The Hindu Business Line : Ambani fires fresh salvo against GSM operators

New Delhi, Nov. 25 Firing a fresh salvo against GSM operators, Reliance Communication’s Chairman, Mr Anil Ambani, has shot off another letter to the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, saying that existing operators were not entitled to more than 6.2 MHz spectrum.

In a nine-page letter, Mr Ambani said that GSM operators who were demanding additional spectrum had in fact acquired over 52 million subscribers without any allocation of fresh radio waves while constantly representing to DoT that they did not have adequate frequency for growth.

“If there was no spectrum, how did they add this huge subscriber base, equivalent to more than 25 per cent of their current total subscriber base?” Mr Ambani asked.

Mr Ambani has urged the Prime Minister to ask existing GSM operators to give back spectrum in excess of their entitlement of 6.2 MHz as per the licence terms and conditions, or make them pay an appropriate amount to the Government.

“It may be noted that unjust cornering of spectrum by the leading GSM players has resulted in revenue loss to the Government of several thousand crores of rupees in direct and indirect taxes,” he said.

Capex impact

The Reliance chief also pointed out that GSM operators reduce capital expenditure by up to 50 per cent if it has double the spectrum as compared to its actual needs.

Mr Ambani’s second letter this month takes the dispute over spectrum allocation a notch higher. The panel set up by the Government to review the subscriber-based allocation prescribed by the Telecom Engineering Centre (TEC) is scheduled to meet the industry on Monday in a bid to find a resolution to the controversy.

Mr Ambani has sought the Prime Miniter’s intervention in advising the panel to examine the recommendations of the telecom regulator and TEC and not succumb to pressure from a few GSM operators.

Spectrum refarming

Mr Ambani said that the existing GSM operators are liable to return over 50 MHz spectrum, which could facilitate the entry of several new players. Seeking a comprehensive policy on refarming spectrum from existing operators, he said, “In a similar context, recently, Ofcom, the UK regulatory body, has taken back excess spectrum from Vodafone and O2 for release to other operators,” the letter said.

He also said that the Government should release 6.2 MHz spectrum to new players on the same terms as existing GSM players to create a level-playing field.