Digital Gangetic Plains

1. Digital Gangetic Plains Pravin Bhagwat Dheeraj Sanghi Pricipal Investigators Digital Gangetic Plains Project IIT Kanpur S.G. Dhande Director, IIT Kanpur Head, Kanpur Lucknow Lab Media Lab Asia Manoj Kumar Project Manager Digital Gangetic Plains Project IIT Kanpur IIT Kanpur

2. Worldwide Mobile Phone Penetration 65% 39% 22% 3.9% 21% *Source EMC database IIT Kanpur

3. Mobile Telephony evolution has been shaped by technical innovations and market forces in the west 4G This business model can thrive when average per capita income is high ($20K) 1G 2G 3G The key challenge Wireless systems being deployed in India are successful in Metro pockets, but providing cost effective voice and data services to the masses will remain a challenge for many years to come. Generating conducive climate so that seeds of innovation and entrepreneurship can take root Achieving necessary cost reduction for mass market penetration Reaching out to the remaining 83% of the world market IIT Kanpur

4. Barriers to Digital Empowerment Value Pricing of Communication Service People in developed economies are willing to pay this price because voice is a very high value application Operations 1/3 Willingness to pay for data is much less Rs. 2-3 per minute 1/3 $$ Spectrum 1/3 We cannot peg our hopes for price reduction on continued market growth since price elasticity in this market has already been maximized Equipment Cost amortized over seven years IIT Kanpur

5. Enable entry of grass roots entrepreneurs Lower regulatory barriers Customize mass market technology for our use Bridging the digital divide O&M Spectrum Equipment IIT Kanpur

6. Strategy #1 Operations Spectrum Cost of inventing a new technology is high Leverage worldwide economies of scale and customize existing technology for our own needs. Equipment IIT Kanpur

7. Promising technology: 802.11b • Replacement for Ethernet • Supported data rates • Current: 11, 5.5, 2, 1 Mbps • Future: 20+ Mbps in 2.4 GHz and up to 54 Mbps in 5.7 GHz band • Range • Indoor 20 - 25 meters • Outdoor: 50 – 100 meters • Transmit power up to 100 mW • Cost: • Chipsets $ 25 – 40 • AP $120 - $1000 • PCMCIA cards $60 - $110 IIT Kanpur

8. Further range extension using multi-hopping Internet access within 0.5 Km radius of the village center 802.11b range extension using directional, home grown, custom made antennas Alternate path routing for high reliability Technology Customization Example: Internet Access in Rural India 5 - 8 Km Village Internet Metro IIT Kanpur

9. Range Extension Multi Hopping Performance & range studies DGP Research Program 72 Mbps Turbo .11a 54 Mbps 802.11{a,b} 5-11 Mbps 802.11b .11b p-to-p link 1-2 Mbps 802.11 µwave p-to-p links 384 Kbps WCDMA, CDMA2000, HDR 56 Kbps IS-95, GSM, CDMA Outdoor 50 – 200m Mid range outdoor 200m – 4Km Long range outdoor 5Km – 20Km Long distance com. 20m – 50Km Indoor 10 – 30m IIT Kanpur

10. Inexpensive solution for the last mile problem Cost effective alternative to long distance leased lines. Lost cost mobile voice+data services for the rural sector Three Value Propositions 72 Mbps Turbo .11a 54 Mbps 802.11{a,b} 5-11 Mbps 802.11b .11b p-to-p link 1-2 Mbps 802.11 µwave p-to-p links 384 Kbps WCDMA, CDMA2000, HDR 56 Kbps IS-95, GSM, CDMA Outdoor 50 – 200m Mid range outdoor 200m – 4Km Long range outdoor 5Km – 20Km Long distance com. 20m – 50Km Indoor 10 – 30m IIT Kanpur

11. Strategy #2 Operations Spectrum Let thousand flowers bloom Equipment IIT Kanpur

12. Regulatory Issues 802.11a Up to 54 Mbps 802.11b 1, 2, 5.5, 11Mbps 2.4 – 2.483 Ghz 5.15 – 5.35 Ghz 5.725 – 5.825 Ghz • Indoor use permitted • License required for outdoor use (4 W EIPR max) • No indoor or outdoor use permitted as yet IIT Kanpur

13. Strategy #3 Experiment with new business models. Do not emulate the west. Operations Spectrum Equipment IIT Kanpur

14. PCO PCO PCO PCO PCO Example 1: Unwired PCO • Benefits • Low cost method of expanding telephony services • PCO’s can offer in-bound call service • Portability • Additional revenue stream via offering Internet access • Unlimited potential for offering value-added services Wireless access around each PCO IIT Kanpur

15. Sept ‘02 Safipur March ‘02 Dec ‘02 Lucknow Saroha Rajajipuram 17.3 Km Bithoor Nov ‘02 End to end distance 85 Km 22.5 Km 38 Km Mandhana June ‘02 12 Km 37 Km 5.1 Km 2.3 Km Lodhar April ‘02 DGP Project Milestones Digital Gangetic Plains project is a proof of concept that wireless connectivity in rural areas is technically and economically viable. Built using off the shelf wireless equipment (originally designed for indoor use), DGP is perhaps the world’s largest rural outdoor 802.11 network today. IIT Kanpur River Ganges IIT Kanpur

16. Police Village Agriculture Health Care/ Education Tahseel Current IT needs of Rural Market • interconnecting geographically disperse govt. offices is the first step towards IT enabling villages • Several govt. agencies (state of Uttaranchal, Chattishgarh) have approached us to design a wireless connecitivity solution for them • Building a separate network for each Govt. agency is costly and inefficient IIT Kanpur

17. Police Village Agriculture Health Care/ Education Tahseel A possible roll out Scenario • A cost effective solution is to have a common infrastructure maintained by a central agency • Other agencies can make use of it for their connectivity requirements IIT Kanpur

18. Concluding Remarks 802.11{b,a} • Will continue to grow in US/European market • Public spaces, home, industry vertical, and enterprise market • Offers a great promise for bringing low cost networking services to the Indian mass market Recommendations • Open up license free spectrum for low cost wireless connectivity applications • Work with other partners to harmonize use of spectrum across Asia/Pacific region • Facilitate interaction between technologists, govt. agencies, and entrepreneurs by launching a focused national initiative on low cost rural connectivity IIT Kanpur