It has been ages since any major new service launch happened in the Indian telecom industry. The next big thing for the industry, as well as consumers, directly won’t be the 5G launch but BSNL’s (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited’s) 4G launch. The state-run telco’s 4G networks would change the entire dynamic of the Indian telecom industry. Users will finally get one more option apart from Jio, Airtel, and Vi. One thing that’s great about BSNL’s business model is that it doesn’t directly look for profits in everything. Well yeah, that also eats up the taxpayers money, but at the end of the day, BSNL wants to offer services in rural areas where private telcos don’t because of the return on investment factor.
When Will BSNL Launch 4G in India ?
Going by the words of the CMD, P.K. Purwar, BSNL is gearing up for a soft launch of 4G networks by August 2022. Then, by the end of the year, BSNL will launch 4G networks nationwide and compete with the private telcos directly.
BSNL’s rise in the Indian telecom market will help with balancing the scales. Right now, the private sector in the telecom industry is very dominating and earns maximum revenue. BSNL can change that pretty fast with good quality 4G networks and then in the future with a 5G launch.
It is worth noting that C-DoT (Centre for Development of Telematics), the R&D arm of the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), is working on developing indigenous/homegrown 5G networks. BSNL’s rise will not just depend on 4G but also on 5G and how fast the state-run telco can launch it. With 5G networks, BSNL will get a whole new stream of revenue from enterprise services. 5G networks are primarily going to be needed by the enterprises rather than the consumers. With 4G, BSNL can focus on increasing subscriber market share and with 5G on enterprise services.
