The new body will cooperate with the Indian government to pave the way for the future deployment of 5G technologies
The cellular operators association of India (COAI) has officially launched the 5G India Forum to boost the local ecosystem towards the implementation of 5G technology.
The forum aims to bring together the different players in the telecommunications, mobility and connectivity eco-system in order to have an active role in the development of 5G networks in the country.
The new body will also work to shape the strategic, commercial and regulatory development of the 5G ecosystem in India.
COAI’s members include India’s top telecoms operators including Bharti Airtel, Aircel, Vodafone India, Idea Cellular, Reliance Jio Infocomm and Telenor India.
The 5G India Forum will have a close cooperation with governmental officials with the main aim of preparing a roadmap for 5G deployment.
“Adoption of 5G will require substantial investment in more downstream innovation than previous generations of communications systems,” COAI’s director general Rajan Mathews, said. “New business ecosystems are expected to emerge in which multiple players will meet, compete, collaborate and work together, at the same time. The 5G India Forum will serve as a strategic national initiative which will address key concerns of all stakeholders, seek inputs from private, public, small and large companies, to meet the challenge of making 5G a reality in India.”
COAI will also collaborate with various international forums currently working on 5G technology.
The 5G India Forum will also help identify vertical application domains, and use cases which would benefit from 5G. The body will also prepare input documents as well as a platform for facilitating continuous dialogue on key issues such as standardization, technology development, spectrum availability, deployment scenarios and international engagements. COAI also said that the forum will support the creation of a venture-like program to encourage eco-system players to develop 5G services.
