As we look forward to the Easter weekend, subscribers of Bharti Airtel are all set to ring in a new tune. The global telecommunications company, with operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa has collaborated with telecom equipment maker ZTE to plan, design, supply, deploy and manage its fourth generation (4G) technology based network. Charnock City Kolkata is all set to become the platform for the impending launch of 4G in India sometime next month. Incidentally, later in the year, Kolkata will present itself as India's first Aerotropolis or Airport City.

While Kolkata is preparing for newer innings, Bharti Airtel's subscribers are expected to enjoy high-speed wireless internet access. The effort brings to light India in the context of the 4G scenario. Certain thoughts come to mind (though not necessarily in the same order). 4G could be a professional changer to 800 million mobile subscribers of the country. Good news is that Airtel will be followed by other players in the segment like Reliance Infotel, BSNL, Tikona, Aircel. Qualcomm, which are said to rollout 4G services by mid-2012.

4G has started with a bang, as it carries the promise of high-speed data access, and one hopes it doesn't lose its fizz. By 2016, estimated figures indicate that six per cent of all mobile connections will have 4G connection. It would create 36 per cent of the total mobile data traffic, paving way for the ensuing data revolution.

India is a demand-driven market because 4G combines Internet Data Access with Mobile telephony. Simply put, 4G is an acronym for fourth-generation wireless. The technology is a blueprint for success in the case of cellular phones, wireless computers and other mobile devices since 4G's scalability extends to the Internet, fixed line, voice and enterprise services, unlike 3G whose technology facilitated only mobile operators. 3G itself ironed out quite a few creases as it encouraged video conferencing, video calls, Multi Media Messaging Service (MMS) and 3D games. At a more significant level, it has encouraged M-commerce or mobile marketing. It became particularly relevant to the semi-literate rural Indian consumer who leveraged the potential of vernacular SMS-based marketing.

The country's business landscape is expected to change with 4G, as it enables better adoption of cloud-based services, which in turn is a cost effective solution. That's not all. If apps are hailed as the next Gold Rush by optimists, then 4G is sure to drive the market. The app, which is expected to be a growth driver, is the mobile TV because 4G allows users to download a HD movie in less than 30 seconds. Which means video content can be delivered depending on the channel, viz. the TV, laptop computer or mobile device. The technology has made possible more than one gigabit per second download speed, while you access the Internet through wireless means. Given this multiple service, one can expect 4G to encourage app developers as we go along, many of whom may create India-specific apps.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has decided to deliberate issues such as licensing, allocation and pricing of spectrum for 4G services. It would imply equal rights to 900 million rural people in India for international telecommunications and Internet service.

Once the Big Idea was been defined, corporate India geared up to embrace the new technology to reach out to the common man. Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries Ltd's (RIL), India's largest private sector company, plans to push content on multiple fourth-generation (4G)-enabled devices. Mukesh Ambani has gone on record stating that Reliance Infotel, a communication based subsidiary of RIL intends to launch competitively-priced tablets across 700 cities bundled with data plans priced around Rs10 per gigabyte. Trials are expected to begin soon in Jamnagar, Gujarat, a state located in western India.

At a time when mature markets are already conducting research on 5G, let's hope 4G will ring in a new revolution in India.