Translating Customer Needs into Network Innovations Instrumental in 5G Success: Amit Malik, VP & Sales Leader, Ciena India

Mission India 2047 is a viable goal from the government that provides motivation and focus for the entire technology ecosystem, feels Amit Malik, Vice President & Sales Leader, Ciena India. 

India adopted 5G quite late. Have we caught up with the recent implementation and how can the entire industry maximize the impact of 5G? 

India is experiencing a massive 5G rollout and the entire communications ecosystem, from communication service providers (CSPs), and hyperscalers to submarine cable operators seems very bullish about 5G. I would go so far as to say that India is currently the fastest-growing Internet market in the world right now. 

With 1.2 billion subscribers, India is currently the second-largest telecom market in the world. 5G is revolutionizing the way data is processed and transmitted, providing extremely low latency connectivity, and resulting in the rapid expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), robotics, and cloud computing. As a result, web traffic flows are changing and moving toward the metro and network edge, increasing the need for common routing and switching aggregation platforms. 

A network strategy, which takes into account the convergence of legacy and future network architectures, network automation, and security leveraging data-based analytics would be key in meeting this demand. 

Because CSPs in India are actively exploring 5G use cases, there have been several exciting proofs of concept, including breakthroughs in fields like healthcare (e.g. remote surgery), agriculture (e.g. artificial rain induced by networked machines interacting with one another), and smart cities. 

But, translating customer needs into network innovations, and in turn, into revenue-generating services would be instrumental to the success of 5G. A network strategy, which takes into account the convergence of legacy and future network architectures, network automation, and security leveraging data-based analytics would be key in meeting this demand. 

There is already talk of 6G. Are we ready for future advanced networks to benefit both business and society? 

While Ciena is keeping abreast of future 6G development, 6G is yet to be a factor in network investment plans per se, as the technology is still in early development. Rather network investment right now is happening at the edge of the network and related to broadband service expansion. 

What is also happening though is that CSPs are thinking strategically about how their infrastructure build-out should be done to serve not just immediate connectivity needs, but for long-term capacity and capability. So even if 6G is still largely an academic and policy exercise, CSPs are indeed thinking further ahead than their current needs, to see that their network is able to keep up and adapt to any new trend, be it 6G, applications like the metaverse, or others. CSPs are looking for more flexibility, programmability, and the ability to get what they need in place today but not have to completely rip it out and replace it every five years to keep up. 

India is aiming to be a tech superpower one hundred years after Independence. Where are we placed in our Mission India 2047 plans? What are our strengths and weaknesses? What more can we do? 

Mission India 2047 is a viable goal from the government that provides motivation and focus for the entire technology ecosystem. We’re only at the start of this journey and look what we have accomplished already. As I mentioned previously, India is probably the fastest-growing Internet market in the world. In less than a year, India’s CSPs have deployed 2.7 lakh 5G sites and they are not stopping this aggressive push. 

India also continues to be an attractive Internet gateway location due to its location and saturation in parts of Asia. Thanks to India’s 8,000km coastline and strategic geographic coordinates, it plays a pivotal role in the global communication infrastructure by serving as the transit route for most submarine cables connecting Europe and Southeast Asia. Due to rapid infrastructure and surging cloud growth, India is becoming a growing epicenter for internet traffic between Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. India’s 2 million square-km Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) is also aiding this growth. All these will only aid in preserving India’s reputation as a data center hub, aiding Mission India 2047. 

India is experiencing an influx of investment in its data centers due to its significant market potential, relaxed policies, and regulatory environment, and the market is expected to show a 38% compound annual growth rate between 2021 to 2028, according to a study from TeleGeography. 

However, India’s greatest strength is its people. Around 65% of the total population in India is below the age of 35, making the youth of India an untapped potential. However, according to the Global Business Coalition for Education (GBC-Education), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the Education Commission, more than half of Indian youth are not on track to have the education and skills necessary for employment by 2030. 

This is why Ciena has been working with various non-profits across India as part of its global commitment to expand opportunities for students and youths through digital inclusion programs. Ciena’s Digital Inclusion Program continues to enable greater access to affordable connectivity, technology, and initiatives that foster digital upskilling and access. To date, more than 25,000 underserved youths and adults in India have benefitted from the program. 

What is Ciena’s India mission in all of the above? 

Ciena has been actively involved in India for more than 18 years with a growing customer base, including all the local Tier 1 service providers. India is also home to Ciena’s largest R&D centers of excellence where critical intellectual property is developed. Our India mission would be to continue to support our customers as they embrace digital transformation and other transformative technologies. 

This is based on fundamental drivers in India, including mobility and 5G; cloud; the build-up of data centers; IoT and connected objects; increasingly virtual and hybrid lifestyles; and AI, digital transformation, and automation, in network investment. 

Bandwidth demand is also not slowing. India is experiencing an influx of investment in its data centers due to its significant market potential, relaxed policies and regulatory environment, and the market is expected to show a 38% compound annual growth rate between 2021 to 2028, according to a study from TeleGeography. This rate of growth implies international bandwidth demand will increase 10 times over this period. 

We are confident that our leading technology as well as our strategy to expand our addressable market in key areas are closely aligned with these drivers and the areas of investment for our customers in India.