5G: Dialling Jobs?

The recently concluded spectrum auction has fuelled expectations of millions of skilled jobs getting generated in the telecom industry in the coming years

- Ashish Sinha

THE WAIT IS over. 5G is set to become a reality anytime soon. The telecom industry is agog with excitement, as are others, about the far-reaching implications of the spectrum auctions. The various service providers got the spectrum they needed either for rollout of new services or for improving the existing ones. With better availability of spectrum, the quality of services is expected to improve. But things are expected to get dramatically better with 5G rollout. It will not just help address the issue of low fixed broadband penetration in India but also significantly improve consumers’ data experience.

Already, there is excitement on the jobs front. Leading job portals have started advertising thousands of openings for skilled manpower that will be urgently required by companies involved with the ecosystem of 5G rollout. Telecom engineers as well as those with experience in wireless data technology and related fields are suddenly in high demand.

Between the leading job portals, more than 80,000 jobs have been currently advertised for specific rolls related to the 5G/4G and LTE technology.

Spectrum Auctions

After the successful completion of auctions for 5G spectrum, leading telecom operators have grabbed 71 per cent of the total of 72,098 MHz (mega hertz) of spectrum that was put on the block. The government will receive Rs 1,50,173 crore (around $19 billion from four bidders including existing operators Jio, Airtel, Vodafone Idea, and the Adani Group) in total but in annual instalments. For the current financial year, the annual installment to be paid by all participants is Rs 13,365 crore (around $1.67 million). Of course, the companies have the option of paying a bigger installment.