The Cellular Operators Association of India has suggested that the government, in allocating telecom licence, consider applicants with experience and impose a five-year lock-in period under which promoters cannot sell their equity.
The government on Tuesday started allocating GSM spectrum to new telecom players, commencing with the Tamil Nadu circle including Chennai, in a move that would infuse more competition in the mobile telephony space.Five new players -- Videocon-promoted Datacom, Idea Cellular, realty major Unitech, Swan Telecom and Loop Telecom -- have been given start-up 4.4 MHz GSM spectrum in Tamil Nadu circle.
GSM operators added 8.89 million subscribers in June, taking the total number of subscribers using the technology to 315.8 million.
Apex telecom industry body COAI has asserted that spectrum pricing should be kept conducive to market conditions as 5G entails upfront capital investments with monetisation spread over a long-haul, and pricing radiowaves high will only push the players up against the wall. The stage is set for Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) to come out with its recommendations on 5G spectrum pricing and other modalities for upcoming auctions, and the announcement from the sector watchdog is expected anytime now. Norms will also be worked out for new frequencies such as 526-698 MHz and millimetre band, that is 24.25 - 28.5 GHz, in addition to bands such as 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300-3670 MHz.
GSM operators may face the music as DoT considers the decision of taking away excess spectrum.
The Cellular Operators Association of India, the GSM-based operators' lobby, on Friday pulled out of an official panel for reviewing spectrum allocation norms, alleging that the committee had a "predetermined mindset" and was ignoring all its suggestions.
In a strategic climb-down, key members of the Cellular Operators Association of India have come to a consensus that they are willing to go for open auction of spectrum for second-generation services beyond 10 MHz.
Differences within the Cellular Operators Association of India have come out in the open again with Spice Telecom Chairman B K Modi supporting the government's move, announced on Monday, to launch "number portability" in four big cities and auction 3G spectrum for incumbents and new players.
Virtually bringing the entire industry into the picture, telecom tribunal TDSAT on Monday directed Reliance Communications, HFCL, Shyam Telelinks, BSNL and MTNL to become a party to a petition challenging changes to spectrum allocation norms among others.
However, the government is readying a relief package and it could include a cut in the licence fee to 5 per cent, two years' moratorium on paying spectrum charges with interest, and referring the GST tax refund issue to the Council.
Mobile TV essentially uses DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcast to Hand-held devices) technology for broadcasting content on mobile handsets, or any DVB-H enabled devices such as palmtops, gaming devices or laptops. However, other technology options for Mobile TV are also available such as 3G, MediaFLO, T-DMB, and S-DMB.
As the reports trickled that the permission for the use of twin-technology would benefit the aspiring Reliance Communication, an Anil Ambani group company, Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) shot a letter to the government saying that such a permission was against the existing policy and is tantamount to favouring a few.
The CDMA and GSM operators in the country are at loggerheads once again, this time over the implementation of mobile number portability.
According to the latest data released by Cellular Operators' Association of India, the total GSM subscriber base rose to 257,85 million, up from 249.35 million in November 2008, a growth of about 3.25 per cent in December.
Cellular Operators Association of India, the association for GSM operators, has taken legal opinion which clearly states that the government cannot go in for auctioning of 2G spectrum and deprive them of additional spectrum.
New telecom operators who have been given licences to operate pan-India GSM mobile services are all set to fight a bitter battle with the established GSM players like Bharti Airtel, Vodafone and Idea Cellular.
The economic slowdown may have raised the spectre of job losses in most industries, but telecom is a notable exception. Far from cutting back, telecom companies expect to hire over 16,000 people, 15 to 20 per cent more than last year, to meet the unprecedented expansion in subscriber numbers, according to the Cellular Operators Association of India, the association for GSM service providers.
Mobile operators are divided on the consensus reached in the government to increase the base price for 3G auctioning to Rs 4,040 crore. Earlier, the base price for auctioning ranged from as low as Rs 1,020 crore to Rs 2,040 crore.
The GSM-based mobile operators in the country added 8.3 million subscribers in May taking the total subscriber base to 306.4 million.
Delhi HC has refused to stay the process of spectrum allotment to RCom, giving a major setback to GSM operators.
GSM operators (excluding Reliance Telecom) in the country added 6.3 million subscribers in August, taking the total number of users to 225.6 million. In July, the total GSM subscriber base in the country was 219.30 million.
Taking the government head on, four GSM mobile operators -- Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Idea and Spice -- have decided to "unitedly" approach the Delhi High Court against telecom tribunal TDSAT's interim order not to stay the spectrum allocation process.
Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Authority had on December 12 refused to stay the government's process of awarding new licences and allocating airwaves to mobile firms, a decision which existing GSM players say would hurt them Bharti Airtel, Vodafone Essar and Idea Cellular are the major GSM players in Cellular Operators Association of India, but it is learnt that there is no consensus within the lobby group over moving the high court.
Mumbai is a distant number two with 90 per cent, followed by Delhi at 83 per cent. The fourth metro, Kolkata, is way behind with 67 per cent. The four metros account for 16 per cent of the country's mobile subscriber base, but 25 per cent of the total revenue. That means their residents use their phones more and pay fatter bills than subscribers elsewhere in the country. This is the user profile that rings a bell for mobile phone marketers.
According to figures released by Cellular Operators Association of India today, Bharti Airtel maintained its leadership position with a market share of 31.88 per cent although its net subscriber additions during the month declined marginally at 2.03 million, against 2.06 million in September. The company has a total subscriber base of 50.90 million across the country.
The COAI decision comes in the wake of Anil Ambani group company Reliance Communications and two other CDMA players receiving approvals to offer GSM services in their respective circles of operation from the Department of Telecom on Friday.
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has pulled up Cellular Operators Association of India
The Cellular Operators Association of India on Tuesday filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the Telecom Dispute Settlement and Appellate Tribunal's majority judgement which had allowed limited mobility (WLL) services to basic operators.
The apex body of CDMA operators, has shot off a letter to the telecom ministry alleging that the GSM operators were given spectrum "way beyond their licences".
Cellular Operator Association of India, a lobby group of GSM operators, on Tuesday said it is not against competition in the industry and welcomes "open and healthy competition".
In a strong pitch for limiting cut-throat competition, GSM operators have urged the government to limit the number of telecom operators per circle.
Local and domestic long distance mobile call tariffs may drop further, thanks to telecom regulator Trai's announcement to do away with a fee that private telecom operators pay to state-run BSNL.Private operators were hitherto paying the fee called Access Deficit Charge to BSNL at the rate of 0.75 per cent of their Adjusted Gross Revenue or about Rs 600 crore (Rs 6 billion) a year.
The high mobile telephony penetration in India's major metros and cities is expected to lead to a dramatic churn in the space
Private GSM operators on Thursday got a reprieve from Supreme Court, which has stayed Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's notices asking them to refund excess charges levied from customers on calls made to the networks of PSU telecom firms.
In a strong attack on the telecom tribunal, Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI) has argued in its petition to the Delhi High Court that the tribunal has erred in law and on facts in ignoring the three cardinal principles of grant of interim injunction.
The Commission was critical of the fact that the information relating to subscribers, which was confidential and lying with mobile companies, was being passed on to telemarketing agencies without the users' consent.
The reduction in mobile roaming rates is certainly great news for subscribers. But this happiness may not last long .
The Cellular Operators Association of India on Wednesday telecom regulator TRAI's order for slashing roaming charges by up to 56 per cent and said the move could lead to increase in basic tariffs.
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