Five trends to watch out for in 2021 in India

Technology is the key to recovery in the post-pandemic new normal and the ones that will lead from the front include 5G, cloud, and SD-WAN.

By Balbir Bora

2020 has seen a lot of turbulence in the Indian telecom sector with the advent of the novel COVID-19 virus. A lot has changed in the telecom industry and in the traditional ways, things were done. The eyes are set now on 2021 to level the ground with trends to watch out for in the coming year.

Trend 1: Cloud telephony solutions as work from home

Work from home (WFH) or work from anywhere in the ‘New Normal’ and many global organizations have announced permanent WFH policies. Companies have enabled work from home for their employees to support business as usual in the trying times of the COVID-19 pandemic.

There has been a need for omnichannel technologies for delivering a seamless connection. WFH has only been possible because of these modern cloud-based solutions, which makes you more connected and productive no matter where you are, it is a truly unified all-in-one platform. It integrates voice, video, chat, contact center, and enterprise-class API solutions into one global, secure, reliable communications platform.

Cloud telephony has emerged as the need of the hour and many organizations have turned to the Cloud for ensuring the quality of delivery in business communication. These solutions have been present in the market for quite some time, but with the COVID situation, organizations have become more forthcoming with the acceptance of the Cloud.

WFH seems like a trend that is here to stay, and 2021 will see a growth in cloud telephony technologies next year.

Cloud telephony has emerged as the need of the hour and many organizations have turned to the Cloud for ensuring quality of delivery in business communication.

Trend 2: SD-WAN

Software-defined WAN, as a technology, has been in the global picture for a long time but has not been as popular in India. A close cousin of software as a service (SaaS), SD-WAN is the modern approach to managing the enterprise-wide area network.

SD-WAN takes the manageability factor of an enterprise-wide area network and gives it to a third-party SD-WAN provider. SD-WAN is typically deployed on a public internet connection and includes virtualized customer premises equipment (vCPE), with security, networking functions, and devices being controlled by the SD-WAN service provider as per the customer configurations and preferences. This is in stark contrast to the traditional MPLS VPN and leased line deployments which were less scalable and rigid.

It is more cost-effective, agile, scalable, and easier to integrate with cloud-based solutions. With the boom in cloud telephony solutions, SD-WAN will also become a preferred technology among enterprises.

Trend 3: Data security

In the world of digitization, almost every piece of information is available online which can be easily accessed by anyone and can be used inappropriately. Data privacy is generally the need of preserving/protecting any personal information pertaining to an individual or an organization from exposing it to a third party.

Over a period, various data privacy laws have been introduced and enacted by different countries. The most recent and popular ones are GDPR (General Data Privacy Regulation) 2018 and CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act) 2020.

Along the same lines of European and US popular laws, India has been working on the framework of India’s Personal Data Protection Bill. In December 2019, the Bill was introduced in Lok Sabha. It is speculated that the 2019 Bill will be given the shape of legislation soon and we will soon have the Personal Data Protection Act, in force. The Bill is modeled on similar principles as the EU’s GDPR and is expected to be even more stringent.

The whole country is waiting for the enactment of the Data Protection Bill 2019 which will be India’s first law on the protection of personal data of individuals as well as the businesses operating in-country.

Trend 4: Data Center infrastructure

The size of the digital economy in India is estimated to grow from USD 200 billion in 2017-18 to a USD 1 trillion by 2025. India is in the process of transitioning from a developing to a developed nation.

To enable this digital transformation and to support the security provisions proposed Data Protection Act, the Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) has come out with a discussion on the formation of a Data Center policy. This policy will create a roadmap for the development of in-country data center infrastructure, manufacture of local hardware, local testing, and certification, etc, among other things. The discussion is underway and Inter-Ministerial Empowered Committee has been set up by MeitY.

A close cousin of software as a service (SaaS), SD-WAN is the modern approach to managing the enterprise-wide area network.

Trend 5: 5G

The new telecom technology, 5G is the global standard for a unified, more capable wireless air interface. It is expected to deliver significantly faster and more responsive mobile broadband experiences and extend mobile technology to connect and redefine a multitude of new industries.

The 5th generation of mobile networks will give much faster connectivity and it will accelerate the speed of the internet with reduced latency. This new technology will be able to make things like self-driving cars and NBIoT a reality with the help of real-time communication and cloud technologies. 5G will certainly leapfrog all existing internet access technologies like DSL, FTTH, wireless, etc. This will be able to increase the internet penetration in the country to its maximum and will enable rural and remote regions to have access to the internet.

5G is already rolled out on a global level by major first world countries. However, it is under consideration and in trial mode in India. The 5G license spectrum auction is proposed to take place in 2021 and we foresee it as one of the emerging trends in 2021.

Bora is Founder & CEO, Whitewater Solutions

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