Updated: 3G Auction completed after 34 days of bidding

[srk006 21]

and at last... again postponed

3G spectrum auction put off to next fiscal

In a surprise move, the government has postponed to the next fiscal auction of spectrum for 3G telephony which was expected to bring in Rs 35,000 crore to the exchequer.

According to senior officials in the Department of Telecom, Law Minister Veerappa Moily, who is member of the EGoM, has opined that the auction should he held when the spectrum is available.

Telecom Minister A Raja could not be contacted immediately for his comments. Officials however, said that the auction is expected to take place in August-September this year. It is pertinent to mention that the Ministry of Defence had agreed to vacate the spectrum only during middle of this year.

The Empowered Group of Ministers, headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, had decided to allow four private telecom firms for the next generation mobile telephone services (3G) and had made a provision for garnering up to Rs 35,000 crore from the sale of airwaves in the current fiscal.

The postponement of 3G spectrum auction to 2010-11 is likely to have some adverse impact on the government's finances and the fiscal deficit which is pegged at 6.8 per cent of the GDP.

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/telecom/3G-spectrum-auction-put-off-to-next-fiscal/articleshow/5512747.cms

[csmart 472]

a new twist.. this time thanx to defence ministry... as per article in economic times.. 3g ayegaa, ayegaa, 3g nahi ayega, ayega.........

3G bids may be pushed back to Sept

30 Jan 2010, 0100 hrs IST, Joji Thomas Philip & Rohini Singh, ET Bureau

Save Print EMail Share Comment Text:

NEW DELHI: The law ministry has warned that the government will be exposing itself to the danger of heavy financial penalties if it auctions 3G

airwaves not in the possession of the telecom department — most likely leading to another delay in the sale of spectrum for high-end telecom services such as ultra-fast internet on mobiles.

The ministry has advised that it is not prudent to auction airwaves not yet freed by the armed forces because under the terms of a telecom department proposal, the winning bidders can ask for their money back plus interest if they are not handed the 3G spectrum by the end of this year.

The ball is now in the court of the finance ministry, headed by Pranab Mukherjee.

A top official in the communications ministry told ET that the auction may be pushed to August or September. If the process is completed before the end of the year in December, phone companies will be able to roll out 3G services only by the middle of next year. “We have referred the file to the finance ministry and we will take a view once they take a firm view on some queries raised by us,” said law minister Veerappa Moily. Mr Mukherjee said “no decision had been taken to delay or not delay the (3G auction) process”.

He declined to comment on the consultations between the law and finance ministries on the sale of airwaves.

Earlier this month, a panel of ministers headed by Mr Mukherjee reiterated the government’s commitment to auction four slots of radio bandwidth, in addition to the one already allotted to state-owned telcos BSNL & MTNL, before April, hoping to raise about Rs 30,000 crore.

“It is between the law and finance ministries. There is no delay on our part. We had already decided on the dates for the auction process and finalised everything beforehand,” communications minister A Raja said.

The telecom department and the armed forces are involved in a standoff over control of a large chunk of 3G airwaves. The defence ministry has said that it will free up 5 Mhz of 3G spectrum, equivalent to one slot, in July and a similar amount in August 2010.

But the defence ministry is complaining that the telecom department is not keeping its side of the bargain. Work is yet to start, it says, on building an alternative fibre optic network cable for the armed forces.

For consumers, a further delay will mean they will have to wait other year-and-a-half for high-end services such as ultra-fast internet, video-conferencing, interactive gaming, mobile TV and high-speed downloads of movie and music clips on mobile phones.

Currently, all services offered by Indian telcos, except select offerings by state-owned telcos BSNL and MTNL, are done using second generation (2G) networks which largely cater to the voice market.

3G services were originally scheduled to be launched in India in 2007 but have repeatedly delayed amid troubles over freeing up spectrum and setting bid prices. First launched in Japan in May 2001, the services are available in over 90 countries.

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

^^^

It is happening like court is giving dates for case, date pe date :Confuso:

[shashank 8]

Officially, i have given up guys.

I don't think India will EVER see 3G. Initially i thought it will be launched by 2050. But now i know, they WILL NEVER auction the spectrum.

Even in the year 2050, news will be like:

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2051"

In 2051

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2052"

In 2052

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2053"

In 2053

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2054"

In 2054

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2055"

In 2055

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2056"

In 2056

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2057"

In 2057

"3G bids may be pushed back to 2058"

And there will be another thread in Rimweb:

"50G Services commercially launched in Afghanistan"

And this thread will exceed 1,000 pages.

And ultimately Arun's Grandson will start a dedicated forum just for 3G "Auction" News and discussions.

[srk006 21]

Oh my god!! That last line... I had a rofl

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

^^^

:rofl_200::rofl_200:

[Dr.Gagan 17]

forget 3g probably govt can start planning for 4G........

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

^^^

A.Raja says next year they are going for 4G auction.

On 4G services launch, A.Raja said the International Telecom Union was opposed to it and there were also certain technological problems. “However, the services are expected in a year and it will not have any adverse impact on 3G,” he assured.

[Sadikk 301]

They are waiting for rollout of all new comers service providers first.. thn theyll start 3G Auctions..

I see it will be available only in 2012 by Airtel and Vodafone along with all newbies..

Biggies like Etisalat Videocon and others are still waiting to lauch thier basic services by paying heavily for license.. how can they afford not to be in 3G auctions..

and how come government auction without filthy rich Etisalat.. its all about tapping baby.. So lets stay in CDMA and be happy on 1X..

one mo reason to love CDMA..

[KanagaDeepan 1,084]

I see it will be available only in 2012 by Airtel and Vodafone along with all newbies..

By that time, I am sure RGsm and Docomo's network quality will be at par with Airtel/Vodas' and the cry of quality network by Airtel and Voda will be of no meaning at that time ... Further since RGsm and DoCoMo are using 1800MHz now, they can provide better 3G coverage at startup than Airtel/Voda, who are using 900MHz now, after the 3G launch... Then Airtel/Voda can NEVER even cry about network quality @ that time... :rofl_200:

Edited February 1, 2010 by kanagadeepan

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

^^^

Airtel / voda use 1800Mhz in some circles ,

here is the complete list Link

Edited February 1, 2010 by hitesh123

[ravi_patent 28]

whatever be the reason/motiff govt cannot formulate policy so here comes the latest

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/News/News-By-Industry/Telecom/3G-auctions-DoT-wings-find-fault-lines/articleshow/5521970.cms

The much-delayed 3G auctions are set to face fresh hurdles that can derail the entire process

for good. In what may well be a

major embarrassment for the communications ministry and telecom minister A

Raja, two internal wings of the department of telecom (DoT) have pointed out a slew of loopholes in the proposed policy for the auction of 3G airwaves. The two wings, which include the DoT’s finance wing and wireless division, have pointed out as many as eight policy loopholes that must be addressed first before the airwaves sale can take place.

These two divisions have even questioned the legal implications of having the 3G auctions for CDMA operators in addition to raising concerns over the department’s move to restrict the CDMA auction only to existing players. They have also pointed out that for standalone players or new foreign players, who bag the airwaves in the auction, the amount of 3G spectrum that they get through the sale process ‘does not provide a viable business proposition’.

They have also added that while the draft norms for the 3G auctions lists out the annual spectrum usage charges, which successful bidders will have to pay; this levy structure has not been formally approved by the government and hence cannot be part of the 3G policy.

The finance wing has stated that the communications ministry’s plan to make the winning bids in each circle for the upcoming 3G auctions, as the base price for all airwaves sale in the future, must first be approved by the government. They have also questioned, as to how bidders could be informed of these policy changes when the same was not officially endorsed by the government and publicly unveiled, as being part of the 3G telecoms policy.

ET had first reported on January 20 that the latest policy flip-flop by DoT could drive away foreign players from the upcoming 3G auctions by denying them a fair chance of getting 2G spectrum, which is vital for offering a full complement of telecom services. Global telcos, with no presence in India, are unlikely to enter the 3G race unless they can offer full-fledged mobile services.

Fresh entrants in India’s telecom scene that win 3G spectrum — essential for offering value-added services such as video conferencing and ultrafast internet on mobiles — in the auctions to be held next month will be placed last in the queue of the 343 applicants for 2G airwaves, DoT had said in response to bidders’ queries. This sudden policy flip-flop by the communications ministry meant that new entrants, which win 3G spectrums, don’t stand a chance to get 2G spectrum. As per the country’s 3G policy, successful bidders will get 5 MHz of 3G airwaves. While this is not enough for new players entering the telecom market, it will be enough for existing GSM players to migrate to 3G. The DoT had earlier said standalone 3G winners would get 2G spectrum on a priority basis.

The wireless advisor as well as the DoT’s finance wing have also now pointed out that new entrants, who bag 3G spectrums, cannot launch services in India with just 5 MHz or units of airwaves, and said: “This clause will effectively deter new entrants from participating in this auction, as there would be no guarantee of allotment of 2G spectrum to them. In order to address the problem, it would have been appropriate to have a separate category of services licence for 3G services. Further, for a standalone 3G operator, the amount of spectrum does not provide a viable business proposition.”

In mid-January, yet another policy flip-flop, DoT had clarified that foreign participation in the upcoming 3G auctions would be limited to GSM space only. Allowing international operators to participate in the 3G auctions for GSM telcos hold no risk, as they cannot launch mobile operations in India with standalone 3G airwaves. In the case of CDMA operators, both 2G and 3G services are offered using the same airwaves or spectrum — therefore, allowing international players to participate in the upcoming auctions could have possibly allowed new entrants to launch full-fledged CDMA services using their 3G airwaves they secure in the auction.

Asking the department for an explanation on this, the finance wing of DoT said: “For (CDMA), it is proposed to auction only one block and keep existing spectrum for future allocation, instead of auctioning the entire available blocks at present. The reason for this differential treatment is not clear.” The DoT is fighting several court cases on allocation of airwaves to new entrants in the past.

In early 2008, DoT had awarded new licences to eight new telecom companies, and the move had resulted in widespread allegations that the department and telecoms minister A Raja had tweaked the laws to favour select firms.

The CBI, the Central Vigilance Commission, the CAG and other government investigation arms are probing alleged foul play in awarding these new licences. The DoT in its legal defence has always maintained that it was going by sector regulator Trai’s recommendations, which said 2G spectrum, on which all current mobile services currently operate must not be auctioned, and only airwaves for future services such as 3G must be awarded through a competitive bidding process. However, in the case of CDMA operators, the airwaves for awarding 2G and 3G services are the same 800 MHz band.

The internal DoT wings have said auctioning 3G services for CDMA amounts to violating the department’s public and legal stance that 2G frequencies which are currently being used for offering mobile services are not being sold through a bidding process. “If therefore, we auction 3G frequencies in the 800-MHz, this stand may be in contravention of the stand taken so far before the standing committee, replies to Parliament questions and to the Central Vigilance Commission queries. A decision, therefore, needs to be taken on the auction of 3G airwaves in the 800-Mhz,” said the two internal divisions of DoT.

The government had recently decided to hike the existing spectrum usage charges by up to 2%. Currently, all mobile services in the country are offered on 2G frequencies and telecom operators pay 2-6% of their annual gross revenue (AGR), depending on the amount of spectrum they hold, as usage charges to the government. Now, telcos will pay 3-8% of AGR, depending on the amount of spectrum they hold, as usage charges to the government. The decision to hike 2G spectrum charges will have an impact on the upcoming 3G auctions also. This is because, the 3G draft norms said telcos offering both 2G and 3G services will have to pay an additional 1% fee, if they secure airwaves to launch 3G services.

The change in 2G user charges will imply that these operators will now have to shell out 4-9% of the total annual revenues to the government, if they offer both 2G and 3G services. But telcos, who enter the Indian market for the first time by offering high-end data services, will have to pay only 3% of their aggregate revenues to the government for the use of these airwaves.

Again, the finance wing and the wireless advisor have pointed out the new spectrum charges were not in policy yet, and therefore, cannot be included in the 3G norms.

These developments come even as the law ministry has warned that the government will be exposing itself to the danger of heavy financial penalties, if it auctions 3G airwaves not in the possession of the telecom department — most likely leading to another delay in the sale of spectrum for high-end telecom services such as ultrafast internet on mobiles. The law ministry has advised that it is not prudent to auction airwaves not yet freed by the armed forces because under the terms of a telecom department proposal, the winning bidders can ask for their money back plus interest, if they are not handed the 3G spectrum by the end of this year. The ball is now in the court of the finance ministry, headed by Pranab Mukherjee.

[Greatest 55]

nevertheless

(no other option, but just wait, so ive decided to be happy)..

Edited February 1, 2010 by Greatest

[savramesh 37]

Govt dilly-dallies on 3G, TRAI eyes 4G

New Delhi, Feb 8: While the government continues to dilly-dally on the auction of 3G spectrum, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has set its eyes on the next generation telephony.

TRAI on Monday, Feb 8 initiated consultation for the fourth generation or 4G technology.

“Yes. We are starting the process and would come out with a consultation paper to look into various issues relating to 4G telecom services,” TRAI Chairman JS Sarma said.

Expressing anguish over the way the government is dealing with the 3G spectrum auction, Sarma added, “3G has been delayed badly ... I don’t want 4G or LTE (Long Term Evolution) to meet the same fate. Other countries are catching up with the 4G and that is why we are taking advance action,”

4G or LTE, which succeeds the 3G and 2G technology, is already being tested in various parts of the world by foreign players like the US-based Motorola and Ericsson.

The fourth generation telephony offers download at faster speed known as ultra-broadband and high definition video on demand among other such services.

It provides a wide range of data rates up to ultra-broadband (gigabit-speed) Internet access to mobile as well as stationary users.

Sarma, who is keen on keeping the country technologically updated, said that TRAI does not want to see 4G delayed like 3G.

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

^^^

A new joke from TRAI

[ravi_patent 28]

btw how many really need 4g speeds in india

[KanagaDeepan 1,084]

Oh then we can have another thread called "Updated: 4G Auction Delayed" along with "Updated: 3G Auction delayed"...

Then we can pass more time in two threads , until TRAI recommends 5G over 3G and 4G..

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

^^^

Now waiting for 5G ! ,:rofl_200:

[manishag 17]

^^^

Now waiting for 5G ! ,:rofl_200:

I have started waiting for 10G

[savramesh 37]

dont know why people dream and wait for what never comes..

i am happy with what i have, 2G

always enjoy the present..

[::Hitesh:: 1,763]

^^^

always Dream big , but never forget presents !!!

[srk006 21]

well, realistically put, 3G is already in India - through BSNL/MTNL. If one wants to taste 3G, don't wait anymore. Grab a BSNL/MTNL sim and go for it(if its available ). BSNL is definitely going strong with 3G. Already 300 cities covered and roll out is happening fast.

You can always shift to Private ops if you are not satisfied with BSNL-3G b'coz till the time others start 3G, MNP will definitely be here. (Don't kill me for my optimism. he he )

[SUDYEcaZ 67]

btw how many really need 4g speeds in india

Around the world couple of countries are trying to skip 3G and directly go to 4G

In India also it will be better if the Govt directly go for 4G after 2 years and scraps the process of 3G

[kesav 127]

Here is the TRAI's press release inviting comments on 4G pre-consultation.

http://www.trai.gov.in/WriteReadData/trai/upload/ConsultationPapers/182/Final4Gnotice10feb10.pdf

[csmart 472]

are yaar, if India goes to 4G, then what will happen to babus and Mr. A Raja.. they will loss millions of money as there will be only 1 tender.

kisse ke pet pe laat nahi marne ki....

besides, our lol cos have already invested in 3g equipments and they will also will not allow 4g without getting any benefit out of 3g investments..

Edited February 10, 2010 by csmart