D2M broadcasting, as outlined in a paper by Indian Institute of Expertise (IIT) Kanpur in 2022, proposes a mechanism for multimedia broadcasting with out counting on information connectivity. The mechanism is already in use for emergency broadcasts of presidency notifications, however the newest proposal showcases its use in bringing tv and multimedia content material broadcasting on to smartphones, thereby bringing content-driven companies to customers who nonetheless wouldn’t have direct entry to cell information.
Info and broadcasting secretary Apurva Chandra stated that talks of a pilot D2M broadcasting challenge have commenced “throughout 19 cities utilizing the digital terrestrial transmission community of Prasar Bharati.”
Trade challenges, nonetheless, will persist. “The pilot launch would be the first step—you want a sure chip in units. We’ve to see how that adoption takes place. Then, we’ve to see how a lot content material is being consumed—we’ll take all of this into consideration earlier than launching at a mass scale. As of now, we’re not mandating any smartphone firm or telecom operator, since that is solely a pilot,” Chandra added.
The transfer implies that with a purpose to help the know-how, smartphones would require both a specialised chip, or an add-on dongle. Bengaluru-headquartered Saankhya Labs on Tuesday unveiled one such chip, claiming to carry the potential to faucet hundreds of thousands of customers for D2M broadcasting.
“The important thing to bringing the know-how to a wider viewers will lie in attaining scale. We’re already in talks with authentic design producers (ODMs), however we received’t have to associate with chipmakers for this. Our goal is to succeed in a scale of 10 million-odd customers to distribute the know-how with, which must be doable on condition that the market has over 1 billion units and customers. At such a scale, the addition of our chip in Android smartphones will solely lead to a price addition of round $2.5 (~ ₹200) per gadget,” stated Parag Naik, chief govt of Saankhya Labs.
“Our plug-and-play dongle, which can even help D2M broadcasts, is already being marketed within the US, and we’ll carry it to India in about six months to 1 yr at round ₹600-800,” Naik added.
Saankhya’s plans, at current, stay at a really nascent stage, and can hinge upon talks of the Centre backing a pilot D2M broadcast within the coming months.
Naik didn’t title any ODM or model associate that they’ve related to or acquired curiosity from to date, stating that they continue to be “in talks” in the meanwhile.
Trade stakeholders, too, have raised issues. S. P. Kochhar, director-general of trade physique, Mobile Operators Affiliation of India (Coai) on Monday stated that issues across the know-how stay “on the features of stage enjoying subject, spectrum allocation, community integration and regulatory and value arbitrage, in favour of the proposed public-private partnership mannequin and in opposition to the telecom service suppliers.”
“Constructing a devoted D2M community by earmarking spectrum particularly for the broadcasting infrastructure, offering competing or complementary companies, would result in a breach of stage enjoying subject. Offloading mobile networks additionally requires an in depth integration of broadcasting capabilities with mobile networks, in order that the spectrum and infrastructure will be optimally leveraged for broadcasting and IMT companies as per the demand. A devoted D2M community, constructed by a 3rd occasion, won’t be able to realize these features optimally,” Kochhar additional added.
A senior telecom trade advisor, who requested anonymity, additional added that value-added companies akin to content material subscriptions, that are provided together with bundled information plans, could possibly be hit with D2M broadcasts infringing upon an space the place “telcos can earn”.
“The whole telecom trade is principally in opposition to any type of D2M broadcasts, and a number of entities together with chip and infrastructure makers have clarified that it could not be as easy a transfer as simply including a chip and a characteristic for customers. India’s value of knowledge can also be dwindling, which is additional pushing telcos to protest in opposition to the D2M pilot,” the advisor stated.
Chandra, nonetheless, affirmed {that a} professional use case stays for D2M broadcasting. “There are about 280 million households within the nation, of which solely about 190 million have TV. Which means nonetheless, almost 90 million households wouldn’t have televisions. On the similar time, the variety of smartphones in India is 800 million, and is anticipated to rise to 1 billion. That is why D2M broadcasts supply super alternatives. This could additionally result in a rise in information consumption, which is anticipated to succeed in 43.7 exabytes monthly this yr. Practically 69% of this information consumption happens due to video content material streaming. Even when 25-30% of it may be offloaded to D2M broadcasts, this will tremendously assist scale back masses on 5G networks,” he stated.
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Printed: 16 Jan 2024, 11:29 PM IST
