Sector Focus: Impact of Geospatial Technology on Telecom Utilities
India has the world’s second largest telecommunications industry with a subscriber base of 1.18 billion, as of December 2021. We are also the second largest in terms of number of internet subscribers in the world, with 4G data usage taking up 97.74% of the total usage volume. A critical enabler of this steep growth was the COVID-19 lockdown, during which the Indian telecom industry directly contributed about 6% to the GDP.
Conducive steps by the Government of India are further boosting the industry’s growth. The National Digital Communications Policy foresees investments worth $100 billion in the telecom sector by 2022. Global telecom manufacturers are being encouraged to source 100% local products for indigenous manufacturing through initiatives such as the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme. Indian telecom utilities are gradually achieving alignment with global trends, with digitalization at the fore.
Such rapid changes and ever-increasing demand translate into the need for handling more data volumes, speed, processing capacity, and analytical complexities. From planning to implementation, monitoring to risk management, every operation in the telecom utilities sector now requires integration with big data and spatial data. This is paving the way for increased use and application of Geospatial technologies in the sector.
Role of Geospatial Technologies in Telecommunications
Telecommunications providers must have a well-functioning workflow process that integrates data for marketing, demand forecasting, engineering, customer management, operations support, and fleet management in order to remain competitive. Other important requirements are faster data sharing within firms and system interoperability, as well as the automation of business processes to improve operational efficiency. In this context, geospatial technologies play a critical role.
Network Planning and Deployment
Telecom network planning encompasses three main components:
- Topological Design: Deciding where to place and how to connect network components
- Network Synthesis: Deciding what size of components to use
- Network Realisation: Strategizing on capacity requirements and network reliability
Deployment follows after planning has been done, much like construction projects, but spread across much larger territories.
Maintenance and Operation of Existing Infrastructure
Operations Support Systems (OSS) can be created for the maintenance and monitoring of telecom infrastructure and operations. Network monitoring, outage management, billing, and testing are all examples of OSS. Staff members have fast access to customer status and history, existing plant records, and signal quality information thanks to a common GIS database, which helps with network updates, maintenance, and repairs. Another application of Geospatial technology that allows carriers to be more competitive and save money is the capacity to predict problems and prevent outages before they happen. The integration of numerous systems using industry standard interoperability protocols is required for “near real-time” network monitoring.
Mobile Asset and Risk Management
Mobile asset management encompasses monitoring of operations and availability of those assets that are used to move, store, secure, protect and control the company’s inventory along the supply chain or aligned to service provisioning. Real-time location data offered by Geospatial technology is most effective when it comes to tracking these assets, collating different sets of information about them and mapping them holistically, with reference to other fixed assets. Geospatial tools can also be used in conjunction with radio frequency identification (RFID), cloud, and barcode technology for further advancing data collection, security and usage.
Geospatial technology also offers real-time information on local weather and climate, including information on natural and manmade disasters such as impact, spread, and navigable routes. Targeted spatial data can assist in determining the potential destruction of cyclones and storms as they move through the ocean onto land. Disruptions to critical infrastructure essential for the operation of uninterrupted supply can be taken care of on priority. Geospatial technologies also prove to be pillars of effective communications and real-time information disbursement during such crises.
Marketing and Market Segmentation
Considering the strong linkage of infrastructure, operations, and services of telecom utility companies to the location of each customer, Geospatial technology has an important role to play when it comes to industry market segmentation. This not only allows them to promote more effectively, but it also allows them to forecast service demand. Integrating corporate intelligence, demographic data, and information on the status of building projects in the area with location data and applying various modelling approaches is required for both targeting customers and projecting where and when growth will occur. The results of this research are used to determine network investment budgets and marketing initiatives.
Capacity and Capital Planning
Marketing and market segmentation data can be utilised to develop a logical network of capacities and estimate the capital expenditure required to build this capacity. Geospatial technology is commonly employed in capital planning decision assistance. Current data detailing the existing plant, demand information from the marketing phase, and network performance information from OSS are all used in effective capacity planning.
Wireline Engineering
Wireline engineering systems use GIS applications for quick assessment and modelling of network paths, automation of the work order process, and large volume cartographic output to support field workers. Geospatial data is used to model ‘smart’ objects in the network, thus capturing real-world behavior and linking their features with predefined rules. Such network systems are interoperable, allowing users to integrate other functionalities such as project management software and schematic visualization platforms with the network.
Wireless Engineering
While the majority of second-generation networks have been deployed, new wireless network technologies are driving carriers to rethink their entire networks or portions of them. A wireless network’s design and construction is a time-consuming process that requires numerous iterations of planning and testing.
Planning and design expenditures can be reduced by using comprehensive Geospatial analysis on optimum geographic data. Location intelligence provides designers with prospective antenna sites based on customer, terrain, and landownership data. Optimal models can be devised using wave propagation modeling to stimulate and test wireless coverage configurations, reducing data redundancy and streamlining processes.
Customer Relationship Management
Geospatial technology used in conjunction with customer relationship management (CRM) applications can help ensure timely response to customer queries and performance reporting because all relevant information is instantly accessible on GIS platforms. Accurate, real-time data on infrastructure, signal quality and equipment can be collected and integrated on a single platform and made available for viewing and analysis to all stakeholders.
Fleet Management and Dispatch
Telecom utility companies need to manage and route service vehicles for routine service positioning or in case of outage response. Often, this is marred with delays, excessive drive times, lack of information on territories, and lack of collaboration between expert and field technicians. Geospatial technology can be used in routing applications to generate effective itineraries taking all the above factors into account. This can result in significant cost and time savings, better guidance and coordination between various technicians, and improved customer satisfaction due to faster deliveries.
Demand Forecasting
Geospatial analytics can answer several important questions related to demand and supply that need to be investigated both logically and visually. Who are the most likely early adopters of the service? Where do they live? What exactly do they do? What is the area’s connectivity speed and usage like? What are their expectations and needs? Is there adequate land or rooftop space to set up new telecom towers? What is the size of the early adopter population in the catchment areas? What would people be willing to pay for it?
Answers to these questions can help determine infrastructure requirements, installation procedures, fleet sizes, potential economic benefits, and so on. Such in-depth analysis could pave the way for detailed economic feasibility analysis for a specific region, and then compared from one region to another to understand why gaps exist and what more can be done.
Geospatial is Integral to the Growth of the Telecom Utilities Sector in India
The liberal and reformist policies of the Government of India are playing an instrumental role in the development of the telecommunications sector, and so is the strong consumer demand. We are rapidly progressing towards advanced 5G-centric technology deployment, including Artificial Intelligence, Robotics, Cloud Computing, and Big Data. This is ultimately augmenting the need for geo-enrichment of datasets for better decision making, smarter use of resources, improved connectivity and, of course, visualization and analysis.
We have come a long way from the first telegraph communication set up in Kolkata to new heights in digitalization. According to IBEF, 5G technology is set to a subscribership of over 350 million by 2026, accounting for 27% of all mobile subscriptions. Such surging demand, along with a fair and proactive regulatory framework, fast-tracked sectoral reforms and increased investments are paving the way for multiple business opportunities in the sector. The time is ripe for drawing the attention of major players towards the massive impact Geospatial technology can bring to telecom utilities through result-oriented, real-world contributions.
