NEW DELHI: The tug of war over the allocation of E and V band spectrum is heating up. On Thursday, the Internet Service Providers Association of India (ISPAI) wrote to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) pushing for allotment based on the TRAI’s 2015 recommendations, where the regulator had suggested a first-come-first-served system.
The position is directly against that taken by telecom service providers such as Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, and Vodafone Idea. Telcos, who are staring at approaching 5G network requirements, want to use the high-speed-but-low-reach E (57-64 GHz) and V (71-76 & 81-86 GHz) as a means to bridge connectivity in areas where mobile tower signals are weak.
Telcos want the government to halt the delicensing of these bands, as suggested by TRAI, and put them up for auction. There has been pushback from other sectors on this, however, with the primary objection being that auctioning this spectrum would limit their use to only licensed parties and deprive others of the opportunity.
The Cellular Operators Association of India had written to the Centre a few weeks earlier seeking a halt to delicensing and calling for auctions. For its part, the Broadband India Forum (BIF), which represents tech firms like Google and Microsoft has also written to the DoT pushing for the implementation of TRAI’s recommendations.
“Any auctioning of E and V bands would deny consumers and the nation at large with the benefits of broadband connectivity and economic growth. go against the concerned Trai recommendations. go against international practices,” BIF president T V Ramachandran has written.ISPAI’s letter on Thursday, however, said “spectrum allocation cannot be a right of only a handful of operators”.