The Hindu Business Line : ‘Next-gen networks to bring in new Net services at cheaper rates’

Bangalore, Nov 25 Next generation networks (NGN) will change India’s experience of IPTV, Web and entertainment, according to the Juniper Networks India Managing Director, Mr N. Venkaswamy. The country can expect to see NGNs in the near future – a major service provider and partner of Juniper has begun a pilot project.

What it means

NGN refers to the single network that will transport voice, data, and video by encapsulating these into packets, like it is done on the Internet, across the country. At the onset, NGNs will be targeted at corporates, bringing better video conferencing, faster data transfers and more reliability than today’s networks. For homes, entertainment, online gaming and new real time content will begin to flow once broadband pipes with bandwidths of 10-25 MBps are allotted. This would happen a year from now, Mr Venkaswamy said.

Advantages

BSNL, the third largest telecom provider, is the only one to unleash 2 MBps bandwidth broadband. Once private players follow, the dynamics of the trio – telecom, cabling and content industries – will change. A user will be able to order just one channel – say a sports one – and pay for it alone. Over the next 5-10 years, NGNs will allow service providers to offer new applications at cheaper rates. The cost of operations will be better and new services will be launched, he said.

Couch Potato

Voice over IP (VoIP) is expected to be the most important application over an NGN. “The first casualty in the next ten years will be the landline,” he said. VoIP will allow users to make phone calls using the PC or TV. NGNs might mean a downturn to other industries – the currently flourishing DVD one and the cinema theatres too. “The idea is to make the consumer a couch potato. From your sofa, you will be able to rent videos, play and even surf the Net,” he said. “The fun is not so much in the infrastructure but in the new services that will be possible.” Juniper Networks will provide the “plumbing” for these networks.

“The march of technology is on; it is cheaper, faster and more eco-friendly than our legacy technology. More bandwidth intensive services will flow in. More relevant content will be offered.” Rural India will not be left behind. “Convergence for rural India will be the long term driver for our business,” said Mr Venkaswamy.

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