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The Rediff Business Interview/Arun Netravali

'Speed of communication will change the world forever'

He is paid to dream. And he really loves his job.

But before you begin to envy him, remember it isn't all that facile an assignment. It takes loads of learning and experience to even begin to peep into the future. Meet Arun Netravali, president, Bell Laboratories, the innovation engine of Lucent Technologies.

Bell Labs is a worldwide research and development community of more than 30,000 people in 25 countries. It is the birthplace of many novel gizmos: transistor, laser, solar cell, stereo recording, etc. Founded in 1925, the research arm of Lucent has received more than 27,000 patents and averages about four patents a day. Bell Labs focuses on key technologies, including software, wireless and broadband networking, digital signal processing, microelectronics and photonics.

Netravali's skills lie in gazing into the future and directing Bell Labs to technologies that would change the world forever. Whoever said tomorrow never comes, never met Netravali.

He believes it is the tomorrow that makes life worth living today. On his recent visit to India, he shared his vision with Neena Haridas.

What will be the next technology revolution to the world?

The next revolution that will change the world will be the speed of communication. To begin with, optical communication will de-clog the system bringing in large bandwidth. It will not be expensive. Hence, it will be accessible to one and all. This means there will be no barriers, geographical, financial or industrial. It will make life easier -- whether you are at home in a leisurely village or at an office in the hustle bustle of urban realms.

There will be increased use of multimedia-enabled computers and the Internet creating a tremendous thirst for capacity. And this thirst will be met by creating optical components like lasers, optical amplifiers and the like.

This is where our focus will be. We will build on those optical components which are the drivers of what I would call the optical Internet.

Wireless communication will get a new dimension in the coming years and will be used for more than just voice communication. As of today, people have started feeling the need to conduct business even when they are on the move. The next phase, naturally, will be to access wireless technology for this purpose.

What better way to do this than through mobile phones. And that is where will be focussing our energies -- to create the wireless Internet by increasing the capacity over the air and by working with manufacturers to create Web-enabled phones.

Wireless will always have less capacity than fibre optics, so we have to create intelligence in the network that would be able to transform the information which can be accessed through mobile phones. Transformation means that whatever is useful in the information will be preserved while conserving bandwidth.

Does that mean Internet will become palm-sized now?

Not really. Mobile phones will be an additional advantage to the user, making life easier for them when they are on the move. But that does not mean the good old PC is redundant. Fibre optic will always have more bandwidth than wireless. People will use different instruments at different places, for different applications. Mobile phones will largely be used to utilise dead time, when you are driving to work in the morning or when you are at an airport.

The whole idea is that there is lot of dead time during a person's routine. If we can make the person more productive through use of communication devices then he can have more leisure time.

What does Bell Labs see in India?

A lot of talent that is waiting to be tapped. We are planning to expand our research and development presence in India by opening a new facility in Hyderabad. Here, our scientists will conduct software development for the company's global third generation mobile network platforms.

In addition, we will double the number of people we have in India. Currently, we employ about 300 scientists in the development facilities in Pune and Bangalore. Our work will help the telecommunications revolution take the next step.

What is your evaluation of India's telecom and infotech industry?

There is lot of scope. After all, the world has had to sit up and take notice of India, right? But one needs to move faster, otherwise the one quicker will leap ahead. The early bird gets the worm.

For instance, there is lot of bandwidth problem in India. You have to make changes in your business model depending on the technological advancement that the world is making. Otherwise, you get left behind. For example, India still does not allow Internet telephony. There could be infrastructrual or policy hassles that need to be resolved, but the point is to do whatever needs to be done so that technology can take its course.

Do you plan to work with Indian research or educational institutions in this regard?

We work very closely with the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) in India. In addition, we are also considering expanding these facilities. How we will set up these facilities -- whether they will be in association with any institutions or our own -- will be decided later. We are keen to tap the human resources that the country has to offer. I am coordinating the work we are doing here in India.

Tell us about your ongoing projects in India.

Our programme in India involves software research and development in global systems for mobile communications, GPRS, AMPS, wireless data and third generation wireless systems like UTMS, DoCoMo and Code Division Multiple Access and wireless systems. Work is also underway on digital picture processing and Web-caching. We work with high-end educational institutions like the IITs to help scientists work on emerging technologies.

What will it take to bring the computer a non-complicated machine that everyone can use?

There needs to be some technological simplification for this. It is true that a digital divide exists. Organisations are working towards reducing this. People will find it easier to operate simpler computing devices and the prices and complexities of computers have come down considerably since their invention. The simpler the technology gets, the wider the use and acceptance become. But the performance will only get better with us, mind you.

What is your greatest fear?

Not the future, at least. The fact that the future is so realistic makes it exciting. However, it does turn scary when I realise that I am coordinating with some of the best brains in the world. I think of myself as 'successful' if I am able to work with them and help the organisation grow with them. This is what my predecessors have done and I will be successful if I am able to carry this forward.

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