3G auction process starts today

New Delhi, Sept. 7: The department of telecom will kick start the process for 3G mobile services on Monday as it holds pre-bid conference for both Indian and foreign companies to conduct the auctioning of spectrum in 22 telecom service areas.

Issuing the Request for Proposal (RFP), the DoT has convened a pre-bid conference on September 8 and will open the financial bids, of those who qualify technically and meet all the criteria for selection, on September 30.

The eligible companies would have to submit technical and financial bids by September 22.

As per the eligibility criteria, the bidder shall not have any equity directly or indirectly in any telecom or Internet service providers in India. Similarly, any telecom company or ISP shall not have any stake in the bidder company.

The government is hoping to collect nearly Rs 40,000 crore from the auction of spectrum for 3G services among domestic players like Bharti Airtel, Vodafone, Idea and also foreign players.

DoT has set a target of starting 3G mobile services by early next year and in fact has already allotted the frequency to two PSUs BSNL and MTNL who have started the process of installing networks in their respective service areas.

Meanwhile, the Trai chairman, Mr Nripendra Misra, on Sunday dismissed as rumours the differences with the DoT over the 3G issue, saying the role of regulator and power of the department are well-defined.

"When it comes to a certain decision, if we find through detail reading that DoT has overlooked some aspects, then we bring it to their notice through a letter. It is up to the DoT to hide it or not. We know our responsibility and the power of the DoT. We are here to complement them," he said.

The Trai chairman had earlier written to the DoT that if new licences are issued to foreign players then as per the Trai Act, the DoT has to turn to Trai for working out the consultation and recommendations before issuing new licences. In its reply, the telecom ministry had earlier last month said, "The UAS licensees are authorised to provide triple play services. 3G service providers are not a new category of licensees and they shall be offering 3G services under terms and conditions of UASL. This will include 3G spectrum allocation.

After the exchange of series of letters, Mr Misra said, "Licenses can be issued to new players. There is a new license only if government says that they have to issue new licences. "

In another major development, the government is considering allowing spectrum sharing between two mobile operators, a move that could prove to be a win-win situation for both existing as well as new telecom players. The minister of state for communication and IT, Mr Jyotiraditya Scindia, has convened a crucial meeting on Monday of senior officials in the department of telecom (DoT) to consider the proposal of sharing of spectrum among other things.

New telecom players may find it difficult to roll out services with only 4.4 MHz of spectrum and compete with existing players who have been allocated 10-12 MHz of scarce spectrum.

Spectrum is radio frequency required by cellular operators to offer wireless mobile services. — PTI