Telecom Commission recommends re-farming the entire spectrum in the 900 MHz band

The Telecom Commission has recommended re-farming all spectrum held by incumbent operators in the 900 MHz band at the time of licence renewal in 2013, say news reports.

If accepted, the Telecom Commission’s recommendations would imply that the entire amount of spectrum held by existing operators like Bharti Airtel and Vodafone India will be re-allocated. Bharti Airtel holds 8 MHz of spectrum in the 900 MHz band, while Vodafone holds 6.2 MHz.

With the complete re-farming of spectrum in the 900 MHz band, existing operators will have the option of either replacing 900 MHz of spectrum with 1800 MHz of spectrum, (the price will be determined in the auction) or participate in the 900 MHz spectrum auction scheduled for early next year.

The Telecom Commission’s recommendations on this subject will be placed for approval before the Empowered Group of Ministers on August 18, 2012.