The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is likely to roll out uniform licence fee for revenue share across all communication services from July 1, 2012.

The new regime of uniform license fee will be introduced by DoT in a phased manner over a period of two years.

Earlier in February this year The Minister for Communications and IT, Kapil Sibal, had announced a uniform licence fee of 8 per cent despite the Telecom Regulatory Authority?s arguments that this fee be reduced to 6 per cent over a three-year period, enabling the struggling telecom industry to save about Rs 70 billion in taxes.

However, the DoT decided to go ahead with Sibal?s recommendations of levying an 8 per cent uniform license fee on mobile operators having discovered that mobile operators had understated revenues and paid lower levies during 2006-07 and 2007-08.

Also, DoT has accepted the Finance Ministry?s demand that a minimum amount be specified which would be the quantum of revenue share. This would mean that if 8 per cent of any company?s annual revenues were to be below this figure, then operator must pay the minimum quantum of revenue specified.