Rethink policy allowing ISPs to offer voice services: COAI - Livemint

New Delhi: The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), the primary lobby group for GSM-based mobile service providers, wants the government to rethink its policy to allow Internet service providers (ISP) with broadband wireless access (BWA) spectrum to offer voice services on payment of Rs.1,658 crore. On 18 February, the Telecom Commission, the highest telecom policy decision-making body, took the decision that is seen as primarily benefiting Mukesh Ambani-controlled Reliance Infotel. Infotel is the only company to have successfully got broadband wireless access spectrum, mainly used for 4G or fourth-generation wireless communications services, across the country in a 2010 auction. "It is first submitted that the BWA spectrum was offered and acquired in 2010 under ISP licence on the basis that it cannot be used for voice services. Any effort to retrospectively review the same to grant an enhancement in the scope of service will be illegal as the conditions of auction are legally binding," COAI said in a letter to R. Chandrashekhar, secretary, Department of Telecommunications (DoT). Mint has reviewed the letter. "It is submitted that what cannot be done directly, cannot be done indirectly, and introduction of unified licence and or payment of Rs.1,650 crore should not be allowed to be used as a via media to sidestep the explicit condition of auctions and attain a backdoor entry into voice service," the association said. The letter, signed by COAI director general Rajan Mathews, was also sent to Arvind Mayaram, secretary, economic affairs, finance ministry, as well as the secretaries of the information technology department, department of industrial policy and promotion, Planning Commission, as well as other members of the Telecom Commission. COAI also argued that the participants of the 2010 auction made economic viability decisions based on the rules at the time and changing them retrospectively amounts to changing the basis for those decisions. via Technology - Google News http://news.google.com/news/url?sa=t&fd=R&usg=AFQjCNEQT4D-dnYIvgQATxJCXk_P5kav8A&url=http://www.livemint.com/Industry/3k3PKNvsAdOiMTYNAvHJ6I/Rethink-policy-allowing-ISPs-to-offer-voice-services-COAI.html

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