Not 2G, 3G will shut down first in India, says Gopal Vittal
NEW DELHI: With 4G attracting more users and 2G still holding up, it is the 3G telecom networks that will shut down first in India, Gopal Vittal, chief executive and managing director, Bharti Airtel Ltd said.
However, Airtel has not taken a call on shutting its 3G network yet, Vittal said, adding since all new 4G devices can also operate on 3G, chances of a merger between 3G and 4G networks are higher.
The 3G network will shut down faster as all 4G devices are coming with 3G chipsets .... 3G is also carrying voice... At some point, there could be a need to shut down 3G network and move on to 4G network,” Vittal said in an analyst call on Wednesday.
Despite the entry of highspeed 3G and 4G, 300 million Indian customers still use 2G networks, primarily to make voice calls.
To be sure, Airtel will have a VoLTE (voice over long term evolution) network across the country by the end of this year, which could further eliminate the role of 3G when it comes to carrying voice. 3G and 4G are distinct from 2G -- 2G is used for voice while 3G and 4G are for data.
A top industry executive from a rival firm who spoke on condition of anonymity said 3G will come a cropper since 4G speeds will be higher than 3G. “When we had 2G and EDGE on 2G, it was popular when device prices came down. 3G device prices were high (around $300) and it never took off and suddenly, 4G started coming in, people moved to 4G, which is a $400 device. So, 3G has a limited life in terms of device and customer adoption,” the executive said.
2G price points are still so low and devices are simple to use, so they will remain in vogue until 4G devices come at that price point with the same impact, the executive added.
During the analyst call, Airtel executives also said the company will look to monetise around 10% stake its wholly-owned subsidiary Nettle Infrastructure holds in its tower unit Bharti Infratel Ltd. The management did not offer a timeline for the process. In March, Airtel sold a 10.3% stake in its tower unit to a consortium of investors to raise Rs6,193.9 crore, funds that India’s largest telecom operator plans to use to pare debt and counter competition.