Its Mukesh Ambani, Sunil Mittal vs Elon Musk again as Jio and Airtel gets ready to...
Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Jio and Sunil Mittal-owned Bharti Airtel, two of India's largest telecom service providers, are once again at odds with Starlink– the satcom service owned by world's richest man Elon Musk– following a brief truce between the domestic telecom major and the US-based satcom giant. Jio, Airtel object to TRAI recommendations
According to a report by the Times of India (TOI), domestic telecom providers, including Jio and Airtel, have objected to the recommendations made by TRAI regarding spectrum allocation to satcom companies, alleging that these are 'non-transparent and non- justifiable', and tilted in favor of satellite companies over domestic terrestrial operators.
In a statement, the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), which represents Indian telecom firms, rejected TRAI's assumption that satcom will merely be a fringe player with business presence limited to rural areas and remote, unconnected regions. COAI asserted that in 'reality', satcom service will be in direct competition with terrestrial networks.
'These recommendations thus create a substantial regulatory arbitrage as they fail to appreciate that in reality, satellite communication services are fast emerging as full-fledged competitors in the broadband market and the leading NGSO (non-geostationary satellite orbits) constellations are actively targeting retail and enterprise users in all geographies, including urban and well-connected regions,' said COAI DG Lt. Gen. (Retd) SP Kochhar, as per the TOI report. TRAI recommendations 'non-transparent', says COAI
COAI also accused TRAI of not paying attention to any inputs provided by local telecom majors in its recommendations, and these inputs are now under consideration by the Telecom Ministry.
It termed the TRAI recommendations as non-transparent, and based on 'non-justifiable assumption' rather than factual data. 'The limited consideration of stakeholder inputs coupled with the absence of comprehensive consultation on key issues — such as ensuring a level-playing field, evaluating network capacity, determining assignment methods, and establishing fair spectrum valuation—along with reliance on flawed assumptions, has culminated in recommendations that are not only inequitable but may also contravene the principles embodied in the Telecommunications Act, 2023,' the COAI stated. Mukesh Ambani, Sunil Mittal vs Elon Musk
Earlier, domestic telecom operators led by Mukesh Ambani-owned Jio and Sunil Mittal's Airtel, had objected the government's decision to allocate spectrum on administrative basis to satellite communication (satcom) companies. However, Jio and Airtel later decided to partner with Starlink, weeks after Elon Musk met Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his US visit in February.
Domestic firms purchase spectrum or airwaves via auctions, and COAI has raised objected to the 'differential spectrum pricing' suggested for terrestrial services versus satcom operators.', demanding that price per MHz should be equivalent or at least comparable for both, especially when used to reach the same consumers for identical services.
Recently, Elon Musk-owned Starlink received a letter of intent (LOI) from the telecom ministry to begin services, and now awaits a formal license to start its India operations.
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