Compendium

PRODUCT
MANAGEMENT
Department Of Management Studies
Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi 1
 CONTENTS

S.No. Topics Covered Page No.

1 Introduction 3
2 PM Jargons 9
3 Important Metrics 12
4 Laws for Product Design 15
5 Industry Overview and Analysis 24
6 Important Technologies 29
7 Telecom Sector Overview 44
8 Other Trending Technologies 50

2
 INTRODUCTION

What is Product management?

Product management is basically to lead a team in researching, developing, and shipping

the proper product to users and bridge the gaps among disparate stakeholders involved.
The Product managers are very commonly known as the CEO of a product. And they are
basically the bridge between the technology, user experience and business teams.

What are all included in the job role of a Product Manager?

ALMOST EVERYTHING
• Business Development
• Feasibility Analysis
• Financial Metrics
• User Experience
• Research Design
• Prototyping/Testing/Surveying
• Managing with cross-functional teams
3
The product managers in different companies hold different roles and responsibilities. The
job description can vary from one company to another. The Product Manager has basically
two core goals: one is to successfully lead the development of a product, and second is to
effectively work with different teams to ensure that the direction of deliverables is aligned
with the core objectives of the company.

Core responsibilities of Product Managers:

• Devising strategies
• Defining releases
• Evaluating ideas
• Prioritizing features
• Building roadmaps
• Analyzing and reporting on progress

What is the Product Lifecycle?

The different phases through which a product undergoes is something we term as Product
Lifecycle. These are as depicted in the below diagram:

4
PM roles based on Product Lifecycle

What exactly does a Product Manager do?

The most important thing that a product manager does is to communicate a clear vision
and strategy to the teams involved in bringing the product to the target market and the
business.
They are basically responsible for 3 major parts in the product development:
• Product Discovery
• Solution finding
• Leading the development of Product

It is crucial for the product manager, who oversees the product, to make sure that all
relevant company stakeholders are aware of the product's goals and the product team's
viewpoints on specific issues. Consequently, a large portion of a PM's time is typically spent
communicating with and collaborating with functional & non-functional teams throughout
the organization, be it the client/consumer facing team, the development team, or the core
business team which is composed of main stakeholders.

5
STAGES FOR PM:

The different stages that a PM went through are:

Stage 1: Figure out the real problem

Product Managers are basically the main decision maker who performs the feasibility check
for any product requirements. So, they are the ones who are basically responsible for
understanding the real problem.

Now, to solve these problems, the PMs went through following ways to discover and
understand the crux of it:
• Discuss with target audience: We can have surveys, or in-person discussion about the
main problem, to understand what all are the major factors that can affect its
implementation.
• Observing the requirements of the user: This is a very important step, since not every
time will we have all the data available to get deeper into the main pain-point of the
problem. So, in such a scenario, observation helps.
• Understand the existing market for such a product: It is completely the prerogative of
a Product Manager to understand the existing market and they completely brainstorm
it before going for the new product.
• Performing the market analysis: PMs must be aware of current market trends, and
also need to account for the competitor’s information to stay relevant to their target
market.
Once the problem is identified, then PMs usually figure out the severity and salience of that,
through market research, user feedback, market testing, prototyping etc.

Stage 2. Devise solution for the problem

Once PMs identify the problem, the next major step for them is to identify the way ahead
and direct to the solution for the same. For this, the PMs discuss with multiple teams, be it
development team, user experience (UX) designers, or the engineering team.
Once this is identified, they estimate the efforts needed to perform these implementations,
and the resources needed. And then the real implementation of the product starts, and PMs
prepare the roadmap, and maintain the logs and backlogs of the product.

6
What is the product backlog in terms of product management?

The product backlog is basically a set of authoritative sources of action items with priorities
that the team will be working on. So, PMs need to regularly work upon it, by collaborating
with cross-functional teams and update it.
Now the next thing, which the PMs are very wary of, is to identify if the solution which his
team is coming up with is good enough and sustainable to beat the competition in the
market. And for that, they perform market research very thoroughly, through prototyping
or user testing, and observing how users respond to their solutions.

Stage 3. Developing the product

This is the most important phase in any product management role. And for this PMs work
with all the stakeholders to develop detailed requirements of the product, and the features
they want to build. Now at this stage, it completely depends on the size of the organization
and the severity of the products, based on the complexity of which many various teams are
involved, and the PM regularly connects with them to get the updates.

The main work for at PM at this stage is to discuss with these teams, and maintain the
following important documents:

• PRD (Product Requirement Documents): This document contains the specificity of

the requirements of the product, such as what must be built, how it is going to be
built, and their timelines.
• TSD (Technical Specification Document): The technical specifics to develop the
product are all mentioned in this document.
• User Stories: The requirements are broken down into several small deliverables and
a timeline is being given to it. An example of a user story is the introduction of the
like button in the LinkedIn post.

Once the development team has developed the user stories, then it goes for quality testing,
something which we call the QA process to ensure that the requirements are completely
met, as mentioned in the PRD, TSD and the user story.

7
Different types of Product Managers:

The product management processes changes based on specialties required. Some of the
different responsibilities for PM includes the following:

Title Responsibilities
Product Work with internal and external stakeholders to manage the
Manager entire product lifecycle and product roadmap
Product Work with development team and create user stories and
Owner product backlog
Growth
Product Work with business leaders and devise business outcomes
Manager across growth, customer retention, revenue etc.
Technical
Product Works with internal stakeholders on core specifications and
Manager product functionality
Platform
Product Works with internal stakeholders to optimize technical
Manager components shared across multiple products

8
 PM JARGONS

Important Terms in Product Management:

Peak Product Manager – Someone who is not just creating features to ship them but
rather delivers value and creates an impact at all stages.
There are 4 key pillars:
1. Product Strategy
2. Product Execution
3. Customer Insight
4. Influencing People
Product Strategy – As a PM one should have a clear metric-oriented approach. It
comprises of:
Product vision & Roadmap – It consists of measuring the impact and prioritizing the
features to be realized via a roadmap.
Strategic Impact – It is about building the business strategy of the product by analyzing
the outcomes and pain points.
Business Outcome ownership – It accounts for the ability to connect the goals of the
features of any product to the strategic objectives.
Product Execution – A PM must be a team player and should deliver catering to the needs
of all the stakeholders. It comprises of:
Feature Specification – The major skillset required here is to identify the user need and
build features simultaneously driving the delivery of product.
Product Delivery – The ability to build features and scale them by bringing different teams
such as Engineering, sales, QA together.
Product Quality Assurance – It involves identifying errors and working on all the possible
use cases of the product, making sure that the user goes through a smooth journey while
using the product.
Customer Insight – Feedback and figuring out pain points is very necessary. It should be
backed by the data. It comprises of:
Fluency with Data – Analyzing the trends captured and aligning them with the goals to
drive the growth of the business.
Voice of the customer - The ability to identify pain points and take feedback while
implementing features at each stage is one of the major aspects in building successful
products.

9
User Experience Design – Understanding the design is an important part and how do you
build an easy-to-use design without compromising on the business impact is a great skill to
have as a PM.
Influencing People – This is a very team-oriented role. This covers aspects like:
Managing Up – Every PM must manage a team be it big or small and deliver the impact
further to Product leaders.
Team Leadership – Since the most important task of PM is prioritization so taking the
team as a unit to deliver on it is a key task.
Stakeholder Management – As a PM your job is to listen to all the stakeholders and then
build the roadmap considering all the inputs.

Opportunity Solution tree

10
Example for a payment product:

Hypothesis testing
Hypothesis in products is generally the outcome you would expect after shipping a
product. Therefore, testing it to confirm your assumptions is an important aspect of
product lifecycle. To test different use cases there are 2 approaches A/B Testing or
Multivariate Testing. In A/B Testing, the userbase is clustered into 2 groups and the
feature is tested with one of them. Post comparing the results the decision is made
regarding the production. While in multivariant testing, the user base is clustered into
multiple groups and the best variant is decided after analyzing the results.

Metrics Indicators –
Leading Indicators – They define what actions are necessary to achieve your outcomes.
They set a benchmark for measuring the level of KP’'s. Examples – Number of new
subscriptions, number of new license purchases.
Lagging Indicators – It is used to measure the current output level. They are used to
account for the mistakes to measure future success. Examples – Number of orders
processed; number of payments made.

11
 Important Metrics

MAU (Monthly Active Users), DAU (Daily Active Users) and DAU/MAU – This ratio
shows how active daily users are monthly. It is used to measure user engagement on
various activities performed by a user.
Churn Rate – It defines the rate at which customers stop using a particular feature of a
product or a product itself.

Net Promoter Score –

It measures customer experience and business growth with the input given. Promoters are
the loyal customers of the product who refer the same to their acquaintances. Detractors
are the group of people who are not satisfied with your product and affect the growth of
the business. Passive is the major target group to focus on. They can be converted into
promoters via new offerings.

12
CSAT – It is calculated by diving the number of positive responses by total number of
responses.

CAC – Customer Acquisition Cost – It is calculated by measuring the total marketing

budget against the number of users acquired.
ARR – This metric shows the recurring growth via annual subscriptions or another
channel.
ARPU – It shows the average revenue a user generates for the product. It has a direct
correlation with the total revenue.
Stickiness – It is measured in terms of DAU/MAU or DAU/WAU to depict how frequently
users are getting engaged on the platform.
North Star Metric – It is the most important metric depicting the growth of the business
with respect to all the stakeholders. It is also the key aspect to measure the success of a
particular product team in an organization.
For example, for a payments bank, the north star metric could be Number of Payments
each day.

13
Example: Facebook – Daily Active Users, Amazon – Monthly purchase per user.

Goals of a Product Manager

Acquisition >> Retention >> Engagement >> Monetization

Acquisition: Shipping features to acquire new users or customers is called Acquisition. It

might be creating a completely new product, or it involves adding new features as per user
need. For example, any SaaS offering going for Freemium model.

Retention – Once the user starts using the services it is very important to keep your
product on top of their shelf. For example, Flipkart introduced the coins model to force
users indirectly to shop from Flipkart over other marketplaces.

Engagement:
For example, to keep the users engaged spotify released a new feature “wrapped” which
contains the topmost songs played by user throughout the year. This gives them a way to
keep the platform engaging.

Monetization: Spotify is one of the best examples to explain this as they introduced
opportunities for users as well as their business. Apart from rolling out premium features,
they introduced Paid Subscription platform, Spotify Open Access Platform and Spotify
Audience Network for content creators.

Product Analytics Tools:

1. Google Analytics
2. Amplitude
3. Mix Panel
4. Pendo
5. Hotjar
6. Full Story
7. Glassbox
8. Heap

14
 UI/UX Laws for Product Design

Hick’s Law – It states that the time and effort required for making a decision increase as
the number of choices increases. So, it has a huge implication in UX as giving a lot of
options to users may increase churn rate. Therefore, it is important to remove noise and
talk specifics.

Miller’s Law – It revolves around the fact that immediate memory span of people is
limited to seven items on an average plus or minus 2. Therefore, as a product designer we
should be mindful of the same and create the experience to keep the platform engaging.
The best example of the application of this law is OTT Platforms wherein trending content
is portrayed using this.
Fitt’s Law - According to Fitts' law, the time needed for a human to move a pointer (such
as a mouse cursor) to a target region depends on the target's size divided by the target's
distance. Therefore, the time required increases with distance and target size. It is used in
tracking and improving the browsing experience.

15
Prioritization Frameworks with example:
Prioritization frameworks are essential tools for product managers to evaluate and
prioritize tasks or projects and make informed decisions about the features of a product.
There are several popular frameworks that product managers use, such as RICE,
MoSCoW, Kano, and Value vs Complexity. Here we will focus on the RICE framework,
and its components and provide examples of how it can be used to prioritize product ideas
and features.
RICE is a prioritization framework used to prioritize tasks or projects. It stands for:
1. Reach (R): How many people will be impacted by the task or project?
2. Impact (I): How significant is the impact on the people affected?
3. Confidence (C): How confident are we that we can complete the task or project
successfully?
4. Effort (E): How much effort will it take to complete the task or project?

16
To calculate a RICE score, you need to combine these factors according to the importance
of each for your project. The higher the score, the higher the priority of the task or
project. This framework is simple to use and can be easily understood by product
managers and other members of the product team.

An example of using RICE to prioritize tasks might be:

Task 1: Create a new feature for the company's website that allows users to save their
favorite products (R: 10,000 users, I: high, C: high, E: medium)

Task 2: Fix a bug in the checkout process that is causing errors for some customers (R:
100 customers, I: medium, C: high, E: low)

Task 3: Develop a new mobile app for the company (R: 100,000 users, I: high, C: low, E:
high)

In this example, the first task would be prioritized over the second task because it has a
higher reach (10,000 users’ vs 100 customers) and a similar level of impact and
confidence. The third task would be prioritized last because it has a high reach and
impact, but a low level of confidence and a high level of effort.

It's important to note that the RICE framework is not a standalone tool, it's just one of the
several frameworks that can be used to prioritize features. Product managers can use
multiple frameworks to evaluate and prioritize tasks or projects and make informed
decisions about the features of a product.

Another example of a prioritization framework is the Value vs Complexity Quadrant.

This framework is used to assess the impact and complexity of potential features. The
quadrant is divided into four sections:

17
The initiatives are then plotted on the matrix and prioritized according to their position in
the quadrant, with the highest value and lowest complexity initiatives are given priority. A
weighted, customized scoring system is used to determine the value and complexity of each
initiative. It is important to note that this framework is one of many that product teams
can use for prioritization and that different frameworks may be more suitable for
different contexts and goals.
This framework helps product managers to identify which features are high value and low
complexity and should be prioritized, and which features are low value and high
complexity and should be avoided.
In conclusion, prioritization frameworks are essential tools for product managers to
evaluate and prioritize tasks or projects and make informed decisions about the features
of a product. The RICE framework is a simple and widely used method that product
managers and other members of the product team can easily understand.

Other prioritization frameworks commonly used in product management include:

1. MoSCow (Must Have, Should Have, Could Have, Won't Have)
2. Kano
3. Weighted Scoring Prioritization
4. Priority Poker

It is also worth noting that some sources recommend using multiple frameworks in
combination, such as using RICE results and re-applying in another framework as a
sanity check.

18
MVP vs MLP vs MMP

Minimum Viable Product (MVP), Minimum Lovable Product (MLP), and Minimum
Marketable Product (MMP) are all terms used in product management to describe
different stages of product development. They each have their own unique characteristics
and are used for different purposes.

MVP is a product with the minimal functionality necessary to validate a business idea. It
is a tool used to test a product idea's feasibility and gather feedback from potential
customers. The MVP is intended to be a simple, low-cost version of the final product, with
only the most essential features.
Advantages of MVP:
1. A low-cost way to test the feasibility of a product idea and gather feedback from
potential customers
2. Fast to develop, which can be beneficial for start-ups or small businesses with
limited resources
3. Allows you to check if your target audience is chosen correctly
4. Helps find out what features are the most popular
5. It helps determine possible problems and create a user base of early adopters.

MLP is a product that not only has minimal functionality, but also has a certain degree of
"wow" factor, or emotional appeal. It is a product that not only works but also creates a
positive emotional connection with the user. The MLP is intended to be a product that users
will fall in love with and will be willing to pay for. It is used to test the market and validate
19
the product before investing a significant amount of time and money into it.

Advantages of MLP:
1. Heavy engagement from users as you build up the lovability.
2. Creates attachment and an emotional link with early adopters.
3. Creates loyal customers who will be more likely to invest in the product.

MMP is a product that has been updated several times over and is of better quality than
MVP. An MMP is a minimum that the market is ready to pay for. The MMP is intended to
be a product that has been refined and improved based on feedback from customers, and
that is ready to be released on the market.

Advantages of MMP:
1. Solves the business goal.
2. Provides Return on Investment (ROI) faster than an MLP.

When developing a new product, it is important to understand the difference between these
three terms and when to use them. MVP is used at the very beginning of the product
development process to test the feasibility of a product idea and gather feedback. MLP is
used during the development of the product to ensure that it not only works but also has a
certain degree of emotional appeal. MMP is used when the product is ready to be released
on the market and to ensure that it is the minimum that the market is ready to pay for.

For example, let's say a company is developing a new mobile app for tracking fitness. The
MVP of this app might include only the most basic features, such as tracking steps and
calories burned. This MVP would be used to test the market and gather feedback from
potential customers.

After gathering feedback, the company could then develop the MLP of the app, which would
include more advanced features, such as tracking specific exercises and a more user-
friendly interface. The MLP would be used to test the market and validate the product
before investing a significant amount of time and money into it.

Again after gathering further feedback, the company could then develop the MMP of the
app, which would include even more advanced features, such as tracking progress over
time, and more detailed analysis of the data. The MMP would be used when the product is
ready to be released on the market and to ensure that it is the minimum that the market is
ready to pay for.

MVP (Minimum Viable Product) examples:

1. Amazon's MVP was a simple online bookstore before it expanded to include a wide
range of products and services.

20
 2. Facebook's MVP was a platform for Harvard students to connect and network with
each other before it was opened to other universities and eventually the general
public.
3. Dropbox, which created an explainer video before any of the hardware, software, or
infrastructure was built.
4. Groupon, which began as a piecemeal MVP, promoted the services of local businesses
and offered deals that lasted for a limited amount of time.
5. Foursquare began as a single-featured MVP that allowed users to check in to locations
and share it with friends.
MLP (Minimum Lovable Product) example:
• Groupon's MLP was a platform that offered daily deals on local businesses but added
features such as personalized recommendations and a loyalty program to increase
customer engagement and loyalty.

MMP (Minimum Marketable Product) example:

• Amazon's MMP was the development of a basic set of features that addressed users’
needs and pains, such as adding a search bar and shopping cart functionality to their
MVP.

21
 Wireframe vs Mock-up vs Prototype with example

Wireframes, Mockups, and Prototypes are common terms used in the design and
development of digital products, such as websites and mobile apps. These terms are often
used interchangeably, but they each serve a different purpose and are used at different
stages of the design process. Let’s understand the differences between wireframes,
mockups, and prototypes -
A wireframe is a visual representation of a website or app's structure, layout, and content.
It is a low-fidelity representation of the user interface (UI) and is often created in black
and white. The purpose of a wireframe is to finalize a user-experience (UX) concept before
actually coding a website or app. According to a Coursera article, the purpose of a
wireframe is "to finalize a user-experience (UX) concept before actually coding a website
or app. Think of a wireframe as a digital sketch, mock-up, or prototype showing each
element’s position and layout, but without any styling, graphics, or interactive elements.
A mockup, on the other hand, is a more detailed representation of the UI and is often
created in high fidelity. It is a visual way of representing a product and is used to show
how the final product will look like. A mockup is not clickable, just like the wireframe.
According to a UX Planet article, "A mockup is a visual way of representing a product.
While a wireframe mostly represents the structure of a product, a mockup shows how the
product is going to look like. But still, a mockup is not clickable (just like the wireframe).
As opposed to a wireframe, a mockup is either a mid or high-fidelity display of design.
A prototype, on the other hand, is a high-fidelity representation of the UI that includes
interactive elements. It is an early model of a product that focuses on functionality and is
used to test the product's usability and user experience. According to a Sketch article, "A
prototype is an early model of a product that focuses on functionality and gives your
stakeholders a taste of the final version.

22
Therefore, these three tools are used at different stages of the design process and serve
different purposes. Wireframes are used to finalize the UX concept and are created
quickly, mockups are used to show how the final product will look like and are created in
high-fidelity, and prototypes are used to test the product's usability and user experience
and are created in high-fidelity with interactive elements.
It is also important to note that a mockup acts as a bridge between the wireframe and the
prototype. According to a Visual Paradigm article, "While wireframes are design
placeholders, mockups are built to give the viewer a more realistic impression of how the
end product will look.

Wireframe vs Mockup vs Prototype example:

23
 Industry Overview and Analysis

With a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.2%, the global market for information
technology increased from $8179.48 billion in 2022 to $8852.41 billion in 2023. At least
temporarily, the Russia-Ukraine conflict hampered the possibilities of a COVID-19
pandemic-related global economic rebound. Economic sanctions on a number of nations,
an increase in commodity prices, and disruptions in the supply chain as a result of the
conflict between these two nations have caused inflation in the prices of products and
services and had an impact on numerous markets throughout the world. At a CAGR of
7.9%, the market for information technology is projected to reach $11995.97 billion in
2027.

During the projected period, the demand for IT services is anticipated to be driven by the
need for cloud computing services. In the cloud computing model, a cloud computing
provider, who manages and runs data storage as a service, stores data on the internet.
Applications hosted in the cloud are increasingly a popular choice for many businesses'
daily operations. For instance, hostingtribunal.com figures show that in 2019, 60% of
computing workloads were carried out on the public cloud. In a similar vein, cloud data
centers are anticipated to handle 94% of enterprise workloads in 2021. Additionally,
businesses are choosing cloud-based data storage, which is increasing the demand for IT
services.

The market for information technology worldwide is divided into the following categories:
1) By Type: IT Services, Computer Hardware, Telecom, and Software Products
2) By Organization Size: Big Business, Small Business, and Medium Business
3)End User Industries: Manufacturing, Healthcare, Retail & Wholesale, Financial Services,
and Other End User Industries

24
SWOT Analysis of IT Industry

Strengths Organizations are constantly looking for ways to surpass their rivals. A company
must therefore possess a variety of qualities in order to dominate its industry.
● Efficiency is increased because businesses must run their operations effectively in the
fast-paced environment that technology has created.
● Increases Security: Businesses must protect their data from being stolen or lost. Since they
are aware of the potential consequences of a data breach, organizations employ a variety of
techniques to protect their data.
● Income Growth: Businesses are constantly seeking for ways to boost their revenue. By
lowering downtime and boosting productivity, establishing an IT network can raise business
revenue.

25
Weaknesses

Weaknesses are the flaws that cause a company to have trouble competing in the market.

● High setup fees: Businesses are aware of the benefits of having an IT network. However,
because of the hefty startup costs, they have trouble establishing an IT network.

● Time-consuming: Setting up a solid IT network takes a lot of time in addition to costing

enormous sums of money. Organizations will need to teach the workers to become comfortable
with the technology after purchasing all the required equipment. Months will be needed for this.
Time will be lost in large amounts as a result.

● Increasing Dependence on IT Network: After establishing its IT network, a company

gradually starts to rely more and more on it. The company begins delegating IT network
activities that were previously handled manually. Additionally, it becomes reliant on the IT
network to manage data.
Opportunities

Opportunities for achievement in one way or another are given to every company.
Organizations must, however, seize chances quickly if they want to profit themselves. For
enterprises, having an information technology network opens them to a world of possibilities.
● Cost-cutting measures are constantly being used by businesses in an effort to increase
earnings. Creating an IT network within the company can aid in cost savings.
● Better Planning: Organizations need to forecast and plan in order to develop future plans
that are appropriate. Prior to the development of information technology, the organization's
management created long-term goals by manually projecting the future.
● Growth: By utilizing all of its resources, a business seeks to optimize its growth. IT
networks help organizations expand by expanding their consumer base through efficient
marketing.

26
Threats

The concerns that an organization must manage are threats. Although networks for information
technology are thought to be very advantageous, the organization is also threatened by their
presence.

● Security dangers: The majority of IT solutions are shifting toward cloud-based systems as
a result of the transition toward cloud-based software and services. In addition, computers in IT
networks are used to store data and information. Despite the fact that this has made it easier for
businesses to store their data. However, online and computer data storage carries a substantial
danger.
● Law enforcement Agency Responses: Few employees were in charge of data and
information storage prior to firms beginning to use IT networks. However, since the
introduction of IT networks, more people have access to sensitive data.
● Operations disruption: Because IT networks now handle a lot of the organizations'
operations, their reliance on them has grown. Since these processes require computers and the
internet for IT networks to complete, issues may occur if the internet connectivity or electrical
supply is interrupted.

27
Global vs Indian IT sector

Information technology (IT) has altered not only market dynamics but also those of
specific sectors. The ability to make decisions logically and statistically is what has driven
such a change. People maximize their wealth in addition to increasing their profits.
Over the years, there have been many developments in the IT industry. There has never
been a turning back since the invention of the computer, from assisted computation in the
form of tally sticks to the creation of transistors.
India finally got its first computer in nearly two decades. In 1991, the Indian economy
underwent reforms as it entered a new era of globalization. And today, one of the main
centers for IT outsourcing can be found in India's IT sector.
A few of these findings from India compared to the rest of the world are:
1. Business intelligence has become the focus of IT spending, which is a significant
shift from software development.
2. Roughly 27% of global spending goes toward IT services, with India accounting for
nearly 80% of this total.
3. The greatest growth in export income has been in IT services, followed by business
process management.
4. Industry sectors other than IT that are investing extensively in outsourcing include
banking, public sector, automobile, oil & gas, and consumer products.

28
 Important Technologies

Today's technology is developing quickly, enabling quicker change and advancement and
accelerating the rate of change. However, there are many more changes that have
occurred this year as a result of the COVID-19 epidemic, which has made IT professionals
recognize that their job will alter in the contactless world of the future. And an IT
professional will be continually learning, unlearning, and relearning in 2023–2024. (Out of
necessity if not desire).

With improvements in machine learning and natural language processing, artificial

intelligence will be more common in 2023. Using this technique, artificial intelligence will
be able to comprehend us better and carry out more difficult tasks. According to
predictions, 5G will drastically alter how we live and work.

DBMS

Database Management System: A database management system is a piece of software that

is used to manage databases (DBMS). Examples of well-known commercial DBMSs used
in many applications include MySQL, Oracle, etc.

The following tasks are possible with DBMS:

1. Data Definition: It aids in the development, revision, and deletion of definitions that
specify how data is organized in a database.
2. Data Updating: It aids in adding, changing, and removing the actual data from the
database.
3. Data Retrieval: It aids in the retrieval of data from the database that programme
can use for a variety of functions.
4. User administration: It aids in user registration and management, data security
enforcement, performance monitoring, data integrity maintenance, concurrency
control management, and information recovery from unexpected failure.

ERP

ERP, or enterprise resource planning, is the capacity to provide a coordinated set of

business applications. ERP technologies have a shared process and data model that covers
a wide range of in-depth operational end-to-end operations, including those in supply chain
management, manufacturing, distribution, human resources, and finance.

Many administrative and operational business operations, including line of business,

customer-facing, administrative, and asset management parts of an organization, are
automated and supported by ERP solutions across a variety of industries. ERP

29
implementations are difficult and expensive projects, and some businesses find it difficult
to articulate the benefits to the company.

BIG DATA

Big Data is a body of information that is enormous in volume and is always expanding
exponentially. No typical data management system can effectively store or process this data
because of its magnitude and complexity. Big data is a type of data that is extremely large.
There are basically 3 types of big data:
• Structured
• Semi-structured
• Unstructured

Following traits can be used to define big data: Volume, Variety, Velocity & Variability

There are many advantages to being able to analyze big data in DBMS, including:
• Businesses can use outside intelligence while making choices.
• Organizations are now able to fine-tune their business plans because of the
availability of social data from search engines and websites like Facebook and
twitter.
• enhanced client services
• New systems created using Big Data technology are replacing conventional
consumer feedback systems. Big Data and natural language processing technologies
are being employed in these new systems to read and assess customer feedback.
• Early detection of any risk to the goods or services
• improved operational effectiveness
• Before deciding which data should be sent to the data warehouse, big data
technologies can be utilized to create a staging area or landing zone for new data. A
company can unload rarely used data by integrating big data technologies with data
warehouses in this way.

30
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

In today's world, technology is growing very fast, and we are getting in touch with
different new technologies day by day.
Artificial Intelligence is composed of two words Artificial and Intelligence, where Artificial
defines "man-made," and intelligence defines "thinking power", hence AI means "a man-
made thinking power."
So, we can define AI as:
"It is a branch of computer science by which we can create intelligent machines which can
behave like a human, think like humans, and able to make decisions."
It can be used in a variety of subfields, ranging from general to specific, such as self-
driving cars, playing chess, proving theorems, playing music, Painting, etc.

Why AI?
Following are some main reasons to learn about AI:
• With the help of AI, you can create such software or devices which can solve real-
world problems very easily and with accuracy such as health issues, marketing, traffic
issues, etc.
• With the help of AI, you can create your personal virtual Assistant, such as Cortana,
Google Assistant, Siri, etc.
• With the help of AI, you can build such Robots which can work in an environment
where survival of humans can be at risk.
• AI opens a path for other new technologies, new devices, and new Opportunities.
Goals of AI:
Following are the main goals of Artificial Intelligence:
• Replicate human intelligence
• Solve Knowledge-intensive tasks
• An intelligent connection of perception and action
• Creating some system which can exhibit intelligent behavior, learn new things by
itself, demonstrate, explain, and can advise its user.
• Building a machine which can perform tasks that requires human intelligence such
as:
o Proving a theorem
o Playing chess
o Plan some surgical operations.
o Driving a car in traffic

31
Types of AI:

AI type 1: Based on Capabilities

1. Weak AI or Narrow AI:
o Narrow AI is a type of AI which can perform a dedicated task with intelligence. The
most common and currently available AI is Narrow AI in the world of Artificial
Intelligence.
o Narrow AI cannot perform beyond its field or limitations, as it is only trained for
one specific task. Hence it is also termed as weak AI. Narrow AI can fail in
unpredictable ways if it goes beyond its limits.
o Apple Siri is a good example of Narrow AI, but it operates with a limited pre-defined
range of functions.

2. General AI:

o General AI is a type of intelligence which could perform any intellectual task with
efficiency like a human.
3. Super AI:
o Super AI is a level of Intelligence of Systems at which machines can surpass human
intelligence and can perform any task better than humans with cognitive properties.
It is an outcome of general AI.

32
Artificial Intelligence type 2: Based on functionality

1. Reactive Machines:

o Purely reactive machines are the most basic types of Artificial Intelligence.
o Such AI systems do not store memories or past experiences for future actions.
o These machines only focus on current scenarios and react to it as per possible best
action.
o IBM's Deep Blue system is an example of reactive machines.
o Google's AlphaGo is also an example of reactive machines.

2. Limited Memory:

o Limited memory machines can store past experiences or some data for a short
period of time.
o These machines can use stored data for a limited period only.
o Self-driving cars are one of the best examples of Limited Memory systems. These
cars can store recent speed of nearby cars, the distance of other cars, speed limit,
and other information to navigate the road.

3. Theory of Mind:

o Theory of Mind AI should understand human emotions, people, beliefs, and be able
to interact socially like humans.

4. Self-Awareness:

o Self-awareness AI is the future of Artificial Intelligence. These machines will be

super intelligent, and will have their own consciousness, sentiments, and self-
awareness.

33
MACHINE LEARNING
Machine learning is a growing technology which enables computers to learn automatically
from past data. Machine learning uses various algorithms for building mathematical
models and making predictions using historical data or information. Currently, it is being
used for various tasks such as image recognition, speech recognition, email filtering,
Facebook auto-tagging, recommender system, and many more.
Machine Learning is said to be a subset of artificial intelligence that is mainly concerned
with the development of algorithms which allow a computer to learn from the data and past
experiences on their own.
The wide range of machine learning techniques are such as Supervised, Unsupervised, and
Reinforcement learning.

How does Machine Learning work?

A Machine Learning system learns from historical data, which is known as training data,
builds prediction models, and whenever it receives new data, predicts the output for it.
The accuracy of predicted output depends upon the amount of data, as the huge amount of data
helps to build a better model which predicts the output more accurately.

34
Classification of Machine Learning:

1) Supervised Learning:
Supervised learning is a type of machine learning method in which we provide sample
labelled data to the machine learning system to train it, and on that basis, it predicts the
output. The system creates a model using labelled data to understand the datasets and learn
about each data. Once the training and processing are done then we test the model by
providing sample data to check whether it is predicting the exact output or not. The goal of
supervised learning is to map input data with the output data. Supervised learning is based
on supervision, and it is the same as when a student learns things under the supervision of
the teacher. An example of supervised learning is spam filtering.

Supervised learning can be grouped further in two categories of algorithms:

• Classification
• Regression

2) Unsupervised Learning:

Unsupervised learning is a learning method in which a machine learns without any

supervision. The training is provided to the machine with the set of data that has not been
labelled, classified, or categorized, and the algorithm needs to act on that data without any
supervision. The goal of unsupervised learning is to restructure the input data into new
features or a group of objects with similar patterns. In unsupervised learning, we don't have
a predetermined result. The machine tries to find useful insights from the huge amount of
data.
35
 It can be further classifieds into two categories of algorithms:
• Clustering
• Association

3) Reinforcement Learning:

Reinforcement learning is a feedback-based learning method, in which a learning agent gets

a reward for each right action and gets a penalty for each wrong action. The agent learns
automatically with this feedback and improves its performance. In reinforcement learning,
the agent interacts with the environment and explores it. The goal of an agent is to get the
most reward points, and hence, it improves its performance.
The robotic dog, which automatically learns the movement of his arms, is an example of
Reinforcement learning.

36
DEEP LEARNING
Deep learning is based on the branch of machine learning, which is a subset of artificial
intelligence. Neural networks imitate the human brain and so deep learning will do. In deep
learning, nothing is programmed explicitly. Basically, it is a machine learning class that
makes use of numerous nonlinear processing units so as to perform feature extraction as
well as transformation. The output from each preceding layer is taken as input by each one
of the successive layers.
Deep learning is a collection of statistical techniques of machine learning for learning
feature hierarchies that are based on artificial neural networks.

Example of Deep Learning:

37
Types of Deep Learning Networks:

o Feed forward neural network

o Recurrent neural network

o Convolutional neural network

o Restricted Boltzmann network

o Autoencoders

Deep learning applications:

o Self-driving cars
o Voice controlled assistance – Siri

o Automatic Image caption Generation

o Automatic Machine Translation

38
CLOUD COMPUTING
The term cloud refers to a network or the internet. It is a technology that uses remote
servers on the internet to store, manage, and access data online rather than local drives.
The data can be anything such as files, images, documents, audio, video, and more.
There are the following operations that we can do using cloud computing:
• Developing new applications and services
• Storage, back up, and recovery of data
• Hosting blogs and websites
• Delivery of software on demand
• Analysis of data
• Streaming videos and audios

Why Cloud Computing?

Every IT company needs a Server Room, that is the basic need of IT companies.
In that server room, there should be a database server, mail server, networking, firewalls,
routers, modem, switches, QPS (Query Per Second means how much queries or load will be
handled by the server), configurable system, high net speed, and the maintenance engineers.
To establish such IT infrastructure, we need to spend lots of money. To overcome all these
problems and to reduce the IT infrastructure cost, Cloud Computing comes into existence.

39
Characteristics of Cloud Computing:

The characteristics of cloud computing are given below:

o Agility

o High availability and reliability

o High Scalability

o multi-Sharing

o Device and Location Independence

o Maintenance
o Low cost

o Services in the pay-per-use mode

40
DATA SCIENCE
Data science is a deep study of the massive amount of data, which involves extracting
meaningful insights from raw, structured, and unstructured data that is processed using
the scientific method, different technologies, and algorithms.
It is a multidisciplinary field that uses tools and techniques to manipulate data so that you
can find something new and meaningful.

41
INTERNET OF THINGS (IOT)
Connecting everyday things embedded with electronics, software, and sensors to the
internet enabling collecting and exchange data without human interaction called the
Internet of Things (IoT).
The term "Things" on the Internet of Things refers to anything and everything in day-to-
day life which is accessed or connected through the internet.
IoT is an advanced automation and analytics system which deals with artificial intelligence,
sensor, networking, electronic, cloud messaging etc. to deliver complete systems for the
product or services. The system created by IoT has greater transparency, control, and
performance.

42
How does Internet of Thing (IoT) Work?

The entire working process of IoT starts with the devices themselves, such as smartphones,
digital watches, electronic appliances, which securely communicate with the IoT platform. The
platforms collect and analyze the data from all multiple devices and platforms and transfer the
most valuable data with applications to devices.
Features of IOT:

o Connectivity

o Analyzing

o Artificial Intelligence

o Integrating
o Sensing

o Active Engagement

o Endpoint Management

43
 Telecom Sector terminologies and overview:

Terminologies:
Access Services is the collection, carriage, transmission and
1 Access delivery of voice and/or non-voice messages over Licensee's
Service network by deploying circuit and/or packet switched equipment

Adjusted Gross Revenue - AGR is Gross revenue reduced by

2 AGR permissible deductions (i.e., PSTN related call charges paid to
other telecom service providers for carriage of calls
(IUC)/Roaming and service/sales tax actually paid to the
Government, as per the license agreement
A Service Provider must offer customers the ability to place and
3 Basic receive voice-grade calls over all distances utilizing the public
Services switched telephone network or successor network

Basic Service Operators - They were permitted to offer “limited-

4 BSOs mobility” services over Wireless Local Loop (WLL (M)) using
CDMA technology in their coverage areas
5 BWA Broadband wireless access
6 Call Call charges are variable and are used to pay for the cost of the
Charges equipment to route a call from the caller's exchange to the
recipient's exchange.
7 CAPEX Capital Expenditure
Provision of wired or wireless facilities to originate, terminate or
transit calls, charging for interconnection, settlement or
termination of domestic or international calls, charging for jointly
8 Carrier
used facilities including pole attachments, charging for the
Service
exclusive use of circuits, a leased circuit or a dedicated link
including a speech circuit, data circuit or a telegraph circuit
9 CDMA Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) is a technology for
providing wireless services.
Cellular Mobile Telephone Service - It is a type of short-wave
analog or digital telecommunication service in which a subscriber
has a wireless connection from a mobile phone to a relatively
10 CMTS
nearby transmitter. The transmitter's span of coverage is called a
cell. As the cellular telephone user moves from one cell or area of

44
 coverage to another, the telephone is effectively passed on to the
local cell transmitter.

11 Data Provision of access to wired or wireless facilities and services

Service specifically designed for efficient transmission of data
12 DoT Department of Telecommunications
13 Entry fee One-time non-refundable Entry Fee fixed by DoT has to be paid
by the Licensee prior to signing of the License agreement.
14 FAT Free Airtime
Fixed During the National Telecom Policy-1994 regime, licensees were
15 license selected through a bidding process and were to pay to the
fee Government a fixed amount of annual license fee, agreed during
regime the bidding process.
16 FOC Free of Cost
17 FTT Full talk time
GR - The Gross Revenue shall be inclusive of installation charges,
late fees, sale proceeds of handsets (or any other terminal
equipment etc.), revenue on account of interest, dividend, value
18 GR
added services, supplementary services, access or interconnection
charges, roaming charges, revenue from permissible sharing of
infrastructure and any other miscellaneous revenue, without any
set-off for related item of expense, etc.
19 GSM Global System for Mobile communication is a technology for
providing wireless services.
International Long Distance - The ILD Service is basically a
20 ILD network carriage service (also called Bearer) providing
international connectivity to the Network operated by foreign
carriers.
21 Installati
on Charges for installation of customer terminal equipment
charges

45
 A ‘charge’ levied by network operators on other service providers
22 Interconn to recover the costs of the interconnection facilities (including the
ection hardware and software for routing, signaling, and other basic
charges service functions) provided by the network operators

23 Internet
Services Internet services provides for accessing, using, or participating
on the Internet
24 Internet Internet telephony offers digital telecommunications services
Telephon based on Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) that are
y provisioned via the Internet
25 IOT Inter Operator traffic
Infrastructure provider category- I -No license is issued for IP-I.
26 IP-I Companies registered as IP-I can provide assets such as Dark
Fiber, Right of Way, Duct space and Tower.
Infrastructure provider category- II - An IP-II license can lease /
27 IP-II rent out /sell end to end bandwidth i.e., digital transmission
capacity capable to carry a message. Issuance of IP-II License has
been discontinued w.e.f. 14.12.05
28 ISP Internet Service Provider
29 ISP (IT) Internet Service Provider (including Internet Telephony)
30 IUC Interconnection Usage Charges as defined at serial 16
31 License The Licensee shall pay License Fee as a percentage of Adjusted
Fee Gross Revenue (AGR) for providing telecom services on basis of
licenses granted by DoT.
32 LSAs Licensed Service Areas (Circle)
33 Microwa Microwave (MW) Access is normally in the frequency band 10
ve Access GHz and beyond for GSM and CDMA based telecom service
providers
34 Microwa Microwave (MW) Backbone networks are generally below 10
ve GHz frequency band for GSM and CDMA based telecom service
Backbon providers
e
35 MoC&IT Ministry of Communications and IT

46
 National Long Distance - National Long Distance (NLD) service
36 NLD refers to the carriage of switched-bearer telecommunications
services over a long-distance network i.e., a network connecting
different short distance charging areas (SDCAs)
37 NTP-94 National Telecom Policy-1994
38 NTP-99 New Telecom Policy-1999
39 OPEX Operating Expenditure
40 PSPs Private Service Providers
41 PSTN Public Switched Telecom Network charges
charges
Revenue New Telecom Policy - 99 introduced the 'Revenue Share Regime'
42 sharing in which telecom service providers, in place of the fixed license
regime fee were required to pay a percentage of their Adjusted Gross
Revenue (AGR) as license fee
Roaming is the ability for a cellular customer to automatically
43 Roaming make & receive voice calls, send & receive data, or access other
charges services when traveling outside the geographical coverage area of
the home network, by means of using a visited network. The
charge for this facility is Roaming charges
44 Sales Tax Sales tax is a consumption tax imposed by the government on the
sale of goods and services
Service tax is a tax levied by the government on service providers
45 Service on certain service transactions but is actually borne by the
Tax customers. It is categorized under Indirect Tax and came into
existence under the Finance Act, 1994
46 SUC Spectrum Usage Charges - In addition to License Fee, wireless
service providers are required to pay Spectrum Usage Charges
as a percentage of AGR.
GSM offers three basic types of services: Telephony services or teleservices,
Data services or bearer services & Supplementary services. Supplementary
services are additional services that are provided in addition to teleservices
47 Suppleme and bearer services. These services include caller identification, call
ntary forwarding, call hold, call waiting, conferencing, number identification,
services closed user group and barring of outgoing (international) calls
48 TB Trial Balance
49 TDSAT Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal

47
 Terminal A device that constitutes a point of termination of a communications circuit
50 equipment or channel. Terminal equipment includes all customer premises equipment
(CPE), including voice terminal equipment and data terminal equipment
(DTE)
51 TRAI Telecom Regulatory Authority of India
Unified Access Services License - The UASL services cover collection,
carriage, transmission and delivery of voice and/or non-voice messages over
licensee’s network in the designated service area and include provision of all
types of access services. Access Service Provider can also provide Internet
52 UASL Telephony, Internet Services and Broadband Services. If required, the access
service provider can use the network of NLD/ILD service licensee. The access
service includes but is not limited to wireline and / or wireless and fixed
wireless access.
Unified License - The Licensee may establish, operate and maintain
Telecommunication Networks and telecommunication services using any
technology as per prescribed standards in the service area as per scope of
53 UL services authorized under this License. In case, the Licensee obtains Access
Spectrum, the terms and conditions of the allotment of spectrum regarding
use of technology shall be applicable.

Universal Service Obligation - NTP’99 provided that the resources for

54 USO meeting the USO would be raised through a ‘Universal Access Levy (UAL)’,
which would be a percentage of the revenue earned by the operators under
various licenses.

Value-added service (VAS) is a popular telecommunications industry term

55 Value for non-core services, or in short, all services beyond standard voice calls and
added fax transmissions. In the telecommunication industry, on a conceptual level,
services value- added services add value to the standard service

Very Small Aperture Terminal - VSAT License is to establish, install, operate

56 VSAT and maintain VSAT Closed Users Group Domestic Data Network service via
INSAT Satellite System on non- exclusive basis within territorial boundary of
India

57 WFD Wireless Finance Division of DoT

58 WLL (M) Wireless in Local Loop (Mobile)
59 WPC Charges levied by the Wireless Planning & Coordination Wing of DoT
Charges

48
Overview: India's telecommunication network is the second largest in the world by
number of telephone users (both fixed and mobile phone) with 1179.49 million subscribers
as on 31 January 2021. It has one of the lowest call tariffs in the world enabled by mega
telecom operators and hyper-competition among them. India has the world's second-
largest Internet user-base with 747.41 million broadband internet subscribers in the
country.
Major sectors of the Indian telecommunication industry are telephone, internet and
television broadcast industry in the country which is in an ongoing process of
transforming into next generation network, employs an extensive system of modern
network elements such as digital telephone exchanges, mobile switching centers, media
gateways and signaling gateways at the core, interconnected by a wide variety of
transmission systems using fiber-optics or Microwave radio relay networks. The access
network, which connects the subscriber to the core, is highly diversified with different
copper-pair, optic-fiber, and wireless technologies. DTH, a relatively new broadcasting
technology has attained significant popularity in the Television segment. The introduction
of private FM has given a fillip to the radio broadcasting in India. Telecommunication in
India has greatly been supported by the INSAT system of the country, one of the largest
domestic satellite systems in the world. India possesses a diversified communications
system, which links all parts of the country by telephone, Internet, radio, television and
satellite.
Telecommunication has supported the socioeconomic development of India and has
played a significant role to narrow down the rural-urban digital divide to some extent. It
also has helped to increase the transparency of governance with the introduction of e-
governance in India. The government has pragmatically used modern telecommunication
facilities to deliver mass education programme for the rural folk of India.

49
 Other Trending Technologies

AR/VR:
Augmented reality (AR) is an interactive experience that combines the real world and
computer-generated content while Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that
employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a
virtual world. Both are integral parts of the process of building the Metaverse.
Augmented reality is largely synonymous with mixed reality. The primary value of
augmented reality is the manner in which components of the digital world blend into a
person's perception of the real world, not as a simple display of data, but through the
integration of immersive sensations, which are perceived as natural parts of an
environment. Augmented reality is used to enhance natural environments or situations
and offer perceptually enriched experiences.
Augmented reality (AR) differs from virtual reality (VR) in the sense that in AR part of
the surrounding environment is 'real' and just adding layers of virtual objects to the real
environment. On the other hand, in VR the surrounding environment is completely
virtual, and computer generated.
Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), education
(such as medical or military training) and business (such as virtual meetings). A person
using virtual reality equipment is able to look around the artificial world, move around in
it, and interact with virtual features or items. The effect is commonly created by VR
headsets consisting of a head-mounted display with a small screen in front of the eyes.
Virtual reality typically incorporates auditory and video feedback but may also allow
other types of sensory and force feedback through haptic technology.

50
Metaverse:
The metaverse is a concept of an online, 3D, virtual space connecting users in all aspects of
their lives. It would connect to multiple platforms, similar to the internet containing
different websites accessible through a single browser.
The concept was developed in the science-fiction novel Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson.
The metaverse will be driven by augmented reality, with each user controlling a character
or avatar.
Besides supporting gaming or social media, the metaverse will combine economies, digital
identity, decentralized governance, and other applications. Even today, user creation and
ownership of valuable items and currencies help develop a single, united metaverse. All
these features provide blockchain the potential to power this future technology.
While we don't yet have a single, linked metaverse, we have plenty of platforms and
projects similar to the metaverse. Typically, these also incorporate NFTs and other
blockchain elements.

Access points for the metaverse includes general-purpose computers and smartphones,
augmented reality, mixed reality, and virtual reality.

51
World Economic Forum to Promote Metaverse-Based Collaboration

The World Economic Forum (WEF) has announced the rollout of its own metaverse
platform, dubbed the Global Collaboration Village. The digital world, designed to look
like the actual town of Davos in which the organization meets once every year, will
supposedly allow for more efficient collaboration between world leaders.
The technology that would power this metaverse representation of Davos would be
provided by Microsoft and its Mesh suite, which extends the functionality of Teams, the
popular business meeting software, to allow users to appear as 3D avatars. Mesh also has
a specially designed app for VR headsets that allows for more interactivity with the
metaverse worlds.
Satya Nadella, CEO of tech giant Microsoft, believes that, while Covid-19 changed the
environment when it comes to meetings, forcing people to resort to video calls for these
purposes, the implementation of more immersive technologies is a “very natural extension
of it.”
Criticisms and Concerns
Privacy: Information privacy is an area of concern for metaverses because related
companies will likely collect users' personal information through interactions and
biometric data from wearable virtual reality devices. Meta Platforms (previously
Facebook) is planning on employing targeted advertising within their metaverse, raising
further worries related to the spread of misinformation and loss of personal privacy.
Addiction and problematic social media use: User addiction and problematic social media
use is another concern. Internet addiction disorder, social media, and video game
addiction can have mental and physical repercussions over a prolonged period of time,
such as depression, anxiety, and various other harms related to having a sedentary
lifestyle such as an increased risk for obesity and cardiovascular disease.
To know more: https://youtu.be/7ODuQMkZWK8

52
Cryptocurrency
A cryptocurrency, crypto-currency, or crypto is a digital currency designed to work as a
medium of exchange through a computer network that is not reliant on any central
authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it.
Individual coin ownership records are stored in a digital ledger, which is a computerized
database using strong cryptography to secure transaction records, to control the creation
of additional coins, and to verify the transfer of coin ownership. Cryptocurrency does not
exist in physical form (like paper money) and is typically not issued by a central authority.
Cryptocurrencies typically use decentralized control as opposed to a central bank digital
currency (CBDC). When a cryptocurrency is minted or created prior to issuance or issued
by a single issuer, it is generally considered centralized. When implemented with
decentralized control, each cryptocurrency works through distributed ledger technology,
typically a blockchain, that serves as a public financial transaction database.
A cryptocurrency is a tradable digital asset or digital form of money, built on blockchain
technology that only exists online. Cryptocurrencies use encryption to authenticate and
protect transactions, hence their name. There are currently over a thousand different
cryptocurrencies in the world, and their supporters see them as the key to a fairer future
economy. Few popular crypto currencies are:
• Bitcoin
• Ethereum
• Dogecoin
• Litecoin
• Binance coin

How does crypto fit into the metaverse?

Crypto can offer the other key parts required, such as digital proof of ownership, transfer
of value, governance, and accessibility.
If, in the future, we work, socialize, and even purchase virtual items in the metaverse, we
need a secure way of showing ownership. We also need to feel safe transferring these items
and money around the metaverse. Finally, we will also want to play a role in the decision-
making taking place in the metaverse if it is such a large part of our lives.
Many developers use crypto and blockchain as an option. Blockchain provides a
decentralized and transparent way of dealing with the topics.
Blockchain developers also take influence from the video game world. Gamification is
common in Decentralized Finance (DeFi) and Game Fi. The key aspects of blockchain
suited to the metaverse are:

53
1. Digital proof of ownership: By owning a wallet with access to your private keys, you can
instantly prove ownership of an activity or an asset on the blockchain. For example, you
could show an exact transcript of your transactions on the blockchain while at work to
show accountability. A wallet is one of the most secure and robust methods for
establishing a digital identity and proof of ownership.
2. Digital collectability: Just as we can establish who owns something, we can also show
that an item is original and unique. For a metaverse looking to incorporate more real-life
activities, this is important. Through NFTs, we can create objects that are 100% unique
and can never be copied exactly or forged. A blockchain can also represent ownership of
physical items.
3. Transfer of value: A metaverse will need a way to transfer value securely that users
trust. In-game currencies in multiplayer games are less secure than crypto on a
blockchain. If users spend large amounts of time in the metaverse and even earn money
there, they will need a reliable currency.
4. Governance: The ability to control the rules of your interaction with the metaverse
should also be important for users. In real life, we can have voting rights in companies and
elect leaders and governments. The metaverse will also need ways to implement fair
governance, and blockchain is already a proven way of doing this.
5. Accessibility: Creating a wallet is open to anyone around the world on public
blockchains. Unlike a bank account, you don't need to pay any money or provide any
details. This makes it one of the most accessible ways to manage finances and an online,
digital identity.
6. Interoperability: Blockchain technology is continuously improving compatibility
between different platforms. Projects like Polka dot (DOT) and Avalanche
(AVAX) allow for creating custom blockchains that can interact with each other. A single
metaverse will need to connect multiple projects, and blockchain technology already has
solutions for this.
To know more: https://youtu.be/8NgVGnX4KOw

54
NFT
Non-fungible tokens or NFTs are cryptographic assets on a blockchain with unique
identification codes and metadata that distinguish them from each other. Unlike
cryptocurrencies, they cannot be traded or exchanged at equivalency. This differs from
fungible tokens like cryptocurrencies, which are identical to each other and, therefore, can
be used as a medium for commercial transactions.
The distinct construction of each NFT has the potential for several use cases. For example,
they are an ideal vehicle to digitally represent physical assets like real estate and artwork.
Because they are based on blockchains, NFTs can also be used to remove intermediaries
and connect artists with audiences or for identity management. NFTs can remove
intermediaries, simplify transactions, and create new markets.
Like physical money, cryptocurrencies are fungible i.e., they can be traded or exchanged,
one for another. For example, one Bitcoin is always equal in value to another Bitcoin.
Similarly, a single unit of Ether is always equal to another unit. This fungibility
characteristic makes cryptocurrencies suitable for use as a secure medium of transaction
in the digital economy.
Non-fungible tokens are an evolution over the relatively simple concept of
cryptocurrencies. Modern finance systems consist of sophisticated trading and loan
systems for different asset types, ranging from real estate to lending contracts to artwork.
By enabling digital representations of physical assets, NFTs are a step forward in the
reinvention of this infrastructure.
Advantages of NFT:
Perhaps, the most obvious benefit of NFTs is market efficiency. The conversion of a
physical asset into a digital one streamlines processes and removes intermediaries. NFTs
representing digital or physical artwork on a blockchain remove the need for agents and
allow artists to connect directly with their audiences. Non-fungible tokens are also
excellent for identity management. Consider the case of physical passports that need to be
produced at every entry and exit point. By converting individual passports into NFTs,
each with its own unique identifying characteristics, it is possible to streamline the entry
and exit processes for jurisdictions. Expanding this use case, NFTs can be used for identity
management within the digital realm as well. NFTs can also democratize investing by
fractionalizing physical assets like real estate. It is much easier to divide a digital real
estate asset among multiple owners than a physical one.

To know more: https://youtu.be/NNQLJcJEzv0

55
Quantum Computing
Quantum computing is a rapidly emerging technology that harnesses the laws of quantum
mechanics to solve problems too complex for classical computers. At small scales, physical
matter exhibits properties of both particles and waves, and quantum computing leverages
this behavior using specialized hardware. Quantum algorithms are particularly good at
optimization problems.
Quantum computers are believed to be able to quickly solve certain problems that no
classical computer could solve in any feasible amount of time—a feat known as quantum
supremacy.
Most models are based on the quantum bit, or "qubit", which is somewhat analogous to
the bit in classical computation. A qubit can be in a 1 or 0 quantum state, or in a
superposition of the 1 and 0 states. When it is measured, however, it is always 0 or 1; the
probability of either outcome depends on the qubit's quantum state immediately prior to
measurement.
There are currently a number of significant obstacles to constructing useful quantum
computers. It is particularly difficult to maintain qubits' quantum states, as they suffer
from quantum decoherence. Quantum computers therefore require error correction.
In October 2019, Google AI Quantum, with the help of NASA, became the first to claim to
have achieved quantum supremacy by performing calculations on the Sycamore quantum
computer more than 3,000,000 times faster than they could be done on Summit, generally
considered the world's fastest computer.
In December 2020, a group at USTC implemented a type of Boson sampling on 76 photons
with a photonic quantum computer Jiuzhang to demonstrate quantum supremacy. The
authors claim that a classical contemporary supercomputer would require a
computational time of 600 million years to generate the number of samples their quantum
processor can generate in 20 seconds.
More businesses have recently revealed AI/QC programs. For big data, IoT, AI, robots,
and other applications that, according to LG Electronics, all need for processing a lot of
data, the company is looking into QC. In the meantime, HSBC is also considering QC for
fraud detection, risk reduction, and investment portfolio optimization, which typically
involve ML algorithms to process massive volumes of data.

To know more: https://youtu.be/X8MZWCGgIb8

56
Edge Computing: Edge computing is a distributed computing paradigm that brings
computation and data storage closer to the sources of data. This is expected to improve
response times and save bandwidth. Internet of things (IoT) is an example of edge
computing. While cloud computing operates on big data, edge computing operates on
"instant data" that is real-time data generated by sensors or users.
Application include computation offloading for real-time applications, such as facial
recognition algorithms, IoT-based power grid systems making energy management more
efficient, cloud gaming, where some aspects of a game could run in the cloud, while the
rendered video is transferred to lightweight clients running on devices such as mobile
phones, VR glasses, etc. Other notable applications include connected cars, autonomous
cars, smart cities, Industry 4.0 (smart industry), and home automation systems.
Ransomware: Ransomware is a type of malware from crypto virology that threatens to
publish the victim's personal data or permanently block access to it unless a ransom is
paid off. While some simple ransomware may lock the system without damaging any files,
more advanced malware uses a technique called crypto viral extortion. It encrypts the
victim's files, making them inaccessible, and demands a ransom payment to decrypt them.
According to industry reports, there were around 623 million ransomware attacks in
2021.
Ransomware attack on AIIMS Delhi servers: A recent ransomware attack on AIIMS, one
of the largest public health institutions in India, highlighted the dangers cyberattacks can
pose to human life. Attackers targeted AIIMS servers with malware that made the servers
dysfunctional. Various services were affected, from patient registration to emergency
services, affecting patients and curtailing hospital operations for over two weeks. This was
in addition to the leak of personal data in large numbers, including information on key
individuals.

Right to Repair: The right to repair refers to proposed government legislation that
would allow consumers the ability to repair and modify their own consumer products (e.g.
electronic, automotive devices or farm vehicles such as tractors), where otherwise the
manufacturer of such products requires the consumer to use only their offered services by
restricting access to tools and components, or software barriers put in place to hinder
independent repair or modification.
Portal Launched: Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal launched the much awaited
‘Right To Repair’ portal at a public event in New Delhi on the occasion of National
Consumer Day on December 24. On the portal, manufacturers will share the manual of
product details with customers so that they can repair by self, by third parties, rather
than depend on original manufacturers. Initially, mobile phones, electronics, consumer
durables, automobiles and farming equipment will be covered.

57
Social Media Disinformation: Fake news, or misinformation can be created and
shared across social media particularly during significant events that have a big impact on
our society. For example, there was a flurry of fake news relating to Covid-19 during and
in the wake of the pandemic.
Disinformation created on social media is an issue that needs to be resolved with the
consensus of governments and social media companies. However, it is necessary to prevent
information pollution on social media without harming freedom of expression, one of the
indispensable elements of democracy. Otherwise, it may open the way for the bans and be
used as an excuse for the despotic governments for oppression.

ChatGPT: ChatGPT (Chat Generative Pre-Trained Transformer) is a chatbot launched

by OpenAI in November 2022. It is built on top of OpenAI's GPT-3 family of large
language models and is fine-tuned (an approach to transfer learning) with both supervised
and reinforcement learning techniques. It was launched as a prototype on November 30,
2022, and quickly garnered attention for its detailed responses and articulate answers
across many domains of knowledge. Its uneven factual accuracy was identified as a
significant drawback.
Microsoft’s investment: Microsoft has confirmed a third sizeable investment into
American research lab Open AI. While Microsoft didn’t disclose a specific dollar amount,
Semafor pegged the investment at a whopping $10 billion earlier this month. In a
statement, OpenAI called it a “multi-year, multi-billion-dollar investment.”
Stable Diffusion and AI generated media: Stable Diffusion is a deep learning, text-
to-image model released in 2022. It is primarily used to generate detailed images
conditioned on text descriptions, though it can also be applied to other tasks such as
inpainting, out painting, and generating image-to-image translations guided by a text
prompt. Art-generating models like Stable Diffusion have led to incredible outpourings of
creativity, powering apps and even entirely new business models. On the other hand, its
open-source nature lets bad actors use it to create deepfakes at scale — all while artists
protest that it’s profiting off of their work.
Tech monopolies and Antitrust: This has been one of the toughest years in recent
times for Big Tech companies such as Meta, Alphabet and Amazon, which have faced
intense scrutiny from governments around the world. This has coincided with strong
macroeconomic headwinds that have forced them to conduct mass layoffs after two years
of unprecedented hiring.
While European lawmakers have been doing everything, they can ensure these companies
fall in line, India has drawn up or proposed legislation — the IT rules, the draft Digital
Data Protection Bill, and the proposed Digital Competition Act and Digital India Act – to
regulate data collection and break the monopolies of these companies.
58
Fines on Google and others: More than any other regulator, it was the Competition
Commission of India (CCI) that kept Google and its Big Tech peers on their toes. The
competition watchdog imposed two huge penalties, totaling Rs 2,274 crore, on Google
within a week in October. It also imposed fines worth a combined Rs 392-crore on Indian
companies such as MakeMyTrip, GoIbibo and Oyo in October as part of its crackdown on
tech companies.

59
60