Reliance Jio, a leading Indian telecom operator, is unhappy, to say the least with the telecom regulator's recent move regarding spectrum allocation for satcom (satellite communication) companies. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) sought comments for allocation of satellite spectrum recently. However, the regulatory body didn't seek comments from the industry stakeholders on the mode of allocation of spectrum to the satcom companies.
The new telecom act says that the satcom companies can get the spectrum administratively. However, telcos are not in the favour of this notion. All three private telecom operators in India have said that a level playing field must be maintained and the satcom companies should get their spectrum from the auctions.
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Since TRAI didn't seek comments from the industry stakeholders about the same, Jio has said that the regulatory body has violated its transparency obligations.
According to an ET report, Justice L Nageshwara Rao, a former Supreme Court judge said on behalf of Jio that under Schedule 1 of Telecom Act, the entry wherein it is mentioned that the spectrum has to be given administratively to satcom companies is not frozen, and in fact, can be amended from time to time.
When the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) approached TRAI to provide recommendations on the same, the request from DoT was to keep the focus on maintaining a level playing field for the telcos and the satcom companies. However, Rao said that TRAI has sought no comments for whether a level playing field exists or not to enable adequate consultation on the issue.
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Indian telecom operators have to acquire their spectrum from the auctions, while the satcom companies wouldn't need to do that if they got the spectrum administratively. This is not something that the telcos want to entertain. But on the flip side, the satcom companies want administrative allocation.
Elon Musk, owner of SpaceX and subsequently Starlink, had said that administrative allocation is the correct way for the market to go. This is the second time Jio has submitted a legal opinion on the matter. The telcos are not going to leave this fight easily, and that may lead to a longer waiting period for the start of commercial satcom services for consumers in India.
