL and MTNL to adopt a franchisee model so that local players may use their copper cables and offer high-speed Internet services. Decisions need to be taken for allocating spectrum for WiMax as well as making the National Internet Exchange of India more effective.

TRAI said: "Only 0.47 million broadband subscribers have been added in first six months of 2007, which is far below the growth trend required to achieve broadband policy targets. This necessitated an analysis of regulatory and policy frameworks, and to formulate new approach necessary for rapid roll-out of broadband in the country."

TRAI also accepts that while the growth of Internet subscribers was satisfactory, we are seriously lagging behind as far as broadband is concerned. It adds: "The government should ensure availability of more number of Ku-band transponders to roll out broadband services through DTH platform and utilize Universal Service Obligation (USO) fund to provide subsidy for providing broadband services through satellite in remote and hilly areas."

I'm not really sure how all of this will help. You do need at least a PC to access the Internet services. Am not sure how many folks are still willing to invest in home PCs and broadband, given that watching TV is a favorite pastime. Broadband over cable TV has not been a success either. What are we doing about this?

Subscribers to get 2 Mbps connection at the same rate at which they were getting 256 Kbps

New Year bonanza awaits the subscribers of BSNL and MTNL broadband service from January 1 - they will get 2 Mbps connection at the same rate at which they were getting a sluggish 256 Kbps till now.

This was announced by Union communications and information technology minister Dayanidhi Maran at the inauguration of a new building of MTNL here. The new building will house futuristic services of the MTNL like convergent billing, 3-G, NGN and IP-MPLS.