Telecom companies have submitted differing views on interband spectrum sharing, as proposed by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in its consultation paper titled “Telecommunication Infrastructure Sharing, Spectrum Sharing, and Spectrum Leasing.” While Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea Limited (Vi) are in favour of the proposal, Reliance Jio has argued against the same.
According to Jio, allowing interband spectrum sharing could negatively impact capex and opex allotted to network infrastructure. In its comments on the consultation paper, Jio said that allowing interband spectrum sharing would be anti-competitive and could affect future auctions, leading to losses for the national exchequer. Meanwhile, Vi has submitted that interband spectrum sharing should be permitted, especially in the lower frequency bands. Both Vi and Airtel have argued that it would improve spectral efficiency and quality of service over existing networks.
