The Spectrum Tussle - Cdma V Gsm

[Nirvana 4]

LOL @ shashank

[Honest 836]

If HC also says NO then a case in Supreme Court!

^^^

My dear friends, and in case Supreme Court says Yes then surely these GSM gangsters will go to the PRESIDENT.

Regards.

[kesav 127]

GSM operators blocking competition, says Tata Tele MD

New Delhi, Dec. 23 Tata Teleservices has alleged that the appeal filed by existing GSM operators in the High Court seeking a stay on issuing new licences is aimed at blocking competition.

Mr Anil Sardana, Managing Director, Tata Teleservices, told Business Line that the GSM players were acting as a cartel to deny entry to new players.

“It is to the existing GSM operator’s benefit that everything gets delayed. Therefore they are seeking a stay on Government’s decisions. It is really disappointing the way they react as soon as any decision is taken that is against their liking.”

Mr Sardana pointed out that all the operators should look at ways that would allow the Government to move forward rather than holding the entire industry, which is seeing phenomenal growth, to ransom just because they feel that some of the policy decisions seem to be against them.

“They want to block new players from coming into GSM, they do not want new operators to come in 3G. They cannot take such a position that completely stalls the decision making process,” Mr Sardana said.

Tata Teleservices has applied for a pan Indian GSM licence under the new policy to allow dual technology. Existing operators have been opposing entry of new players on the grounds that the Government should first make sure that there is enough spectrum for currently operating companies.

Mr Sardana said that the GSM operators were only using this argument as an excuse to block competition. “If they really wanted to find a solution to the problem they would have participated in the technical committee set up by the Government. What is the basis of seeking a stay on the Government’s decision making process?” posed the Tata Teleservices honcho.

Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar, Idea Cellular and Spice Telecom have filed a petition in the Delhi High Court seeking a stay on issuing licence or spectrum to new players. The petition filed by these operators said that the telecom tribunal had failed in giving an interim stay on the decision to permit dual technology.

The case is likely to be taken up by the court on Monday. GSM operators fear that without a stay the Government would go ahead and give permission to new players to enter the telecom sector, which would put further crunch on spectrum.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2007/1...22450370400.htm

I expect the HC to slap the Gangsters with exorbitant fine for delaying the growth of telecom industry for their selfishness.

Edited December 24, 2007 by kesav

[kshah 452]

If HC also says NO then a case in Supreme Court!

^^^

My dear friends, and in case Supreme Court says Yes then surely these GSM gangsters will go to the PRESIDENT.

Regards.

Sonia gandhi is more powerful than president, GSM lobby has atleast thats much of brain

[Ramchi 0]

Oh god! please throw all these officials in a gutter

They are fighting like dogs.

If TRAI says Yes, Dot says NO, If Dot says Yes, TRAI says NO! If TRAI and Dot Says YES,TDSAT says NO. If TRAI Dot & TDSAT says YES, Operators file a case in high court,If HC also says NO then a case in Supreme Court! Time taken from HC to SC is one year.

I was waiting for 3G from 2004.I hope atleast my children will be able to experience 3G(by then world will using 30G ).

Welcome to the CLUB! I have been telling this all along. May be all of them playing together fooling the general public by clearly delaying the 3G deployment which is really an expensive one.

All operators benefits due to delay in 3G deployment and customers like us are denied the best technology, as usual. Welcome to the era of 'Hamara Bajaj' where you have to wait 5 years to get your two wheeler and 10 years to get your phone line!

[kesav 127]

Spectrum row: Delhi HC refuses stay

New Delhi, Dec 24: Replying unfavourably to the petition filed by the four GSM mobile operators, Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Idea and Spice, the Delhi High Court has declined to grant a stay order on the spectrum allocation process as initiated by the Department of Telecom (DoT).

The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT), too on December 12, to stay the government's process of awarding new licences and allocating airwaves to mobile firms to those who had applied as of September 25, a decision which existing GSM players say would hurt them.

The GSM lobby, Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) had approached the Delhi High Court against telecom tribunal TDSAT's interim order not to stay the spectrum allocation process.

"The Department of Telecom (DoT) decision is an attempt to pass off second and new GSM license to CDMA operators in the garb of dual technology allocation," the COAI had said in a statement issued on the 21st of this month.

Atleast now, will they surrender ? or will they go to supreme court to get another slap?

source :: http://www.zeenews.com/znnew/articles.asp?...=BUS&sname=

[shashank 8]

I think now they will go to Bombay High Court and then to SC!

[Arun 795]

Good news for Anil Ambani on spectrum allocation

CNN-IBN

Published on Mon, Dec 24, 2007 at 14:16

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has refused to stay a recent telecom tribunal order allowing operators to offer services using both GSM and the rival CDMA technology.

GSM operators such as Airtel and Vodaphone appealed for a stay on the policy, saying the policy has been tweaked to benefit reliance .

However, the GSM operators lobby COAI failed to get any relief from Delhi High Court on spectrum allocation. The court refusal to stay the spectrum allocation policy is good news for operators like Reliance Communications.

GSM players had argued in court that this policy has been tweaked to help Reliance, which becomes yet another victory for Anil Ambani owned, Reliance Communication.

GSM mobile operators had earlier asked the government to seek afresh the views of regulator TRAI on spectrum allocation norms and suspend till such time, distribution of initial or additional frequency.

[@ksh@T 20]

U-turn by COAI; says comfortable with TRAI norms on spectrum

NEW DELHI: The GSM-based mobile operators on Wednesday took a U-turn and accepted the spectrum allocation norms of telecom regulator TRAI that had suggested up to six time higher subscriber base for firms to get additional frequency.

"We are quite comfortable with this," T V Ramachandran, director general of Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), said reacting to the government's decision to file an affidavit in telecom tribunal TDSAT and Delhi High Court to this effect.

COAI, the lobby of GSM players, had earlier challenged the spectrum allocation norms as suggested by TRAI and the use of dual technology to offer mobile services in TDSAT and then in Delhi High Court.

Some of the new applicants termed it as a compromise by the government, saying the norms suggested by Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC) were on the scientific basis and should have been implemented in toto. TEC had suggested even stringent norms of up to 15 times subscriber base for allotment of additional spectrum.

They said the TEC report was accepted in-principle by the government and additional spectrum should be alloted based on this report. They also raised the issue of GSM operators hoarding spectrum beyond their contractual limit of 6.2 MHz.

The government would file an affidavit based on the recommendations of spectrum review committee that TRAI's subscriber linked criteria may be followed to allot additional frequency to existing GSM players and it should be in multiples of 1 MHz instead of 2.4-2.8 MHz currently.

COAI, however, said the issue of dual technology was a separate matter and can not be combined with the spectrum allocation norms of TRAI.

[@ksh@T 20]

Govt to allot additional spectrum based on TRAI figures

NEW DELHI: The government on Wednesday accepted spectrum review committee's recommendation of allocating additional frequency to existing GSM operators based on TRAI's subscriber linked formula and in multiples of 1 MHz.

To this effect, an affidavit would be filed in the sectoral tribunal TDSAT and Delhi High Court, where the GSM lobby has challenged the government on spectrum allocation norms, senior officials told media.

According to the officials, Communications Minister A Raja today signed the file and sent it to Department of Telecom Secretary D S Mathur for action.

The GSM lobby Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) had challenged TRAI's figures, saying these were not based on scientific calculation and were without consultation of the stakeholders.

Till now, the GSM operators were getting additional spectrum in the multiples of 2.4 to 2.8 MHz and lowering it to 1 MHz would hit the operators as this would mean additional capital expenditure for them.

Asked on other recommendations of the official review committee headed by R Bandhopadhyay, the officials said that a separate file may be submitted in the respective courts.

The panel had suggested that another committee be set up with technical experts to arrive at a scientific subscriber base for apportioning additional spectrum and in the interim period TRAI recommendation be implemented.

In fact, the committee was of view that the subscriber base as suggested by the Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC), which is higher than TRAI, could be still higher if all the parameters were taken into account.

[Arun 795]

Reliance Communications slams legal notice to DoT

New Delhi, December 27 - IndiaPR Wire

Reliance Communications (RCOM), one of the leading CDMA mobile phone operators, Thursday gave legal notice to the department of telecommunications (DoT) to stop it from allocating more radio frequencies to existing operators.

This follows the DoT decision to allocate radio spectrum in multiples of 1 MHz to the operators, based on the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (TRAI) method of subscriber-linked criteria. For this, the DoT will soon file an affidavit in the telecom tribunal and also in the Delhi High Court.

According to RCOM, the DoT should follow the method recommended by the Telecom Engineering Centre, which is more stringent than that of TRAI's.

TEC recommended raising the subscriber base by up to 15 times against TRAI's six times.

'Rejecting the TEC norms and accepting TRAI norms is arbitrary and illegal and is also contrary to the earlier decision of the DoT to accept the TEC report,' the legal notice stated.

The Anil Ambani-promoted company also reiterated its demand that excess spectrum held by the GSM players be returned at the earliest.

'Excess spectrum has been allocated to the existing private GSM operators and the government should immediately take action for getting the extra spectrum back from the existing private GSM operators,' it said.

Reliance Communications has also sought surrendering of 50 MHz spectrum that is in possession of the GSM operators. It had earlier alleged that GSM operators were hoarding spectrum beyond their entitlement of 6.2 MHz.

The telephony and internet major has also sought refarming of spectrum between 900 MHz and 1800 MHz and its equal distribution among all operators to create a level playing field.

It has also stated that refarming of premium 900 MHz spectrum would result in capital expenditure savings of Rs 15,000 crore and annual operational expense savings of Rs 2,000 crore.

'The DoT should also charge extra fees for the excess spectrum from the date of issue of the spectrum to the date of return of the same,' it added.

The company Thursday had also accused the DoT of 'succumbing to private GSM operators' pressure tactics.'

Now that the government has finally decided to accept TRAI's recommendations, Communications and IT Minister A. Raja, in a written note to the DoT, has urged it to take a re-look at the fee to be paid to get the spectrum.

'Since it has been decided to accept TRAI's subscriber base for allocation of additional spectrum, a decision needs to be taken on spectrum charges,' the note from Raja said.

Operators may be required to pay higher fees for obtaining spectrum beyond a certain limit, DoT officials said.

According to TRAI's recommendations, spectrum charges in terms of percentage of adjusted gross revenue (AGR) may be increased.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also reiterated this earlier this month, saying the government should not lose earning revenues for the allocation of spectrum, a practice that is followed across the world.

[kesav 127]

Very good move by Reliance.

The fight should be ON till excess spectrum is returned back from GSM gangsters.

Edited December 28, 2007 by kesav

[FEVIN-RAJ 61]

Raja wants spectrum charges reworked; operators to pay more?

TRAI had suggested that the Government could start levying a one-time spectrum charge on all operators who want more than 10 Mhz.

New Delhi, Dec. 27 In a move that could spell further problems for mobile operators, the Communications Minister, Mr A. Raja, has asked the Department of Telecom to review the spectrum charges being paid by service providers.

Both the telecom regulator and the Telecom Engineering Centre have already recommended to the Government that spectrum charges should be enhanced. If the Government accepts these suggestions then it will be a double whammy for cellular operators as they are already reeling under DoT’s decision, on Wednesday, to enhance the number of subscriber required to be eligible for additional spectrum. DoT has been asked to give its recommendations within 15 days.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India had suggested that the annual spectrum charges, which is a percentage of the revenues earned by the operators, can be increased for more than 10 Mhz. Therefore, if an operator had 10 Mhz spectrum in a circle the operator should be asked to pay 5 per cent of its revenues instead of 4 per cent at present. Similarly, if the quantum of spectrum goes up to 12.5 Mhz, the charges also increase to 6 per cent of the revenues instead of 5 per cent at present.

TRAI had also suggested that the Government could start levying a one-time spectrum charge on all operators who want more than 10 Mhz. For example, an operator in Mumbai, Delhi or Category A service areas would have to pay Rs 16 crore as one-time spectrum charge for each Mhz allocated beyond 10 Mhz.

Higher spectrum charges could result in an increase in mobile tariffs warned cellular operators. The Cellular Operators Association of India has already rejected the suggestions made by TRAI and TEC. “Operators are already working on low margins. Despite offering the lowest tariffs in the world, the Indian telecom sector is the most heavily taxed and these charges, if revised upwards, will have implications on operator’s revenues which in turn could impact tariffs,” said a GSM operator.

However, for the Communications Ministry, this could be one of the ways to meet the objective of revenue generation for the Government especially in the wake of comments made by the Prime Minister that spectrum allocation policy should not lose sight of filling the coffers of the national exchequer

[@ksh@T 20]

DoT may take back excess spectrum

NEW DELHI: In what could be another blow to existing GSM mobile operators, the government may soon demand return of excess spectrum held by them beyond eligible limit.

The move comes after the government last week decided to allot additional spectrum based on telecom regulator TRAI's subscriber linked criteria and GSM lobby Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) accepted the decision.

Going by TRAI norms, which suggested up to six times more subscribers to become eligible for additional spectrum, the operators may end up holding excess airwaves. These surplus airwaves can accommodate 4-5 new players, sources said.

DoT has already conducted a detailed study of all GSM players with regard to their subscriber base and equivalent spectrum they hold. Most existing GSM players have 10 MHz of spectrum in major cities like Delhi and Mumbai, sources said. Since new spectrum quantity would be decided as per TRAI formula the operators would have to return excess airwaves in many circles, they added.

However, no decision has been taken on whether DoT would enforce the rule that spectrum beyond 6.2 MHz would not be allocated, the sources said.

At the same time, DoT has begun the process of revising spectrum usage charges to maximise the revenues to the government. The Telecom Commission has been given 15 days to complete the exercise to rework the charges.

Sources also denied that the report of Telecom Engineering Centre has been completely rejected while accepting TRAI's recommendations. TEC, which is the technical wing of Department of Telecom, had suggested up to 15 times more subscriber base for spectrum allocation.

In fact, the government is planning to appoint another panel for a detailed study to discover spectrum allocation formula based on scientific analysis. This may take about six months and TRAI norms would be implemented as an interim solution till then.

[@ksh@T 20]

Zing Thing: Spice adds masala to spectrum drama

NEW DELHI: The battle for radio frequencies shows no sign of ebbing. After Idea Cellular, Spice Communications has now warned the Department of Telecom (DoT) against manipulating the priority list of allocation of radio frequencies. Spice has pointed out that under the current policy, licences and spectrum are awarded on a first-come-first-served basis, and since it (Spice) had applied in 2006, it was ahead of all new applicants in the queue.

“Please note that any manipulation of initial spectrum allocation priority, achieved through the device of manipulation of dates of payment demands would constitute an assault on government policy,” Spice joint managing director Umang Das, said in a communication to the DoT.

Both Idea and Spice’s communications comes amidst reports that the DoT was set to modify the existing policy, under which priority in queue for licence ensures the same priority in the queue for spectrum. According to sources, as per the modified policy, the DoT plans a separate queue for the allocation of spectrum where all companies, after getting the LoIs, will be given 15 days to submit the licence fee of Rs 1,651 crore.

The spectrum queue will then be based on who the payment schedule. Put simply, the companies that make the payment first will head the new queue for spectrum allocation. If implemented, this would mean that players such as Idea Cellular and Spice, which top the spectrum queue stand to lose out.

At the same time, this also improves the prospects of players such as Unitech, BPL, HFCL, S Tel, Parsvnath, Datacom Solutions, Oswals, Shyam and Indiabulls to get start-up spectrum to launch services. These companies had all applied before September 25 but fall in the rear end of the queue under the existing policy.

“Delay in the processing of our LoIs beyond the prescribed time lines cannot be a basis for equating us with any applicant who may have applied for GSM initial Spectrum after our date of application,” Spice’s communication to the DoT added. Spice also added that it had applied for licences in August 2006 and under the existing policy, it should have been issued LoIs within 30 days of the submission of its application.

“Keeping in mind the current policy guidelines, we had organised funds in anticipation of LoI issuance within the prescribed time lines. In this context we wish to inform you that we are ready to make payments of entry fees and also execute bank guarantees against the LoIs due to us,” Mr Das added in his communication to the DoT.

thats a chaos like hera pheri! another sequel in the process

[coolrajiv 1]

Source - http://www.telegraphindia.com/1080102/jsp/...ory_8732941.jsp

Trai jams spectrum return plan

New Delhi, Jan. 1: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) says it is not feasible for telecom operators to return excess spectrum as this will inconvenience customers.

Officials of Trai were reacting to recent media reports on the possibility of the government demanding the return of spectrum over the limit specified by the regulator.

The department of telecom (DoT) has, however, said that it has not taken any decision on this issue.

Trai felt its recommendations on spectrum allocation norms should not be applied on a retrospective basis.

“It would not be feasible for telecom operators to return spectrum as networks are planned and rolled out to work based on current spectrum allotments,” the officials said.

They said it would take over an year for an operator to migrate subscribers to another frequency before it can surrender spectrum.

Mobile operators cannot return spectrum without changing the network configuration completely, which could affect the quality of service.

The officials also said that the recent recommendations on subscriber-based spectrum allocation criteria “cannot be applied on a retrospective basis as it will not be fair to existing operators”.

Last week, the DoT decided to allot additional spectrum based on Trai’s subscriber-linked criteria.

The regulator had recommended an increase in the subscriber base of operators by two to six times before they are given additional spectrum.

On the basis of these norms, many telecom operators may be holding excess spectrum that is sufficient to accommodate 4-5 new players.

However, the regulator contends that these recommendations are for the allocation of spectrum in the future. They should not be used to take away spectrum that has already been granted based on the current allocation policy.

Earlier, in a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Reliance Communications chairman Anil Ambani had alleged that the three GSM operators — Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular — together held around 54.2 MHz of spectrum in excess of norms.

Ambani had proposed that the government should make it mandatory for telecom service providers to surrender additional spectrum.

He had also conveyed his willingness to the government on surrendering 1.8 MHz of spectrum. This spectrum is for the Bihar circle and in excess of its requirements.

In response to Ambani, Bharti in a release had stated that “GSM operators combined have less than 25 MHz of total spectrum.”

Under the current telecom licence agreement, operators of GSM services are entitled to spectrum up to 6.2 Mhz, while CDMA operators have been permitted spectrum up to 5 Mhz.

[kesav 127]

Saying refarming is not possible is cynical.......

Totally a false propaganda set out by vested interests.

In this era of ICT, refarming can be completed in 3 months solid.

When Regulator of UK can get back the spectrum why not in India?

[@ksh@T 20]

Speed up spectrum allocation for 3G: Trai

NEW DELHI: Telecom regulator Trai has recommended that the government expedite the process of making spectrum available for 3G and WiMAX to boost broadband growth in the country. “The government should expedite decision on Trai’s recommendations regarding mechanism and pricing of Spectrum for 3G & broadband wireless access,” Trai said in its statement on Wednesday.

Trai issued its broadband recommendations after receiving feedback from stakeholders and taking into account best international practices on impediments affecting broadband growth. It had issued its draft recommendations in September 2007.

“Government announced Broadband Policy in 2004 and made certain projections for broadband subscribers’ growth. It was expected that broadband growth rate would be stepped up. However, it is observed that the growth of broadband in the country is slow and below expected level,” Trai said. The regulator has recommended that the government should ensure availability of more number of Ku-band transponders to roll out broadband services through the Direct-to-Home (DTH) platform. It also suggested encouraging cable TV operators to provide broadband over their network.

Other key recommendations include using the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF) to subsidise backhaul charges for the initial three years of broadband roll-out in rural areas and identifying more than two service providers seeking minimum subsidy with a roll-out obligation in rural areas. The regulator said municipal committees should be encouraged to include a clause for making multiple dwelling units/ buildings broadband-ready by adopting suitable internal wiring while giving clearance for the construction of all such buildings in future.

State-run operators BSNL and MTNL should be encouraged to appoint franchisees for providing broadband services to supplement their efforts, Trai added in its recommendations. It has also asked the Central government to work with the state governments to adopt uniform Right of Way (RoW) procedures and suggested formation of district-level committees to study RoW requirements and to take measures to encourage service providers to share ducts.

hurry up yaar!

[kesav 127]

Telecom spectrum allocation only after verdict: Court

The Delhi High Court Thursday directed the government to await its final ruling before allotting scarce radio frequency spectrum to a section of mobile telecom services providers.

The high court said any decision on the matter would have to wait for the final outcome of a petition before it filed by the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), an industry lobby for the GSM mobile phone operators.

The petition by COAI had challenged an earlier ruling by the telecommunications tribunal in December, which said the government can allot radio waves to those offering services under the CDMA technology and had applied for frequencies.

The association said the tribunal gave no reason for its interim order and added that the decision would grossly undermine the interests of its member companies, which include the largest private sector player Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone.

'Anything done by the union government in continuance of an application made by Reliance will be subject to the outcome of this writ petition,' ruled Justice Gita Mittal of the Delhi High Court.

Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communications Ltd and Tata Teleservices are among the players who offer mobile phone services using the CDMA technology.

Justice Mittal also asked the respondents, including the government, the telecom regulator, Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices to file their replies to the petition within a week.

She also sought a response from Himachal Futuristic Communications Ltd, Shyam Telelink and the state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd and Mahanagar Telecom Nigan Ltd within one week and a rejoinder within a week after that.

This apart, the central government was asked to produce the application filed by Reliance Communication in February 2006 for allocation of spectrum.

Under the present case, the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal had on Dec 12 refused to stay the process of issuing new licences for offering mobile phone services in the country to those who had applied as on Sep 25.

Prior to that, the government had announced new norms that allowed use of dual technology - CDMA and GSM - by a single operator in the same area of operations and had increased the minimum subscriber base for allocation of extra spectrum.

The COAI challenged the new norms after which the government set up an official panel to review the recommendations made by the Telecom Engineering Centre that oversees the radio frequencies in the country.

Radio frequency is the lifeline of the development and expansion of mobile phone industry in the country, especially in the wake of the country adding some seven to eight million new connections each month.

source :: http://www.indiaprwire.com/businessnews/20080103/26403.htm

Waiting for heavy slapping on the face of COAI for this vested delaying tactics.

[@ksh@T 20]

Judge says no spectrum grants yet to CDMA firms

NEW DELHI: Any grant of GSM telecom spectrum to operators which currently run services on the rival CDMA platform will be subject to the outcome of a petition that opposes such a move, a judge said on Thursday.

An association of GSM operators has approached the Delhi High Court after India's telecom tribunal said the government should grant spectrum to the CDMA firms.

buhu . . .call dropping has also started more frequent in my area where i had never ever experienced a single call drop in 4 years

[faizca 5]

Judge says no spectrum grants yet to CDMA firms

NEW DELHI: Any grant of GSM telecom spectrum to operators which currently run services on the rival CDMA platform will be subject to the outcome of a petition that opposes such a move, a judge said on Thursday.

An association of GSM operators has approached the Delhi High Court after India's telecom tribunal said the government should grant spectrum to the CDMA firms.

buhu . . .call dropping has also started more frequent in my area where i had never ever experienced a single call drop in 4 years

its enough the DOT is taking lot of time and thus creating hussle and confusion in the air.now india should introduce true technology neutral way by treating CDMA and GSM at par and to create real competition b/w all operators.DOT should not succumbed to the GSM gang.[/font]

[coolrajiv 1]

Plan panel moots spectrum management group

Source - http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2679275.cms

NEW DELHI: The Planning Commission has called for different ministries to work in a coordinated manner to identify the radio frequency requirements of all sectors and has also suggested that a Spectrum Management Group be set up to achieve this. At present, all spectrum planning and allotment is handled by the Wireless Planning and Coordination Wing of the Department of Telecom (DoT).

Importantly, with the convergence of telecom, broadcasting and internet networks, the Planning Commission has also proposed that India’s regulatory framework be redesigned and a common communications convergence regulator be set up to address future requirements. “The Information and Broadcasting (I& , private broadcasters and service providers along with department of telecommunications (WPC cell) need to work in a coordinated manner to identify spectrum requirements keeping their rollout plans so that spectrum planning could be proactively made.

A Spectrum Management Group could be set up to achieve this,” the report of the Sub-group on ‘going digital’, set up by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) said. This Sub-group under the chairmanship of member secretary, Planning Commission, had representatives from telecom ministry, I&B ministry, entertainment sector, electronics manufacturing associations, domain experts and the broadcasting industry.

At the same time, the group’s recommendations also address another controversial issue. While TRAI currently handles regulatory issues with regard to telecom, broadcast, internet and convergence, many ministries are mooting for separate regulators, for instance, I&B ministry has been working towards the creation of a broadcast regulator.

Besides, with broadcasters challenging key recommendations of TRAI , the Supreme Court stepped in last week and ruled that TRAI had the jurisdiction to regulate the broadcast sectors. In a bid to put an end to turf wars, the Sub-group, in its report said: “Different communication sectors have traditionally been regulated by different acts and also by different institutions. The convergence process and combination of broadcast and traditional telecom networks will require not only adjustment but also rethinking and redesign of the whole regulatory framework, thus the need for setting up a common communications convergence regulator”.

The Sub-group’s report comes even as telecom regulator TRAI and DoT and involved in a war of words over spectrum management. TRAI has demanded that this responsibility should be handed over to the regulator, especially considering the WPC’s poor record so far with regard to spectrum management and planning for the future.

The DoT while accepting that TRAI’s charge that its (DoT ) wireless planning and coordination wing has ‘not been able to perform its role as spectrum planner to the desired level’, wants to give this task to the Centre for Excellence for Radio Spectrum Engineering and Management (CERSEM), which is in the process of being set up.

[kesav 127]

DoT chief says spectrum will be allocated for dual-technology eligible players within a month

India’s new telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura said on Monday that ongoing legal wrangles between phone service firms such as Bharti Airtel Ltd and the government will not deter the department of telecommunications, or DoT, from issuing new telecom licences, apart from allotting radio spectrum to companies that want to offer services using networks running on the popular GSM standard.

“We are going to issue letter of intent within a month apart from allocating spectrum to the eligible players under dual-technology,” Behura, who took over from outgoing secretary D.S. Mathur on 1 January, told Mint on Monday. “We want fresh competition to be brought in the sector this year itself, and their applications will not take a back seat.”

Taking charge: Telecom secretary Siddhartha Behura . (Harikrishna Katragadda / Mint )

Under the dual-technology regime, firms such as Reliance Communications Ltd, or RCom, which run CDMA (short for code division multiple access) networks, want to move into GSM services. Separately, DoT has received 46 applications to start or expand phone services in the country.

The Cellular Operators Association of India, a lobby representing GSM firms, has filed petitions before a telecom appellate tribunal and the Delhi high court, challenging any move by the government to allocate spectrum under the dual-technology clause.

On the issue of allocating radio spectrum to existing phone firms such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar Ltd, the government will follow new tightened subscriber norms suggested by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, the secretary said. “When you already have a subscriber-linked criteria for allocating spectrum, how can you talk of auctioning spectrum?” Behura asked. Also, he pointed out, at least one firm has paid Rs1,650 crore in licence entry fee.

Behura said bringing normalcy in the telecom sector would be his top priority. “I would like to get back with routine business and sort out other issues, including how and when to auction 3G spectrum,” he added.

source :: http://www.livemint.com/2008/01/08000905/F...n-2008-new.html

[kesav 127]

DoT set to issue letters of intent to new players

New Delhi, Jan. 8 The stalemate in the telecom sector could soon end with the Department of Telecom set to issue letters of intent to new players.

Unitech, STel, Shyam Telelink, HFCL and Sterlite are among those which are likely to get LoIs as per a list of qualified companies prepared by the DoT. As many as 46 companies had applied for new licences, most of which had approached DoT in September last year. Some of the applications have been held back due to awaited security clearances or due to lack of net worth of the company.

The DoT move to give LoIs follows an in-principle assurance from the GSM operators that they will not oppose the decision as long as the application for new licences from existing operators are also cleared.

Existing GSM operators including Idea cellular, Vodafone Essar, Spice Communications and Aircel had applied for new licences almost a year back to expand their network to all the circles in the country. DoT has decided to issue LoIs to these companies as well. “We have no problem with the entry of new players as long as DoT processes the applications from existing operators as well,” said a n dustry official.

The move to issue LoIs also shuts out any possibility of an auction for 2G spectrum. DoT is expecting to get more than Rs 10,000 crore from entry fee collected from the new players. However, the actual roll out of services by the new operators depends on spectrum availability. While DoT claims it has a roadmap for making available 60 Mhz more, it depends on when the defence forces agree to vacate radio frequency.

source :: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/0...10952170100.htm

[KumaarShah 143]

Enough spectrum after issuance to RCom: Govt tells TDSAT

9 Jan, 2008, 1803 hrs IST, PTI

NEW DELHI: Government on Wednesday said that enough spectrum would be available for existing as well as new players after allotting the radio frequency to Reliance Communication for its GSM operations.

Appearing before telecom tribunal TDSAT on behalf of the government, Solicitor General G E Vahanvati rubbished GSM operators' claims that no spectrum would be left if alloted to Anil Ambani group's RCom.

"It's absolutely nonsense that after giving spectrum to RCom no spectrum would be left. We will show this to you during the next hearing on January 24," Solicitor General said.

He assured that the government would utilise the available spectrum in an efficient manner.

The government reply came when TDSAT chairman Arun Kumar asked about a report on spectrum by Telecom Engineering Centre and the expert committee set up by it.

Meanwhile, Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) adjourned the hearing on GSM operators' petition on spectrum allocation and crossover technology amid confusion over a High Court order on the issue.

Hearing a petition filed by GSM operators' lobby COAI against TDSAT directions allowing DoT to allocate spectrum and issue licences, the Delhi High Court on January 3 had directed some telcos to file their replies.

In its earlier order, TDSAT had directed only DoT to file its reply. Consequently, the tribunal accepted the reply filed by DoT and refused to submit the reply filed by other telcos.

Link: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/N...how/2686947.cms

Edited January 9, 2008 by KumaarShah