India's private telecom operators — Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea — have jointly approached the Noida International Airport authorities, seeking permission to deploy a common in-building solution (IBS) network without involving a third-party infrastructure provider.
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Legal Grounds Under UASL and Spectrum Rights
In a letter dated April 24 to the airport chairman, the telcos have sought approval to conduct a joint survey of the premises to facilitate seamless mobile connectivity. The operators cited their legal authority under the Universal Access Service Licences (UASL) and spectrum rights to install and operate active telecom infrastructure.
"It is pertinent to highlight that third-party vendors are not permitted to deploy active telecom infrastructure. As per current regulations, only TSPs (telecom service providers) holding valid Universal Access Service Licenses (UASL) and spectrum rights are authorised to install and operate active IBS networks," the telcos said, according to an ETTelecom report.
"Hence, deployment of active IBS by a third-party vendor would not be legally tenable," they added, as per the report.
Previous Mumbai Metro Dispute
This move follows a similar plea by the operators to the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation, where they opposed the appointment of a third-party IBS provider due to what they termed "unviable" rental demands.
The letter emphasised that the Telecommunications Act, 2023, and the Telecommunications Right of Way (RoW) Rules, 2024, mandate public authorities to provide licensed telecom service providers access to public spaces, without imposing charges beyond the stipulated RoW fees.
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Concerns Over Third-Party Monopolisation
"Granting exclusive rights to a third-party to install IBS infrastructure (active and passive) effectively appoints such an entity as a gatekeeper of RoW and creating a bottleneck. This not only contravenes legal provisions but also creates a monopolistic environment, allowing third parties to impose arbitrary and exorbitant charges on TSPs," the telcos alleged, according to the report.
The operators acknowledged that IBS deployments in public infrastructure such as airports offer limited commercial returns. However, they expressed willingness to absorb the costs in the interest of ensuring reliable connectivity for passengers.
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"RoW permissions in such scenarios should be viewed not as a revenue stream for the airport, but as a facilitative measure in the public interest," the telcos reportedly said.
