The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is firm on its latest recommendations regarding Satcom spectrum allocations and subsequent charges levied on the providers. The regulatory body defends its provisions, highlighting that the recommendations have been reached following robust discussions with multiple stakeholders from the industry, equipped with divergent views, a report by ETTelecom claims. 

The regulatory body holds the recommendations, while a senior official from the authority claims that it is for the government to take a final call on the regulations. "We have duly followed the extensive and transparent consultative process with multiple stakeholders sharing divergent views. It is for the government to decide," a TRAI official on the conditions of anonymity told ETTelecom, adding that "a level playing field is out of the question" in the current context.

Satcom: A Complimentary Service 

Since TRAI has been considering Satcom as a complementary service since the very beginning, as also underlined in its recommendations, it finds no meaning in ensuring a level playing field between the Satcom and telecom operations in the current scenario. 

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"The ₹500 per subscription charge is aimed at enhancing coverage and encouraging space broadband providers to offer services across the country's rural landscape," a senior official of TRAI tells ETTelecom. 

Telcos’ Contention 

Telecom operators, through a joint letter via the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), have slammed TRAI’s proposed satcom spectrum pricing as unrealistically low. They warned that adopting the proposal could disrupt the level playing field and jeopardize the sustainability of terrestrial telecom services.

Huge Capacity Difference 

"So, the capacity of a typical satcom service provider in terms of the internet capacity is of the order of maybe 0.5 to 1 or 2 percent of the capacity of a typical large terrestrial service provider. So there is no question of a level playing field. It is a complimentary service," the senior TRAI official claims. 

He further adds, "In our recommendation, we have brought out that there is no case of a level-playing field between the satellite service providers and terrestrial service operators because of the huge difference in capacity between them." 

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Benefit Rural Areas 

The ₹500 urban subscription surcharge, suggested in the regulations, is aimed at incentivizing satellite service providers to extend their reach into rural regions, according to the senior officer. "They can divert their capacity to urban areas to some extent, but we want to nudge them to focus on rural and remote regions. This is the background under which the recommendation was made," he added.

Government’s Take Final

TRAI’s proposal to subsidize satellite user terminals using the Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) fund skews the level playing field against terrestrial operators, especially since telcos contribute the bulk of the DBN levy, Kochhar noted in his letter on behalf of the telcos.

The regulatory official says that it has recommended facilitating a target set of users that the government might want to support in unserved or rural and remote areas. "The government can consider subsidizing the cost of the terminal. It is for the government to make a decision based on a targeted group or category of users."