NEW DELHI: Telecom regulator Trai and the department of telecom (DoT) are at loggerheads over fixation of satcom spectrum charges for the companies and other critical matters at a time when satcom players, such as Elon Musk’s Starlink and Sunil Mittal’s Bharti group-backed Eutelsat OneWeb wait for regulatory clarity before beginning commercial services in India, This difference in opinion is set to delay process of spectrum allocation to satcom players, resulting in further delays in launch of commercial services.
Trai on Monday shot down some of crucial suggestions provided by DoT to its original recommendations for satcom spectrum allocation, including the spectrum fee to be charged from companies as airwaves are to be allotted administratively, instead of auctions that are mandated for terrestrial players, such as Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea.Trai rejected DoT’s views (given as part of a back reference to its recommendations) suggesting a 5% annual spectrum fee to be charged from satcom players, instead of 4% it had recommended. Also, Trai did not agree to let go of a Rs 500 per connection charge that it had recommended for satcom consumers in urban areas.DoT had asked Trai to reconsider its recommendation to levy 4% annual spectrum charge, and instead suggested the idea of levying 5% with a provision of 1% discount, if these customers of a company enrolled in a year are from tough terrains in border and remote hilly areas. DoT had also suggested that Trai let go of Rs 500 per customer charge in urban areas if they meet the target of rural connectivity.Trai, however, stuck to its recommendations and did not agree for a review. “The authority does not concur with DoT’s proposal to charge spectrum at of 5% of AGR with conditional discounts for providing connectivity to hard-to-connect areas such as border/ hills/ islands,” Trai said.“… the authority reiterates its recommendations… However, the govt may adopt any additional schemes to take advantage of FSS (fixed satellite services) for faster and economical expansion of broadband services in identified hard-to-connect areas, including but not limited to hills, border areas and islands, particularly addressing affordability of user terminals,” Trai added.Trai said if DoT’s views are adopted to encourage satellite connections in border and tough terrains, then a lot of people in rural areas will be left behind in accessing satellite connectivity.The regulator said because subscribers in urban areas have greater purchasing power — and can generate higher demand and data consumption — NGSO (Non-Geostationary Satellite Orbit)-based FSS providers may concentrate services in cities. This, it said, has potential to undermine efforts to bridge the digital divide in rural and remote regions. “Imposing a per subscriber charge of Rs 500 per annum in urban areas, while exempting rural and remote areas, may provide an incentive for operators to expand their services into rural and remote areas,” Trai said.
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