'Opt for suitable technologies'

Intel, the world's leading chip manufacturer, has said that the Indian government must opt for suitable emerging technologies to benefit its people and its growing economy.

"As newer technologies come forward, it is for the Indian government to assess the cost of its policy decisions on enabling competing technologies a level-playing field in the domestic market. In retrospect, one can argue whether it was a wise decision for the government to have gone for a computing or Internet grid with teraflops, though it turned out to be a money spinner for some Indian firms," Craig Barrett, CEO, Intel Corporation, said.

Barrett was addressing leaders from the Indian IT industry at the CEO Forum organised by Nasscom, in Bangalore on Friday.

Elaborating on some of the technologies that would make a huge impact, Barrett said wireless technologies ranging from local area network (LAN), ultrawide band, modern area network like Wi-Fi to metropolitan area networks like GPRS/3G and Wi-Max protocols would be eyeing for a greater market share.

Stating that governments had to face a challenge in keeping pace with newer technologies, Barrett said that the Indian economy could do this by ensuring space for each of them (newer technologies) to compete and allow end-users to decide what suits them best in terms of access and affordability.

"The governments and the telecos have to do the cost-benefit analysis and see what the competition will do to the economy. If the Indian economy has to be competitive globally, the government has to allow newer technologies to operate and compete," Barrett said.

Referring to the huge investment of nearly $50 billion that European telecos had made for 3G licences even before the technology could be put to use extensively, Barrett said the entry of other wireless technologies like Wi Fi and Wi-Max had only intensified the competition in the market space.

"Probably, more money has been invested in 3G licences than the profits that 3G can generate to these investing firms in its lifetime," Barrett said.