Govt to auction 5G spectrum for 20 yrs; allows private captive networks

 The government will auction a total of 72097.85 MHz of spectrum with a validity of 20 years by July-end, said an official statement

The Union Cabinet has cleared the auction for 5G airwaves paving the way for auction and commercial launch of next generation telecom services this year. The cabinet in its meeting on Tuesday approved Department of Telecom’s proposal for the auction of 72 GHz of spectrum for a 20-year-period. It also decided to “enable the development and setting up of private captive networks to spur a new wave of innovations in industry 4.0 applications”.

“A total of 72097.85 MHz of spectrum with a validity period of 20 years will be put to auction to be held by the end of July, 2022. The auction will be held for spectrum in various bands (600 MHz, 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz), Mid (3300 MHz) and High (26 GHz) frequency bands,” the government said in a press release on Wednesday….Read More

Boris Johnson defies Trump, grants Huawei limited role in UK’s 5G network

US congressional leaders widely criticized Britain’s decision, with powerful Senator Lindsey Graham saying it could “greatly complicate” drawing up a new agreement after Britain exits the EU on Jan 31

Prime Minister Boris Johnson granted Huawei a limited role in Britain’s 5G mobile network on Tuesday, frustrating a global attempt by the United States to exclude the Chinese telecoms giant from the West’s next-generation communications.

Defying Britain’s closest ally in favour of China on the eve of Brexit, Johnson ruled that “high-risk vendors” such as Huawei would be allowed into the non-sensitive parts of the 5G network. Whilst such high-risk companies’ involvement will be capped at 35%, they will be excluded from the sensitive core, where data is processed, and they will be banned from all critical networks and locations such as nuclear sites and military bases.

Such an explicit rejection of US concerns that Huawei could be used to steal Western secrets was welcomed by the Chinese firm, founded in 1987 by a former People’s Liberation Army engineer, but dismayed the administration of US President Donald Trump.

Johnson and Trump spoke by phone shortly after the decision was made public. “The Prime Minister underlined the importance of like-minded countries working together to diversify the market and break the dominance of a small number of companies,” the British government said in a statement. Speaking before the call, a Trump administration official said: “There is no safe option for untrusted vendors to control any part of a 5G network…

Sunil Mittal bats for Huawei Technologies, says it should be in play

According to Mittal, it is surprising how fast Huawei have improved their technology.

Sunil Mittal, founder and chairman of Bharti Enterprises, on Thursday lend his voice in favour of Chinese telecom gear maker Huawei Technologies that has been caught in the ongoing US-China trade war.

Sitting beside the US Secretary for Commerce Wilbur Ross, who voiced concerns over security risks involved with firms like Huawei, Sunil Mittal said its products were ‘significantly superior’ than European companies’ on whom the US departments are dependent.

Mittal, who was part of the discussion panel on the trade war at the India Economic Summit, said, “Without getting into a debate on security risks, I can say that over the past 10-12 years, Huawei have become extremely good with their products. I can safely say their products are superior to Ericsson and Nokia, without a doubt. I use products from all three of them.” Mittal was responding to Ross’ allegations on Chinese telecom equipment maker’s breach of internet protocols for American companies in the past.

According to Mittal, it is surprising how fast Huawei have improved their technology. “The power consumption is a fraction of Europeans, the footprint is small if you have to put it on a tower, and they have powerful leading features. They are leading edge and have very powerful features,” he said. His response came after Ross highlighted Huawei’s poor records forced the US to ban it as security risks involved in the 5G technology is much higher..

CES 2019: Flying taxis, foldable devices, 5G network, walking car, and more

Take a look at some of the key announcements that took place at CES 2019 on January 8

Technology News: The consumer electronics show (CES) 2019 has started with announcements around next-generation wireless networks, foldable devices, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, computing devices, etc. On Tuesday, the mega technology event saw companies showcasing innovations that would either be part of our lives soon or shape the technology of the future. Let’s take a look at some of the announcements that took place at CES 2019 on January 8

Screen 2.0

Bendable screens, rollable televisions and foldable phones are some of the technology trends that are expected to shape the technology industry this year. Therefore, the floor at CES 2019 is full of prototypes showcasing what is possible with this new screen technology.

Google Assistant set to get smarter

At the CES 2019, Google made some key announcements around its digital personal assistant – Google Assistant. From enabling assistant services in Google Maps for iOS and Android devices to introducing the interpreter mode to translate 27 languages in real time, the Google announcement at CES 2019 was all about the Google Assistant, which is set to get smarter.

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