Progressive Sharing of Indian Telecom Infrastructure
Curated by
matthan
2 min read
208
The Indian government has progressively liberalized telecom infrastructure sharing, moving from passive to active sharing, to optimize resource utilization and reduce costs for service providers. As reported by the Economic Times, this evolution began with sharing passive elements like towers and has expanded to include active infrastructure such as radio access networks, potentially leading to significant cost savings and improved network efficiency across the country.
Passive Infrastructure Sharing Basics
Passive infrastructure sharing in telecommunications was introduced as a cost-effective approach to expand network coverage and reduce capital expenditure for service providers. This form of sharing involves non-electronic elements such as towers, poles, ducts, and premises. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has been actively promoting passive infrastructure sharing among telecom service licensees. According to TRAI, passive sharing allows operators to share civil engineering elements of telecommunication networks, which can lead to significant cost savings. This approach is particularly beneficial in developing countries like India, as it enables faster roll-out of services, avoids infrastructure duplication, and helps direct investments towards underserved areas. The introduction of passive sharing has paved the way for more advanced forms of infrastructure sharing in the Indian telecom sector.
4 sources
Passive to Active Sharing
Sharing telecom infrastructure among service providers
Regulatory Impact
Regulatory and competitive climates influence the degree and method of infrastructure sharing in each country
Legislation
The Telecommunications Act of 1996 deregulated infrastructure in the US, promoting market competition
Partnerships
Mobile network operators like 3UK, T-Mobile, O2, and Vodafone have established joint ventures for infrastructure sharing
Initially focused on passive elements like buildings, towers, and dark fibers, infrastructure sharing in India has evolved to include active components. The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) allowed active infrastructure sharing, including antennas, feeder cables, Node B, RAN, and transmission systems, in February 2016. This progression aims to enhance resource utilization and reduce costs for telecom service providers. However, the adoption of active infrastructure sharing has been slow, partly due to the government not allowing payments between TSPs for sharing as a pass-through expense. To facilitate wider adoption, industry experts suggest allowing pass-through for payments related to active infrastructure sharing and permitting the sharing of core network elements.
2 sources
TRAI's Role and Recommendations
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has played a pivotal role in promoting both passive and active infrastructure sharing. TRAI has recommended creating a separate category under the unified license for Digital Connectivity Infrastructure Provider (DCIP) authorization, which would allow sharing of both active and passive digital connectivity infrastructure without additional license fees. Key proposals include:
- Allowing sharing of all telecom infrastructure types, including core network elements, under mutual agreements
- Proposing inter-band spectrum sharing between service providers within a licensed service area
- Suggesting leasing of up to 50% of spectrum holdings acquired through auction or trading, subject to a non-refundable sharing fee
- Emphasizing the need to maintain at least two independent core networks for any telecom service when sharing core network elements
2 sources
Impact and Benefits
Liberalization of telecom infrastructure sharing is expected to yield substantial benefits for the Indian telecom sector. Active infrastructure sharing could lead to 33-35% savings in capital expenditure and 25-33% in operating expenses, significantly reducing costs for operators. This approach has already shown promising results, as demonstrated by the shared RAN deployment by RailTel and CloudExtel at nine railway stations in Mumbai, which brought 50-60% savings for Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea while increasing download speeds by 10-15 times. Additionally, the initiative aims to improve connectivity in remote and underserved areas by promoting the sharing of infrastructure laid under universal service obligation fund (USOF) projects, potentially bridging the digital divide across the country.
2 sources
Related
What are the long-term benefits of telecom infrastructure sharing for consumers
How does telecom infrastructure sharing impact the rollout of 5G services
What challenges do telecom firms face in implementing active infrastructure sharing
How does telecom infrastructure sharing affect the overall cost of mobile services
What role does government regulation play in promoting telecom infrastructure sharing
Keep Reading
Introduction to Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePin)
Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePINs) are revolutionizing the way physical infrastructure and hardware networks are built and operated by leveraging blockchain technology and decentralized governance. By incentivizing participants to contribute resources and distributing control across the network, DePINs enable more resilient, efficient, and accessible infrastructure services compared to traditional centralized models.
623
Planning Practices to Minimize Railway Noise
When planning residential areas near railways, it's important to implement strategies to mitigate noise and vibration impacts on housing. Some key planning practices include:
Increasing the distance between railways and residential buildings where possible. Using commercial buildings, garages, and other less noise-sensitive structures as noise barriers between the tracks and housing. Optimizing the orientation of residential buildings to locate bedrooms and noise-sensitive rooms on the side...
3,003
TLS 1.3 and mTLS
Transport Layer Security (TLS) 1.3 and mutual TLS (mTLS) represent significant advancements in secure communication protocols. TLS 1.3, standardized in 2018, offers improved performance and security over its predecessor, while mTLS extends the traditional TLS model by requiring both client and server to authenticate using X.509 certificates, enhancing trust in distributed systems and cloud environments.
6,798
Vehicle-To-Everything Tech
Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X) technology is revolutionizing transportation by enabling vehicles to communicate with their surroundings, promising enhanced road safety and traffic efficiency. As reported by the U.S. Department of Transportation, this emerging system allows cars to exchange real-time information with other vehicles, infrastructure, pedestrians, and networks, potentially preventing thousands of crashes and transforming the way we travel.
51,302
