The government on Wednesday gave permission to setting up of lakhs of public Wi-Fi hotspots, and anyone — from an individual in a residential area (with commercial broadband connection) to a kirana shop owner in your neighbourhood to a tea shop vendor — can provide the facility.
The Public Wi-Fi Access Network Interface (WANI), approved by the Union Cabinet, is being seen as revolutionary as the PCO movement of 1990s that enabled millions to get access to easy and seamless public-phone connectivity at minimal cost. And, the method to latch on to public Wi-Fi will be as easy as checking into a WANI-authorised app on your phone.
Payments for the usage can range from a few rupees (under Rs 10 for small usage), and will be deducted from a wallet which you load up for the purpose, something similar to the UPI payments network. At one point in time, companies such as Google and Facebook were also understood to be looking at the public Wi-Fi business, though the growth of mobile data connectivity in India and cheap tariffs after the launch of Reliance Jio have dampened their spirits.
Only one-time registration will be required with any Wi-Fi provider, and thereafter there will not be any need of re-registration or mandatory authentication as you access the WANI network anywhere across the country. It is inter-operable, making it seamless and hassle-free for users, who may require faster networks when viewing heavy content such as videos, movies, or sports.
The idea of setting up public Wi-Fi hotspots was recommended by telecom regulator Trai a few years ago to boost digital connectivity, while also providing a source of income to people in smaller towns and rural areas. “Cabinet today approved the WANI project recommended by Trai. It will create millions of inter-operable Wi-Fi hotspots in the country and democratise content distribution and broadband access to millions at affordable rates. This will be the UPI of connectivity services,” R S Sharma, the former chairman of Trai under whose tenure the proposal was mooted, said.
On suggestions of Trai, the government has approved a structure that will lead to creation of Public Data Office Aggregators (PDOAs) at the top, who will then enlist the Public Data Offices or PDOs (like kirana shops or individual households) to provide public Wi-Fi. To make a suitable business case, the government has decided there will not be any licence fee for providing broadband internet through public Wi-Fi networks. Telecom and IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the government hopes lakhs of public Wi-Fi hotspots will mushroom across cities, especially in rural and semi-urban areas, giving a further boost to digital connectivity.
The measure is expected to take the load off from highly stretched telecom networks, which are generally criticised for poor quality of services. Wi-Fi hotspots will have high-speed optic fibre as the connectivity backbone, while using the last-mile free spectrum to connect to the users. So, they will not add any burden on the existing telecom spectrum network, but rather supplement the infrastructure.
To make the system robust and ensure that unwanted elements stay out, the government has stipulated that PDOAs and app providers will need to get themselves registered with the telecom department through online registration portal.
