According to a proposal by the Department of Telecommunications (DoT), operators may have to pay 30 per cent of the market value of the spectrum they bag after acquiring another operator within the three-year lock-in period. An empowered group of ministers (EGoM) will take a final decision on the matter.
Earlier, the Telecom Commission had suggested that if a telecom company was being acquired before it completed the mandatory ?promoter lock-in clause?, it must pay up some of the market value of spectrum acquired. However, the commission had referred the matter pertaining to the quantum of the fee to DoT.
According to DoT, the promoter lock-in clause aims to ensure that operators who received spectrum by paying an entry fee are serious players and are not looking to exit the industry by selling their spectrum for short-term gains. It further states that the merged entity will have to pay only for the spectrum acquired and not for the quantum of spectrum held by the company acquiring the same. The DoT has emphasised that it would not be feasible to charge a fee over the valuation of the company being acquired, as recommended by the Telecom Commission, and therefore the government should instead charge a fee based on the market value of spectrum.
