High 5G spectrum prices will have long-term impact on telecom sector: Parl panel to govt

Mar 31, 2022

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NEW DELHI: The parliamentary standing committee on info expertise in its report tabled in Lok Sabha on Wednesday has expressed issues over excessive spectrum costs and urged the federal government to be aware of issues raised by telecom operators.
Pushing for an early roll out of 5G companies within the nation, the Shashi Tharoor-led Home panel mentioned delay in implementing 5G spectrum will deprive the nation of profiting from varied advantages of 5G when different nations have made noticeable progress within the deployment of the expertise.
“It’s excessive time that 5G must be rolled out in India in some particular use instances. Nonetheless, the Committee don’t see any progress in that path. The Committee, subsequently, reiterates that the Division must assessment all their insurance policies regarding 5G in order that the nation shouldn’t be left behind within the race for 5G,” the panel mentioned within the report.
The panel additionally mentioned the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) must be directed to expedite their suggestions on the 5G spectrum in order that the 5G public sale could be held on the earliest.
Whereas asserting the necessity for a assessment of spectrum pricing, the committee additionally raised issues over the exorbitant costs of 5G spectrum in India and identified that these are significantly greater when in comparison with different international locations.
The panel additionally noticed that it was knowledgeable that unit pricing of 5G spectrum in India confirmed that it’s seven-times costlier than UK, 14 instances costlier than Australia, 35 instances costlier than Spain and 70 instances costlier than Austria.
“The Committee had really helpful the Division to look into the difficulty of excessive spectrum worth and are available out with a convincing spectrum pricing coverage that’s sustainable, reasonably priced and acceptable to all,” the report mentioned.
It added, “The priority of the Committee is that worth of the spectrum within the nation mustn’t turn into so unsustainable that it might have a long-term unfavorable influence on the telecom sector as a complete. Contemplating the stress within the telecom sector, excessive spectrum worth may have a detrimental impact on TSPs to completely roll out 5G within the nation. The Committee reiterate that the issues of the TSPs with regard to spectrum pricing within the nation are given due consideration.”
The panel additionally mentioned issues raised by Mobile Operators Affiliation of India (COAI) for rationalisation of levies and duties within the telecom sector must also be given time-bound consideration by the federal government.
COAI had sought a discount of spectrum utilization cost by 5% and license charges from 8% to three%.



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