TELECOM TOPS NEW GOVt"S AGENDA-inf. by Ashok Hindocha (M-9426201999)

Telecom tops new Govt’s agenda

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NEW DELHI: India boasts of the fastest growing telecom market in the world, but to sustain this momentum, the sector needs major policy changes. T
he telecom space, whose growth has a direct bearing on the country’s GDP, is set to see a series of decisive policy changes in the first 100 days of the new government.

According to telecom secretary Siddharth Behura, the agenda is already full: “Our first priority is to go ahead with the much-delayed auctions for both third generation (3G) and WiMAX spectrum,” he says.

The auction for the 3G spectrum has been delayed since 2007, denying Indian consumers the joy of experiencing high-end data applications on their mobiles. The new government’s first priority should be to end the constant sparring among different ministries and to decide the base price for the airwaves.

Confronted with falling average revenue per user (ARPU), 3G and WiMAX will open up new revenue streams for Indian telcos. The potential for WiMAX, or wireless broadband, is huge, especially considering the poor broadband penetration and the difficulties associated with linking rural Indian and unconnected villages with fibre.

Behura said another priority area of the new regime is to have a new spectrum policy in place at the earliest. “We hope to finish the consultation process within the next three months. We are studying the spectrum panel report. It has far reaching consequences, as it proposes major reforms,” he said.

The introduction of a new spectrum allotment policy, where additional airwaves are given through an auction route, is vital as it would enable the new regime bury all ongoing controversies associated with the allotment of airwaves.

Spectrum related controversies have plagued the country’s telecom sector for years, and the previous regime had failed to come up with a comprehensive solution. The government should also implement the spectrum panel’s recommendations on changing the country’s M&A norms to allow consolidation. Existing policies have led to a fragmentation of the sector.

The telecom secretary also said that the new government would soon take a call on permitting internet telephony. It is vital that all existing curbs on internet telephony are lifted paving the way for customers to make STD calls for as cheap as 10-40 paise per minute and also make free local calls from their computers.

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