Jio and Airtel Continue Their Spat Over the Quantum of 5G Spectrum to Be Auctioned

Soon after Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that the government would auction telecom spectrum in 2022, telecom majors Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio have reignited their battle over the quantum of spectrum to put to 5G auction.

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In a letter written to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), Airtel had proposed that the lower amount of airwaves should be put for the auction, between 3.43 GHz and 3.67 GHz. According to Airtel, the identified spectrum in the 3.5 GHz band is from this band, which is free of external interference. The provider has additionally told that the spectrum band 3.3 GHz to 3.43 GHz should be put on hold until others vacate it.

Meanwhile, Jio suggests that the complete range of airwaves identified should be made available for auction. According to Reliance Jio, a 5G standalone network offering high-speed and low latency services will not lure customers without a minimum of 100 MHz of the spectrum. The provider asks for the auction for the entire C-band, including 3.3 GHz and 3.67 GHz. For interference-free deployment, it suggested a rank-based allotment methodology.

Jio has pointed out that the global trend is to offer a minimum of 100 MHz to each service provider for 5G. With 3.3 GHz to 3.6  GHz (totally 370 MHz) on the block, there is a higher chance that each operator could get 100 MHz of the spectrum. The remaining can be kept aside for government-owned provider Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL).