New Delhi: The Indian telecom regulator has floated a consultation paper on spectrum auction of various bands on Monday where it sought the stakeholders opinion on matters like when should the next spectrum auction be held and what should be the block size for bands that will be put up for auction, among many other issues.
But the industry feels that the government should not rush with airwaves auction this year.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has sought written comments on the issues raised in the consultation paper from the stakeholders by September 25, 2017 and counter-comments by October 3, 2017.
The consultation paper - 'Auction of Spectrum in 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz, 2500 MHz, 3300-3400 MHz and 3400-3600 MHz bands' - asked the stakeholders: "In your opinion when should the next access spectrum auction be held?"
The new bands for auction would be 3300-3400 MHz and 3400-3600 MHz band.
"The industry is undergoing an acute financial crisis which has also triggered mergers/consolidation in the sector. There is a considerable amount of uncertainty in the sector at present. Companies will need to wait a little to see how the market dynamics play out. We feel that the Government of India should not rush to auction Spectrum this year and instead, allow the market to settle down in the wake of recent mergers and acquisitions," said Rajan S Mathews, Director General, Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI).
The COAI said the timing of the auction of any band should be not before the latter part of 2018 or better still, early part of 2019, once all the consolidation has been announced and locked down.
The paper also asked if the spectrum auction is held now, should the entire spectrum be put to auction or should it be done in a phased manner.
"Do you agree that in the upcoming auction, block sizes and minimum quantity for bidding in 700 MHz, 800 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz, 2300 MHz and 2500 MHz bands, be kept same as in the last auction?" it asked.
The paper also talked about spectrum cap. "Is there a need to prescribe spectrum cap in bands 3300-3400 MHz and 3400-3600 MHz? What spectrum cap provisions should be kept for 3300-3400 MHz and 3400-3600 MHz spectrum bands?"
"The Regulatory & Technical Standards for 5G are globally in the process of deliberations and consultations. 5G spectrum should be auctioned only after the ecosystem is developed, especially for services and apps that can work on all bands but would work much better and faster on 5G spectrum. Thus 2019 might be an appropriate time to auction 5G spectrum as there will be better use cases and applications for 5G, for which at least a year, or year and a half down the line is required. This will allow for a better understanding of value of 5G spectrum and the resultant price to bid," Mathews added.
Trai seems to be treading cautiously to avoid another round of the 2016 auction when the premium 700 MHz was put up for sale but found no takers. In the consultation paper the regulator has also expressly asked how should this spectrum be priced and whether the 2016 realized or auction determined prices must be earmarked as the reserve prices for the respective spectrum bands in the forthcoming auctions.
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