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Our Bureau

New Delhi , Sept 27

Telecom industry is once again split over the recommendations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on 3G services, with the GSM operators on one side expressing concern over the high base price and CDMA operators on the other stating that the proposals were fair to all.

Mr Darryl Green, CEO - Tata Teleservices, said, "TRAI's recommendations are fair to all participants in the sector and are progressive in nature. We are happy that the regulator has maintained an evidently technology neutral approach.

"The recommendation on pricing and auction of spectrum clearly establishes that spectrum is recognised as a scarce resource and must be utilised efficiently. TRAI's proposal on vacating spectrum in order to re-farm GSM operations and in the process allocate additional spectrum, in the 800MHz band, for CDMA players is a much needed and eagerly awaited solution, we welcome that move."

Entry fee

Tatas had earlier proposed an entry fee of Rs 1,500 crore in addition to auction, similar to what TRAI has proposed.

CDMA operators are also happy with the fact that TRAI has suggested bandwidth in the 800 MHz frequency, which is already being used by them to offer 2G services.

CDMA players such as Tata Teleservices and Reliance Communications can launch 3G services quickly once they win the auction.

TRAI has also barred GSM operators from bidding for the spectrum in 450 MHz and 800 MHz, making competition between the only two national CDMA players. BSNL and MTNL have also been barred from bidding for CDMA spectrum.

GSM players are peeved at the steep entry cost. Bharti Airtel in a statement said, "The reserved price however seems very high, even if we were to consider the limited available spectrum.

"For those interested in countrywide 3G licences, the reserved price would be more than Rs 1,000 crore which is a serious disincentive especially when it comes to rural penetration.

"We appeal to the DoT to review and seriously lower the threshold recommended." Bharti added that the company was delighted that the regulator has recommended a comprehensive approach to spectrum allocation by accepting 2.1GHz band for WCDMA as the way forward.

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