1. Liberalisation of Public Wifi Hotspot Infrastructure
NTP-2018 : Inputs from BIF
Presentation On
Liberalisation of Public Wifi Hotspot Infrastructure
Meeting 4 ( 2nd November )

2. Liberalisation of the Public Wifi
ANCHOR PRINCIPLE-ONE
Liberalisation of the Public Wifi
Hostpot Model

3. Broadband in India
Broadband subscribers ( TRAI Report June’17 ): 300 Mn
Broadband penetration : 300/1250 =< 25%
Total Wireless Subscribers =282Mn
Total Wireline Subscribers=18Mn
However BB is defined at speeds in excess of 512kbps
If one was to filter out the number of subscribers who are at 2Mbps , then the number of actual BB subscribers would be perhaps at around 100Mn ( 1/3rd )
To achieve Digital India, we need to rapidly make Broadband available everywhere

4. Benefits of Public Wifi
Data offload for 4G & 5G networks
This enables users of high capacity data services to download high volumes of data at an affordable cost as compared to Mobile Broadband data
Network speeds in Wifi coverage areas improve as compared to Mobile Data
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5. Public Wifi Hotspot Scenario in India
Total Number of Wifi Hotspots as on Dec’2016 : ~31, 500
We represent a sixth of the World’s Population
However our share of global hotspots is < 1 in 1000
Globally there will be 340 Mn hotspots by 2018 which will mean 1 hotspot for every 20 persons.
For India to reach the current global average of 1 in 150, 8 Mn additional hotspots would be required
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6. What can be done for increasing Public Wifi hotspots
Unlicensed Spectrum
Existing Wifi band is already congested
Additional unlicensed spectrum bands need to be released
BIF has requested for release of additional 5Ghz bands and V band
Permission to provide Public Wifi services with a ‘ mere registration’ and without any license
Seamless Roaming across networks
Simplification of KYC & authentication mechanisms
Light Touch/Registration
Bandwidth resale needs to be permitted
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7. BIF Aggregator Model Wi-Fi aggregator would do the following:
- homogenize a set of heterogeneous hotspot networks and help operate these hotspots for hotspot owners
- provide cloud services to enable business models and service operations as a service to the hotspot owner
- provide end user onboarding services including authentication, authorization & accounting to the hotspot owner
- offer traffic management services to the hotspot owners
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8. BIF Aggregator Model
Aggregation model, wherein a neutral entity partners with various players like Wi-Fi providers, Internet Service Providers (ISPs), TSPs (Telecom Service Providers), payment providers, venues, others to enable Wi-Fi services.
In this model the aggregator drives service integration across the value chain - collaborating with ISPs, TSPs, payment providers and venues. There could be multiple aggregators driving competition.
The aggregator would use authentication mechanisms and payment solutions which are in compliance with the government regulations.
BIF Agrees with TRAI Recommendations on Public Wifi
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9. CONCLUSION/SUMMARY
BIF is of the opinion that there is merit to recommend this category of Wi-Fi Aggregators to be permitted under simple ' online Registration', as this would give a big impetus to the penetration of broadband across the country.
Reselling of bandwidth provided over unlicensed spectrum is also an activity that needs to be permitted for such entities which can help in further proliferation of broadband penetration.
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10. Thank You
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