The current spectrum controversy in the telecom sector may come to an end, with the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) accepting the Spectrum review committee’s recommendation of allocating additional frequency to existing GSM operators based on Trai’s subscriber-linked formula and in multiples of 1MHz. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has welcomed the DoT decision. Reliance Communications (RCom) has opposed DoT’s decision saying that nothing less than TEC recommendations, which are much more stringent than Trai recommendations, should be accepted. Sources say that Reliance may accept DoT’s decision. The Government may now be able to issue new licences for Unified Access Services to new operators. DoT will soon file an affidavit with the Telecom Dispute Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) and the Delhi High Court, where COAI has challenged the Government on spectrum allocation norms. Union communications minister A Raja today signed the file and sent it to DoT secretary D S Mathur for action. “We are quite comfortable with this,” said COAI director general T V Ramachandran, reacting to the Government’s decision to file an affidavit with telecom tribunal TDSAT and the Delhi High Court to this effect. The association had earlier challenged the spectrum allocation norms suggested by Trai and the use of dual technology to offer mobile services in TDSAT and then in Delhi High Court. In its recommendations on reforms in the licencing regime, Trai had suggested enhancement of the subscriber link criterion for allocation of frequency spectrum to telecom service providers. On October 19, DoT accepted the Trai recommendations. The GSM players, including Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea, opposed the Trai norms. The Government then set up a committee under the Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC), which is responsible for fixing standards, to give the final recommendations on spectrum allocation criteria. The TEC submitted its report to DoT on October 31, recommending more stringent conditions than those proposed by Trai. For instance, in a metropolitan city like Delhi, an operator would be required to have up to three times more subscribers than at present to get 10 MHz of spectrum. DoT has also accepted that GSM operators should be allocated additional spectrum in 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. Reliance Communications has opposed DoT’s decision saying that it amounts to succumbing to the pressure tactics of the GSM operators’ lobby. “The Department of Telecom (DoT) has succumbed to the private GSM players’ pressure tactics. This is an unnecessary and unwarranted concession given to them,” said a Reliance spokesperson. RCom chairman Anil Ambani had supported the spectrum allocation norms of TEC. He had also demanded the return of excess spectrum held by GSM players.
