Mukesh Ambani and Sunil Mittal have differed over the rollout of 5G services in the country and the need to hold early spectrum auction.
At the India Mobile Congress on Tuesday, Ambani said Reliance Jio would roll out 5G by the second half of 2021 using indigenous technology only to be contradicted by Mittal who said the country would be ready for 5G tech in the next two-three years even as his deputy Gopal Vittal chipped in with his view that local 5G technology posed an existential threat.
The Centre is yet to clear the air on the timing of India’s much awaited maiden 5G spectrum sale or the bands likely to be on offer.
Airtel had earlier said it would refrain from bidding for 5G spectrum if the reserve price was high. Telecom regulator Trai has recommended a floor price of Rs 492 crore per Mhz for spectrum in the 3,300-3,600 Mhz band.
Speaking at the inaugural event of the mobile congress, Ambani said policy steps were needed to accelerate the early rollout of 5G in the country and to make it affordable and available everywhere.
“I assure you that Jio will pioneer the 5G revolution in India in the second half of 2021. It will be powered by an indigenous-developed network, hardware and technology components. Jio’s 5G service will be a testimony to your inspiring vision of Atma Nirbhar Bharat… The 5G would enable India to not only participate in the Fourth Industrial Revolution but also to lead it,” Ambani said.
Ambani’s Jio Platforms had already partnered Qualcomm Technologies to fast-track the deployment of 5G mobile internet based on home grown technology.
However, Bharti Enterprises chairman Sunil Mittal said at the event that it would take to 2-3 years to roll out 5G.
“As world settles down on 5G space, pricing of the equipment comes down and importantly the devices start getting available in plentiful, I think India in two-three years' time will be ready to receive the benefit of the investments that the globe would have made on 5G standard and 5G ecosystems,” Mittal said.
Bharti Airtel South Asia CEO Gopal Vittal called for embracing global 5G standards’ in India as the idea to develop country specific 5G standard was an existential threat and will lock the country out of the global ecosystem.
“There are sometimes talks that India must have its own 5G standard. This is an existential threat which could lock India out of the global ecosystem and slow down the pace of innovation. We could have let our citizens down if you allow that to happen,” Vittal said.