PROJECT W: Emerging Opportunity

As part of Project W, CyberMedia's initiative to promote wireless data
usage and application development in India, VOICE&DATA organized a series of
panel discussions on Wi-Fi: Emerging Business Opportunities in Delhi, Mumbai,
Hyderabad, and Bangalore in association with Pronto Networks, a provider of OSS
solutions for managing large public hotspots. Here are excerpts from the event
in Bangalore. The panelists, who represented a wide spectrum of stakeholders in
Wi-Fi, agreed that it is a great business opportunity. However, the right
business models need to be worked out to ensure its successful implementation
across the country

Raj Sunder, vice president, products & services, Pronto Networks: What
is happening in India today happened in the West about two years back. People
started in a haphazard manner because of mobile travelers, and then it took some
time to settle. Whether the hotels want to give Wi-Fi access for free or make a
very scientific cost point at the right time should be their decision. Many
service providers have already made a killing in the West. There is no reason
why that cannot happen in India provided the backhaul cost is right and the
government provides the push.

PK Roy, chief editor, VOICE&DATA: The popular misconception that
Wi-Fi access is costly has to be done away with. We, at CyberMedia, installed
these devices for less than Rs 5,000. The access points are connected to the
local network, and it gives us the freedom to move around with our laptops
without breaking away from network access. There can be different models that
can be very attractive. One model is pay as you go. Hotels that have gone for
Wi-Fi are seeing it as a revenue earner rather than as a service. Why not make
it a differentiator for your guests, even if only a few use it.

Venkat Kedlaya, MD, Convergent Communications India: There are two
schools of thought. The primary one is not to access Internet. It's rather
about accessing your local server, putting up notice boards, assignments etc.
The cost of bandwidth comes into play. The cost of hardware has gone down.
Centrino has got rid of the need for access cards, volume has grown and so
hardware costs have come down. In legacy hotels, wiring has to be done afresh
and hence the cost goes up. Wiring offices and properties from the scratch
increases the cost. The cost of bandwidth is also a major cost point.

Joydeep Bose, director, Intel: Everyone has got a sweet spot and we
should cash in on that. The good news is that now the industry is not fragmented
and not everyone wants to be a Wireless ISP. The bad news is that only telcos
are getting involved in this and they take their own sweet time to fully evolve.
Probably in a year or two they will have a solid and robust business plan in
India.

Parijat Chakravarty, head, industrial and telecom research, IDC India:
75 percent of Wi-Fi hotspots and business is in Asia. The Indian contribution to
this is very low but things will look up. One problem is the cost which will go
once it becomes a mass product.

Panelists (from left): Raj Sunder, Shubhendu Ghosh, Venkat Kedlaya Panelists (from left): Joydeep Bose, Saurabh Ratan, Parijat Chakravarty Mangesh Kolhatkar, director, solutions marketing, Pronto Networks, making a presention on Wi-Fi

Shubhendu Ghosh, GM, business development, BSNL: If the question is
whether Wi-Fi is required or not, the answer is yes. Then how are we going to
implement it? From customers' perspective, the cost of equipment has to be
brought down. The cost involved has to be taken into account for all the areas
under consideration but revenue will come only from the customers. Once you have
all these together, the model looks viable and workable.

Saurabh Ratan, GM, Hotel Taj Residency: Our hotel is Wi-Fied. An
initial survey determines how many access points need to be installed. Too less
or too more access points create problems when signals clash and create black
zones....

Ravi Shekhar Pandey