DoT can go for global auction for 3G: TRAI

New Delhi, July 10

Paving the way for the Ministry of Communication to go for an open global auction for third generation mobile services, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has taken a view that it will not block the move any more.

A top ranking official in TRAI told Business Line, “The Department of Telecom has followed all the procedures as laid down in the law and therefore they can go ahead with an open auction for 3G if they want to.”

TRAI had earlier told DoT that 3G auction should be restricted to existing operators on the grounds that new players would find it difficult to roll out services quickly. TRAI had argued that the existing players were best placed to roll out 3G services at affordable rates given that they already had a full fledged operations running.

The regulator had said that bringing in new players for 3G could create complications as more than 300 applications are awaiting DoT clearance for new unified telecom licences. In separate letters, the telecom regulator had cautioned DoT that any move to create a new license category to accommodate new operators for 3G segment could be illegal. TRAI had also written to the Finance Ministry explaining its position on the issue. However, the Ministry of Communication, the Ministry of Law and the Finance Ministry are in favour of an open auction.

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