The Hindu Business Line : DoT in favour of including WiMax in 3G frequency band

Scarcity fears
GSM operators fear that they will have to share scarce spectrum in the 3G band with WiMax service providers
They have also expressed concern that such a move could create interference with cellular services

New Delhi June 20 Despite opposition from the majority of Indian cellular operators, the Department of Telecom (DoT) is likely to support an international proposal to include WiMax in the 3G frequency band.

This comes in the wake of a decision by the International Telecommunication Union Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R) Working Party 8F (WP 8F) in Kyoto to approve the inclusion of WiMAX in the 3G band.

ITU is the global standards and regulatory body for the telecom sector.

"Most countries, except for a few like China, are in favour of including the new technology as a 3G technology. We will go with the majority opinion," said a senior DoT official. The GSM operators have been trying to impress upon DoT to block the international move sponsored by the proponents of WiMax, as they fear that they will have to share scarce spectrum in the 3G band with WiMax service providers.

They have also expressed concern that such a move could create interference with cellular services.

DoT officials, however, said that trials are being conducted in the South to check for interference.

"We go by what ITU decides. So, if there are issues of interference, we are sure that they will take that into consideration" said the DoT official.

In a statement after the Kyoto meet, the ITU had said: "This new terrestrial radio interface complements the existing family of IMT-2000 radio interfaces and is in direct response to the demands of ITU members to address the continuously growing wireless marketplace."

Next stage

The next stage in the acceptance process will take place in Geneva in late June when the ITU Study Group 8 (SG8) will consider approval of the recommendation.

This acceptance means that WiMAX will be part of the 3G family and spectrum allocation will have to be done accordingly.

The GSM operators had said that unless it is proven beyond doubt that Wi-Max can operate in the 3G frequency band without causing interference to existing services, the proposal should not be agreed to.

On the other hand, companies such as Reliance Communication, Motorola, Intel and Nortel are pushing for including Wi-Max in the 3G band.

The WiMax forum had also written to DoT seeking India's support for the proposal.

India is likely to officially take a stand on the issue in the next ITU meeting in Geneva.

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