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23
March 2001
Huwei A
single window nodal agency should be appointed to give permission for
right of way (RoW) to service providers in the proposed Convergence
regime for speedy clearances, Chief Vigilance Commissioner N. Vittal
said today. “Presently,
service providers have to take a number of approvals from several authorities
at the central and state government levels to obtain the right of way
(RoW) for laying fibre optic cables, which is very cumbersome”, Vittal
said at the ongoing Convergence India 2001 International Conference
and Exhibition. Vittal,
who was a member of the Group on Convergence headed by the Finance Minister
Yashwant Sinha, said such a provision to provide for a single nodal
authority had been made in the proposed Convergence Bill that is in
the public domain for comments and debate. He
said the government must look into the practical problems of the service
providers in obtaining the RoW approvals, and ensure that the proposed
Bill removes this long-pending obstacle. Speaking
on the issue of building networks for global broadband communications,
he said irrespective of the type of technology, the telecommunication
network should be future-proof, so that repeated up-gradations were
not only easy and quick but cheap to execute. Vittal
said as India was a late entrant to the global telecom industry, it
should learn from its western counterparts of not repeating the same
mistakes and wrong experiments from their experiences. The
Chief Vigilance Commissioner cautioned against technological hype and
said technologies should be properly analysed and evaluated before embarking
upon any major changes, which should save the service providers a lot
of money and time. Vittal
said that innovative methods of financing would be necessary to ensure
that the benefit flows to the rural areas also so that the building
of networks becomes also a commercially viable proposition for creating
the requisite bandwidth Like
the electronics industry where IC stood for integrated circuits, Vittal
reminded operators and service providers, that when it comes to building
networks for global bandwidth communication we also need IC, namely
imagination and commitment. Earlier,
global and Indian telecom service and network providers said India was
strongly poised for a robust and advanced telecom revolution, as far
as technology was concerned. “India
should take advantage of the new and emerging world order in universal
Internet Protocol (IP) infrastructure network and tune in to offer advanced
applications, content management and simple communication services in
a better manner”, said Eamonn Kearns, Development Manager Telecom Business,
Asia-Pacific, Intel. Vijay
Kiyawat, Director Operations, Bharati Duraline said global majors were
planning to introduce many new technologies in laying optic fibre cable
in India, which was a strong signal for their commitment to India. “Spider
Power”, the latest optic fibre laying machine will be launched in India
in the next three months which would solve the problem of digging Mr.
Vijay Kiyawat, Director-Operations, Bharti Duraline Ltd. Telecom
major Motorola’s mission is to bring broadband networks as close to
the home as possible, says Horatio A. Egnoto, the US Company’s Vice-president,
International Business development, Broad Band Communications Sector.
- Bandwidth through fibre optics at very very high power, he qualifies.
He is also president and CEO of its Indian operations
that was formerly GI India Private Ltd. In
an exclusive interview to Convergence India conference daily, Mr. Egnoto
said that even if Broad Band networks were not immediately going to
be set up in India, there was growing awareness of their usefulness
in business environment. Motorola
is a market leader in broadband private networks for business. These
broadband networks would provide multi-media applications. “Key participants
are very interested in this sector and last two years there was increasing
demand for such networks. “They see quite a leap in revenues as a result
of these networks” he added. Motorola
has a recognized lead in both hybrid fibre-coaxial and optical fibre
networks and optical fibre. “We are contributing to growth in real time”,
the Motorola VP said. The
huge business opportunity in Broad Band networks had persuaded Motorola
to set up training camps for engineers to deploy and service their networks. As
a manufacturer of both hardware and software for the private broadband
networks, Motorola could also leverage its advantages. Mr. Egnoto said.
But Motorola could also undertake upgrading of existing networks.
In fact 70 per cent of its business volume in the broadband sector
comes from such upgrade work. Realistic enough to admit that he did
not expect Indian business to go in immediately for broadband networks,
the Motorola executive looked at the next five years when there would
be a rush to upgrade networks to broad band capability.
He also said that the company was working with several application
and
then covering the stretch as the machine would do both the jobs simultaneously”,
he said. developers
in broadband networks and content providers, like billing equipment
with the company integrating such developments with its own networks
to give satisfactory business solutions to the clients. On
the question of the gathering slump in business in US affecting Motorola’s
plans here, Mr. Egnoto said that the company had a great deal of flexibility
due to its world wide operations.
So far as its Indian ventures were concerned, there was no downsizing;
on the contrary it was looking to a greater expansion of business here.
It was not just one company facing this situation, the entire range
of telecom and IT companies were facing a slow down in US and Europe.
Bit impact on India was not significant. “There is no downsizing in
our Indian operations” he asserted. Will
Serve Fast Growing Indian Sub-Continent Market Scopus
active in India since 1997 with its distributor Modern Communications
and Broadcasting Systems (MCBS), has won a number of key contracts with
important players in the Indian market such as VSNL, ISRO, SAC, BEL
and Nepal TV. In 2000 Scopus decided to increase its presence in India
due to the area’s huge potential and growing digital broadcasting needs.
Mr. Kishore Shirekar, former Deputy General Manager at MCBS, will head
the new Scopus India office. Local technical support and representation
for Scopus in India will continue to be provided by MCBS. VSNL
(India) selects Scopus Digital Broadcasting Platforms VSNL,
one of India’s largest providers of broadcast and communications infrastructure,
has selected a range of Scopus’ CODICO platforms to bring digital broadcasting
to India. VSNL
is broadening the scope of its activities throughout the Indian Sub-Continent
with the use of various. Scopus platforms to create fully digital broadcasting
head-ends. In nine different cities, Scopus has installed TV5
is the world’s leading 24 hour French language television channel.
It is Europe’s third
largest channel after Eurosport and CNN and world’s third largest channel
after MTV and CNN. TV5 channel reaches almost a billion viewers world-wide,
reaching 4.4 million French homes.
TV5 reaches over 7 million homes & 10,000 Hotel rooms. The
content of the channel includes entertainment programmes, films, documentaries,
news including real time news, sports, major events, etc.
It is designed and produced for the hundred of millions of people
worldwide, who love or would like to know about French culture or speak,
use, learn and teach French. In
India TV5 is represented by Catvision Products Ltd.,
Catvision had earlier promoted CNN, MTV and Discovery channels,
all of which gained high popularity.
TV5
: 19, Rue Cognacq-Jay, 75341 Cedex 07, Paris Pragati
Maidan, New Delhi. March 21, 2001. Aesthetic Technologies today announced
the launch of MediaGenie, a complete solution for managing huge amounts
of media assets. This web-based application launched today at Convergence
India 2001 exhibition at Pragati Maidan, helps organisations to easily
search, retrieve and reuse precious media assets like video, audio,
images and digital presentations and distribute them to departments,
regional offices, customers, vendors and partners who need them. MediaGenie
helps businesses maximise their return on these assets. Over
the years several products have been developed to help businesses manage
textual data. However, relatively little is available in the market
that helps manage data in multimedia form. Businesses around the world
have accumulated large volume of media over the years. The advent of
digital media technologies has spurred an explosion in the creation
of new media in digital form. All these need to be archived and managed
effectively. MediaGenie helps in this by utilising the power of broadband.
As
the use of rich media increases in every business, it becomes tougher
to store, access, manage and distribute them. Targeted
at large corporates, FMCG companies, advertising agencies, engineering
companies, media and production houses, MediaGenie is a complete solution
which includes a software application as well as services like cataloguing,
digitising, periodic updation, physical filing methodology and hosting. Aesthetic
Technologies is a rich media software applications company specialising
in eBranding and eLearning solutions. Funded by NIIT and ICICI, the
company has completed over 40 rich media learning and branding solutions
for ITC, ICI, Bharat Petroleum, Tata Steel, Mitsubishi Lancer, Ford-New
Holland, HTA, Mudra among others. The company has been using the application
internally to manage the terabytes of digital media creations while working for its clients. Aesthetic
Technologies CEO, sourabh J. sarkar says that ”concepts like MediaGenie
are to broadband what e-mail was to the internet 5 years ago!”
URL: www.mmizone.com
The
two most adapted tools that combined that can bring communications forward
are both satellite and broadcast. While broadcast provides the capability
of distribution to vast and diverse markets, as well as being able to
respond to specialized niche markets, communications via satellite,
today and in the future, will be the most and cost effective for distribution
of content. The
successful operator among the innumerable who provide Internet, DTH
Television and broadcast will be the one who finds the right global
focus and provides the right reach which best suits the market demands,
Roger cautioned. The
20 percent cap on equity on broadcasting and cable companies will be
a big dampener on companies planning to enter the direct-to-home (DTH)
segment in India, he said adding that the minimum equity cap of broadcasting
companies in any DTH venture should have been 40 per cent. He also cautioned
that many companies would hold back their entry into Indian DTH market
even if the equity cap is raised to 49 per cent. Roger
believed that that signs of movements within the telecommunications
regulatory bodies in India. This seems to be the answer to the long
awaited push directly from operators and new budding companies that
see this movement as beneficial to the country’s economic, social and
political growth. The opening to international operators for Internet
access shows signs that the need for broadband is there and there Roger
said that since ventures like DTH demanded heavy investment from investors
and companies, only management control could be an incentive for such
collaborations. Towards this end, Alain Roger, said that currently satellite
landing points were limited to gateways which should be broadband based
and the government should allow multi-casting by satellite companies
to offer as array of services. He
informed that EuropeStar, which has dedicated one satellite to the South
Asian region is in talks with three other Indian players who are entering
the DTH segment. The company provides fee-to-air digital receiver and
other satellite receiving systems. “EuropeStar will launch digital IRD,
embedded conditional access with common interfaces”, he said. The
development of science and technology brings about incessant changes.
The efficiency, cost effectiveness and superior performance have been
realised, fibre optic technology has found serious consideration with
both the Indian government and private players. The
race is on to stay at the forefront of the fibre optic test and measurement
revolution. Technology is evolving at Formula I velocity: escalating
fibre counts, tighter specs and ribbonized fibres are unleashing awesome
changes in the industry. Seven Hills Opticommunication (P) Ltd. brought
the total solution with “EXFO”, Canada, exclusively representing India
and on a global scale, as the fibre optic revolution knows no frontier. Ascom
India Private Limited is the fully owned subsidiary of Ascom AG and
has been in India since 1992. Ascom India has already established itself
as a market leader in postal automation, ISDN terminals, network terminators,
energy systems and carrier access systems and is poised for further
success. Energy
systems : Ascom is the leading global supplier of uninterruptible power
supply systems for telecommunications, information technology, network
technology, office automation and medical applications. Telecom
solutions : Call centre solutions for service-oriented enterprises and
telecom operators. PBX:
Ascom offers Private Branch Exchanges (PBX) for small -to medium-sized
enterprises for precise and reliable high-speed communications. Carrier
Access: Ascom offers cost effective flexible and managed access network
systems for public operators and for dedicated networks, meeting the
requirements of carrier and corporate networks around the world.
Satellite
is the future of communication. It is easy for having higher bandwidth.
Contrary to popular belief satellite is capable of providing point to
point and point to multi-point access. The propounders of satellite
communication see it as a stimulative creative force for creation of
a new market. The
satellite will remain for some time, as a complementary system to the
fibre-optic but David Hartshorn, secretary general of Global VSAT Forum,
believes that it has the potential to replace the wire. The wireless
satellite signals can reach the remotest areas, which would never get
wired. Hartshorn
and David Robson, marketing manager, Eutelsat, see India as an emerging
satellite market. Progressively it is lowering barriers and regulation.
The demand from consumers is increasing and India needs to follow the
European pattern. With the virtual diminishing of the licence, European
VSAT has started booming. Today Europe, despite strong wire connectivity,
is the second largest VSAT user after the US. Most
corporates, in US and Europe including, Reuters, Peugeot, VISA and UN
organisations are each linked to about 5000 sites through VSAT. It is
now the turn of India to follow. The
challenges before India was cited as high licence fee, 64 K data cap,
individual licencing and domestic only access. Hartshorn
gives a solution too. He wants total deregulation, lifting of the cap,
blanket licencing, strong interconnectivity and a regional approach
policy. Another strong stimulant for satellite communication for India,
be it entertainment or interactive TV, was seen in its strong migrant
population around the globe. Anver Anderson, Manager
Marketing, Video Services, Europe Star, UK, says the 11 million
Indians abroad are a
significant market. They are all familiar with home grown products and
they are from all linguistic group. They can be served at DTH level,
which is virtually satellite ready through 70 metre dish antennae. The
same signal can deliver and with the provision of personal voice recorder
(PVR) broadcasters need not change programme schedule. There
has to be convergence not only of technologies and services, it has
also to come down to the level of mindset. Simultaneous local and regional
broadcast is becoming a reality. The
main component of the new generation satellite TV will be a set-top
box. It will be like a keyboard. The user can access programmes of his
choice and at his will. Convergence of network TV, local TV, Internet,
and DTH, which now is a reality, will have far better receptivity. More
channels will also be available. K
Narayanan, Executive Vice President of Agrani Satellite Services stressing
on the advantage of the satellite over the terrestrial network says
it has speed, reach, mobility, transportability and bandwidth. The Indian
scenario itself has undergone a vast change with Indian Space Research
Organisation providing the basic platform. He
feels satellite has to compete with the fibre despite their being complimentary
to each other. The two are to stay. And together can provide direct
to operator (DTO) and direct to home (DTH), and rural network. The
segment is bound to grow. It is at trigger point. Microsoft has seized
upon it. AOL is investing $1.5 billion. The satellite has come of age.
The teething problems are over. It is making presence where the fibre
link is the highest. It is becoming a trend the world over and the expectation
is that business is to boom in India and the pan-Asia region. Digital
and Analog Transmitter Verification for GSM, IS-136 and CDMA Outstanding
Interference Resolution Capabilities. The ideal on-call Base Station
Test Tool. The
Tektronix NetTek is a revolutionary portable field tool. The YBT250
test module tailors this system for fast trouble resolution and easy
transmitter verification of cellular and PCS base stations. The
NetTek with the YBT250 is not an expensive, do-everything solution;
instead, the YBT250 is optimized to perform the day-to-day RF measurement
tasks that occupy the majority of a technician’s time. Further, the
YBT250 offers this capability at a surprisingly low price, in a rugged,
easy-to-use package, suitable for all field environments. FEATURES
AND BENEFITS : Hand-held, Multi-standard BTS Tx Field Tester, Modular
Instrument Allows for Easy Future Expansion for New Functions, Verifies
the Most Important RF Transmitter Functions of GSM, CDMA, TDMa &
Analog Base Stations, User-changeable Battery Packs with Optional External
Charger for Uninterrupted Use, Optional Interference Analyst with High
Sensitivity AM and FM Demodulation Helps Identify Interference Problems,
Rugged, Light-Weight, Easy to Use Anywhere, Future Expandability for
3G. APPLICATIONS:
BTS Tx Troubleshooting in the Field, Resolve Interference Problems,
Maintenance and Installation Checks, RF QoS Monitoring. EASY
TO USE The
NetTek BTS field tool is based around the familiar Windows CE operating
system. As a result, users will spend less time learning the instrument
and more time troubleshooting the network. The YBT250 puts measurement
functions just a point of the finger away. Furthermore, built in help
guides speed the measurement process. Common
measurements have been optimized for quick, repeatable results. For
example, novice users can display spectrum analyzer results with straightforward
Windows-like zoom and resize controls. For
further details : Visit Stall No. 408, Hall No. 11 at Convergence India
2001 or Contact : Mr. Krishna B Mariyanka, Executive -MarCom, E-mail:
krishna.b.mariyanka@tek.com New
Skies, a satellite communications company offering video, Internet,
voice and data communications services to a range of broadcasters, ISPs
and telecommunications carriers around the world, has recently launched
a second Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) platform used to carry Internet
traffic for the Indian sub-continent based on the extremely strong demand
for service. A third platform is planned for implementation later this
year. New
Skies’ suite of Internet bundled service offering trademarked IPsys
sm , creates a direct connection from the Internet backbone
to an ISP’s local service point using a high- speed Digital Video Broadcast
or Single Channel Per Carrier (SCPC) connections. Multi homing satellite
links enable ISPs to offer their customers one-hop connections from
the global Internet backbone, thus reducing latency and IP packet loss.
The IPsys sm service makes use of direct peering with Tier
I Internet backbone providers for more direct and thus more robust connections. Speaking
at Syposium on “New Vision for Satellite Communication in the 21st
Century” Srini Prasanna, Vice President of Sales for India, Middle East
and Africa said “India is experiencing tremendous growth in the need
for Internet connectivity. This is being fuelled by dramatic growth
in the number of rich media applications for the Internet and new users
vying for access. We are fully committed and able to meet the needs
of this demanding market.” New
Skies Satellites NV (AEX, NYSE:NSU) with its network of five geostationary
satellites, it is one of only three fixed satellite service companies
with truly global satellite coverage. Srini Prasanna also informed that the company has responded to the growing demand for interactive broadband multimedia communications in the region by contracting for an interactive broadband multimedia satellite to serve Asia, including the entire Indian sub-continent from 95 degrees East longitude scheduled for launch by the fourth quarter of 2002. This satellite has a number of unique features optimized for Internet and broadband multimedia traffic. |