Blogs
Policies to Sustain India's Market
— by Shyam Ponappa — last modified May 20, 2017 03:06 AMThe question is whether policies can be better framed to harness the market potential. Why is so much investment flowing into India's securities markets?
Organisational Hurdles in Telecom
— by Shyam Ponappa — last modified Apr 04, 2017 03:28 PMThe mobile telephony sector has not just plateaued but begun a downward spiral, with revenues dropping for the first time in a decade after Reliance Jio’s entry, by about 20 per cent. Considering the staggering government collections of around Rs 3,00,000 crore by way of charges and taxes over the past decade from investments of about Rs 2,00,000 crore, it would appear that the sector has paid too dearly.
A Pathfinding Approach for Digital India
— by Shyam Ponappa — last modified Mar 03, 2017 04:39 PMIt's not only the installation of the OFC, but of ensuring quality and reliability.
Cashlessness Needs Connectivity
— by Shyam Ponappa — last modified Feb 02, 2017 03:17 PMAnd connectivity needs political and administrative convergence. This new year brings with it uncertainties amidst the push for cashlessness. Without going into the demerits or otherwise, some clarity on a road map to go forward from where we are might help with realistic planning to manage our way out of this situation.
CIS Submission to TRAI Consultation Note on Model for Nation-wide Interoperable and Scalable Public Wi-Fi Networks
— by Japreet Grewal, Pranesh Prakash, Sharath Chandra, Sumandro Chattapadhyay, Sunil Abraham, and Udbhav Tiwari, with expert comments from Amelia Andersdotter — last modified Dec 12, 2016 01:59 PMThis submission presents responses by the CIS on the Consultation Note on Model for Nation-wide Interoperable and Scalable Public Wi-Fi Networks published by the TRAI on November 15, 2016. Our analysis of the solution proposed in the Note, in brief, is that there is no need of a solution for non-existing interoperability problem for authentication and payment services for accessing public Wi-Fi networks. The proposed solution in this Note only adds to over-regulation in this sector, and does not incentivise new investment in the sector, but only establishes UIDAI and NPCI as the monopoly service providers for authentication and payment services.
A Market Structure for Digital India
— by Shyam Ponappa — last modified Oct 10, 2016 02:09 AMIf delivery is priced below cost, communications services will be unsustainable and ineffective. The stress in the telecom sector is evident from the data. The market capitalisation of listed telecom operators has been stagnant since the 3G auction in 2010, while the government collected Rs 2.83 lakh crore of non-tax charges from them.
Digital India Needs These Policy Changes
— by Shyam Ponappa — last modified Oct 02, 2016 10:09 AMAppropriate policies will increase connectivity much more than spectrum auctions.
CIS Submission to TRAI Consultation on Proliferation of Broadband through Public WiFi Networks
— by Sunil Abraham, Sharath Chandra Ram, Vidushi Marda, and Thejaswi Melarkode — last modified Oct 02, 2016 06:16 AMThe Centre for Internet and Society (“CIS”) is grateful for the opportunity to comment on this Consultation Paper (“Paper”). The comments were prepared by Sunil Abraham, Sharath Chandra Ram, Vidushi Marda, and Thejaswi Melarkode. Special thanks to Shyam Ponappa and Arjun Venkatraman for their inputs and feedback.
Airtel Open Network
— by Harsh Gupta and Aditya Tejas — last modified Jun 17, 2016 11:58 AMToday, Airtel launched its Open Network platform. The web page displays visualization data on network coverage and signal strength across the country, as well as a detailed breakdown of cell tower placement, including towers that are shutdown or still being planned.
Breakthroughs Needed For Digital India
— by Shyam Ponappa — last modified May 04, 2016 02:34 AMIt's time the government accepts that current policies are not enough to bring about Digital India.
