Japanese companies are keen to establish telecom gear test labs in India even as the government prepares to invite bids from private lab operators to pave the way for local testing from July 2014. Japan, however, wants the telecom department (DoT) to share the vulnerability levels of Indian mobile networks and privacy laws on protecting the intellectual property rights (IPRs) of global network gear suppliers. This is because all imported network gear will be subject to security check by a local test lab before deployment in Indian telecom networks from next July.
"Japanese companies want to understand the attack situation in Indian telecom networks and the privacy regulations, and whether there would be implications on the testing standards," a top official of the Japan embassy wrote in a letter to the DoT, a copy of which was reviewed by ET, said.
The Japanese embassy's communique comes at a time when the telecom department has decided to mandate the upcoming Telecom Testing & Security Certification (TTSC) centre to invite bids from organisations in the private, public and joint sectors keen to set up telecom gear test labs in India.
According to a separate internal telecom department note, the government plans to "shortlist four potential telecom gear test lab builders" after techno-commercial assessment of bids. The TTSC, which was originally expected to shoulder-testing responsibilities, will now confine its role to only framing the testing standards and certifying private labs operating in India.
"Since the volume of testing would be huge, given that $4-billion (Rs 25,000 crore approx) of active telecom equipment is inducted into Indian telecom networks every year, it would be impossible for TTSC to singlehandedly certify such equipment," says the telecom department note.
The note adds that "TTSC would prescribe the testing standards and tools which accredited test labs would have to adhere from July 2014". The TTSC will charge accreditation fees for such services.
"Worldwide, test labs check the firewalls embedded in telecom equipment based on the vulnerability profiles of telecom networks," said a top official representing a leading European network vendor.
"But a key issue that the government must address while framing the testing standards is mandating the test labs to maintain the confidentiality of IPRs owned by various system vendors since they would have access to multiple IPRs by virtue of being accredited testing agencies," he added. The gear testing business is seen as a huge opportunity, given the sheer volume of equipment that gets deployed in Indian telecom networks annually. Software companies Tech MahindraBSE -0.07 % and WiproBSE -1.11 % have already evinced an interest to the DoT proposal to set up test labs.
"Japanese companies want to understand the attack situation in Indian telecom networks and the privacy regulations, and whether there would be implications on the testing standards," a top official of the Japan embassy wrote in a letter to the DoT, a copy of which was reviewed by ET, said.
The Japanese embassy's communique comes at a time when the telecom department has decided to mandate the upcoming Telecom Testing & Security Certification (TTSC) centre to invite bids from organisations in the private, public and joint sectors keen to set up telecom gear test labs in India.
According to a separate internal telecom department note, the government plans to "shortlist four potential telecom gear test lab builders" after techno-commercial assessment of bids. The TTSC, which was originally expected to shoulder-testing responsibilities, will now confine its role to only framing the testing standards and certifying private labs operating in India.
"Since the volume of testing would be huge, given that $4-billion (Rs 25,000 crore approx) of active telecom equipment is inducted into Indian telecom networks every year, it would be impossible for TTSC to singlehandedly certify such equipment," says the telecom department note.
The note adds that "TTSC would prescribe the testing standards and tools which accredited test labs would have to adhere from July 2014". The TTSC will charge accreditation fees for such services.
"Worldwide, test labs check the firewalls embedded in telecom equipment based on the vulnerability profiles of telecom networks," said a top official representing a leading European network vendor.
"But a key issue that the government must address while framing the testing standards is mandating the test labs to maintain the confidentiality of IPRs owned by various system vendors since they would have access to multiple IPRs by virtue of being accredited testing agencies," he added. The gear testing business is seen as a huge opportunity, given the sheer volume of equipment that gets deployed in Indian telecom networks annually. Software companies Tech MahindraBSE -0.07 % and WiproBSE -1.11 % have already evinced an interest to the DoT proposal to set up test labs.
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