TRAI has proposed reductions in the base price of 5G airwaves to attract more competition
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has recommended lowering the base price of 5G airwaves, suggesting the price of the 700 MHz band be cut by 40 percent and the spectrum frequency of the 3300-3670 MHz band by 36 percent. lowered. This, it said, would attract competitive bids from major telecom players such as Airtel, Jio and Vodafone Idea.
TRAI published its recommendations on Monday, stating that all available spectrum in the existing bands of 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz and the new spectrum bands of 600 MHz, 3300-3670 MHz and 24.25-28.5 GHz, are up for auction.
“To provide flexibility for telecom service providers, a block size of 10 MHz for the 3300-3670 MHz band and 50 MHz for the 24.25-28.5 GHz band is recommended. Spectrum should be allocated in a contiguous manner,” he said. a statement from TRAI.
TRAI further stated that the price recommendations related to spectrum with a period of 20 years. “The spectrum allocation reserve price in the case of 30 years should be equal to 1.5 times the minimum spectrum allocation price for 20 years for the respective band,” it said.
Overall, the reserve price in several tires appears to be nearly 39 percent lower than last suggested, PTI said.
TRAI said that for the long-term growth and sustainability of the telecom sector, injecting liquidity and encouraging investment, telecom service providers should be allowed easy payment options, including partial payment with flexibility of moratorium.
The spectrum auctions are expected to be held in 2022 to facilitate the roll-out of 5G mobile services within 2022-23 by private telecom operators. The next generation of 5G will usher in ultra-fast speeds and spawn new services and business models.
