Is a 2G mobile network shutdown imminent?, Telecom News, ET Telecom

There have been calls for the closure of 2G networks in the Indian mobile market for some time. But given the unique dynamics of the telecommunications industry, is it wise to shut down a network that still serves approximately 200-250 million feature phone users in rural and remote areas?

The idea has been floated again by Reliance Jio, the country’s largest telecom player, which did not offer 2G services and started with a 4G-only network. His two other private players Airtel and Vodafone Idea combine their 2G network with his 4G network. Meanwhile, 5G services have been launched by both Reliance Jio and Airtel.

With the advent of new technologies, people are upgrading to 4G/5G services, resulting in a decrease in the number of 2G users who only use voice and messaging services without an internet connection. However, the number is still huge. Out of more than 1.2 billion users, about 200 to 250 million users are using his 2G, and for the time being it is important to run the network for them. Economic factors – Affordability is one of the biggest barriers for such users to move to more advanced technology services. Also, considering the enterprise use of 2G, 2G will coexist with other technologies such as his 4G and 5G.

Experts say that while the demise of 2G is a real possibility in the long term, it should be ruled out for the next three to four years. In the long run, the closure of 2G networks may affect the operating cost of the network, but it will not have a major impact as the operating cost of the network is not very high due to the Multi RAT architecture deployed by carriers.

Reliance Jio recently said that the government should devise a policy to shut down traditional 2G and 3G networks to avoid unnecessary network costs and allow all customers to migrate to new 4G and 5G networks. I suggested. Vodafone Idea said that inorganic outage of 2G/3G networks due to regulatory mandates will impact financial inclusion of rural and marginal consumers using feature phones and services offered through ATMs and PoS machines. As such, he opposed such a move.

Vodafone Idea has the highest percentage of 2G users in India. If 2G is shut down, it will lose the maximum number of subscribers, but Jio, which only has a 4G network, will gain the maximum number of subscribers. Jio has launched two versions of its internet-enabled affordable feature phone JioPhone to attract 2G users to its network.

However, both Jio and Vodafone Idea have raised the possibility that the government could tap unspent cash from the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) corpus to prompt millions of 2G users to quickly upgrade to 4G/5G services. agreed that a mobile phone subsidy scheme should be funded. Currently, around Rs 77,113 crore remains unspent under his USOF corpus.

Experts add that the demise of 2G will be determined by how the ecosystem evolves over the next few years, rather than by any impending network overhaul or strategic move by another carrier.