ICT Including Services
DoT notifies additional telecom equipment for mandatory testing, certification
The Telecom Department (DoT) has notified mandatory testing and certification for additional range of products, used in telecom and data networks, from October 1, 2020. Transmission Terminal Equipment (including multiplexing equipment), PON (passive optical network) family of broadband equipment, and feedback device are the products which have been notified under the second phase of Mandatory Testing and Certification of Telecom Equipment (MTCTE) regime. Applications for testing and certification of these telecom products will be accepted on MTCTE portal from June 25, 2020.
ICT related notifications/consultation Papers/recommendations/policies and directives, whitepapers
Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) and NITI Aayog launched Digital India AatmaNirbhar Bharat App Innovation Challenge to realise PM's vision of Digital India – AatmaNirbhar Bharat.
Government invites suggestions on non-personal data framework
The government has invited inputs on the "Draft Non-Personal Data Governance Framework" by July 19. The committee to study issues under non personal data was set up last year in September under the chairmanship of Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan. The committee has made a case for regulating non-personal data, defining it under three main categories- public non-personal data, community non-personal data and private non-personal data. It has further outlined the need for defining a new category or taxonomy of business called data business.
Adoption of TSDSI transposed 3GPP standards National Standards by TEC
TSDSI, as an organizational partner of 3GPP has transposed 3GPP standards (same as Recommendations ITU-R M.2012-4) totaling 402 in numbers and had provided to TEC for adoption as national standards by TEC. These radio interface standards detail the features and parameters of IMT-Advanced like compatibility, international roaming, and access to high-speed data services. These standards have been processed for adoption as per the “Standardization Guide – A policy document for adoption of the domestic/international standards into national standards”. Now, these standards [TSDSI transposed 3GPP standards (402 Nos.)] have been approved for adoption into national standards.
Adoption of TSDSI transposed OneM2M (Release 2) specifications as National Standards by TEC
TSDSI, as a partner type 1 of oneM2M has transposed oneM2M (release2) specifications totaling 27 documents in numbers and had provided to TEC for adoption as national standards by TEC. These specifications address the need for common M2M service layer that can be readily embedded within various hardware and software and relied upon to connect the myriad of devices in the field with M2M application servers worldwide. These transposed documents cover oneM2M functional architecture, requirements, Service layer control protocols, Management enablement etc. These specifications have been processed for adoption as per the “Standardization Guide – A policy document for adoption of the domestic/international standards into national standards. Now, these standards [TSDSI transposed oneM2M (release2) specifications] have been approved for adoption into national standards.
STPI launches Apiary, centre of excellence in Blockchain at its incubation centre in Gurugram
Apiary-CoE aims to incubate 100 start-ups in the field of blockchain technology and to contribute to government of India's 'Make-in-India' and 'Digital India' programmes
Software Technology Parks of India (STPI) has launched Apiary, a centre of excellence (CoE) in Blockchain and also an 'Idea Challenge Program in Blockchain' at STP incubation centre, Gurugram in association with Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of Haryana, Government Blockchain Association and several blue-chip companies and top tier academic institutions.
TEC providing technical documents to stakeholders for free, industry lauds move
Government’s telecom standard body TEC is providing free access to all technical documents to stakeholders with a view to easing manufacturing and public procurement hassles. The access to Generic Requirements (GRS), Interface Requirements (IR), Essential Requirements (ERs) has been made free. Telecom gear makers are required to follow the technical standards set by TEC for supplying telecom equipment. Every player was required to purchase GRs, IRs and ERs for getting their product tested and also submit the same to meet the tender requirement of the public sector telecom firms.
Department of Telecommunications (DoT) may allow 5G trials for telcos by September
DoT is expected to provide the spectrum needed by telecom service providers for testing their 5G networks. 5G is the fifth-generation technology standard for cellular networks, superior to the 4G networks which currently provide connectivity to most cellphones. The testing was originally scheduled for March but got delayed because of the COVID-19 pandemic. “Telecom operators will need 6 months of testing 5G devices and spectrum before we begin auctions”. “We are looking at providing the companies with spectrum for the testing by September so that they can begin the process,” the official said.
Indian SaaS landscape growing at 1.5X faster than global SaaS
As India continues to take swift steps towards digitalization, it is also witnessing the rise of new SaaS verticals and segments backed by strategic partnerships. To chart out the imperatives to make India a “Global SaaS Hub”, the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) in partnership with SaaSBOOMi and Zinnov as knowledge partners, today announced the findings of their first in depth SaaS study “Riding the Storm: Towards the Giant India SaaS Opportunity”. Growing at 30% CAGR, India’s SaaS revenue has reached $3.5 billion as of FY2020, with 75% of it coming from global sales.
Telecom Regulatory (TRAI) issued following Consultation Papers/recommendations:
- TRAI has released recommendations on 'Provision of Cellular Backhaul Connectivity via Satellite through VSAT under Commercial VSAT CUG Service Authorization'. Read more/Download
- Consultation Paper on Roadmap to Promote Broadband Connectivity and Enhanced Broadband Speed. Read more/Download
- Recommendations on Methodology of applying Spectrum Usage Charges (SUC) under the weighted average method of SUC assessment, in cases of Spectrum Sharing. Read more/Download
- Consultation Paper on Regulation of International Mobile Roaming Services. Read more/ Download
- Recommendations on Traffic Management Practices (TMPs) and Multi-Stakeholder Body for Net Neutrality. Read more/Download
- Recommendations on Cloud Services. Read more/Download
- Recommendations on Regulatory Framework for Over-The-Top (OTT) Communication Services. Read more/Download
- Telecom Consumers Protection (Eleventh Amendment) Regulations, 2020. Read more/Download