Kapil Sibal, Minister of Telecommunications and IT has unveiled the broad contours of the Telecom Policy 2011, including liberal merger and acquisition norms, the new licensing regime and a Spectrum Act to govern allocation of airwaves.
On the proposed changes in the licensing regime, Sibal said that henceforth, telecom licences will be given for 10 years. Under the current policy, an operator?s licence is valid for 20 years. Operators wanting to renew their licences will have to apply 30 months before the expiry date.
Also, operators can opt for a national level licence or can opt to continue with the existing system of circle-wise licensing.
The new policy also outlines implementing a uniform licence fee structure. Operators currently pay between 6 and 10 per cent of their revenues depending on the circle of operation.
On merger and acquisition (M&A) norms, Sibal said that liberal guidelines were required, but at the same time, enough competition should exist. Hence, the minimum number of operators will not be allowed to fall below six in each circle.
Under the current rules, the threshold level is set at four operators in each circle. But since there are as many as 12-13 operators in each area, the proposed change will not have much impact. Other key details of the new M&A norms are still being worked out.
To address issues relating to spectrum allocation, a committee, under the chairmanship of retired Supreme Court judge Shivraj Patil, has been appointed to draft a Spectrum Act. The Act will govern future spectrum allocation.
In addition, the Department of Telecommunications will appoint external agencies conduct regular audit to determine efficient usage of airwaves by mobile companies and other non-commercial users such as the Ministry of Defence and Department of Space. Another move that will benefit operators is the decision to allow spectrum sharing. However, DoT is expected to stipulate conditions for the same.
Sibal has said that these guidelines have not been finalised and will be placed before the Telecom Commission for a final decision by the end of the year.
