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Thomas K. Thomas

New Delhi, Aug. 12 The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has told the Government that there should be a review of some parts of the recently announced policy for third generation mobile policy, including the decision to allocate spectrum to CDMA operators based on subscriber base criterion.

In a letter to the Department of Telecom, TRAI said allocating spectrum based on subscriber base would be against the principles of level playing field and equity as it could mean that new CDMA operators may not stand any chance of getting 3G spectrum. TRAI has suggested that the Department of Telecom may instead consider auctioning spectrum for CDMA players.

According to the policy announced last week, while GSM operators have to bid for 3G spectrum, CDMA operators, including Reliance Communication and Tata Teleservices, can seek one slot in the 800 MHz, which is the most efficient and cost-effective frequency band for 3G services as far as CDMA is concerned.

Spectrum in this band will be allocated to the CDMA operator with the most number of subscribers in a circle.

In its letter to DoT, the telecom regulator said: “As various service providers have been given licences in different service areas at different periods of time, the Authority feels that keeping the subscriber base as the criterion for deciding the priority of allotment shall be against the level playing field and the principle of equity.

Therefore, the Authority suggests that in order to ensure equity, level playing field and optimum pricing in allotment in 800 MHz band, the DoT may consider the auction route.”

The four-page letter was sent by the TRAI Chairman, Mr Nripendra Misra, to the DoT Secretary, Mr Siddhartha Behura, on August 8.

On the issue of giving separate licences to new and foreign players, the regulator told DoT that the matter should be referred to the TRAI so that the terms and conditions for the new type of licence can be specified.

TRAI has also sought clarity on spectrum charges.

More Stories on : Regulatory Bodies & Rulings | Telecommunications

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