In a desperate attempt to grab spectrum and start operations in new circles ahead of rivals, leading GSM operators have informed the government that they are willing to start services with less than 4.4 MHz spectrum.
Vodafone Essar has intimated its willingness to start operations in new circles where the availability of spectrum is less than 4.4 MHz.
Give me less
According to informed sources, other service providers like Bharti Airtel and Aircel Communications too have expressed their readiness to start operations with lesser spectrum.
This is in variance with current norms, where operators need to have at least 4.4 MHz of spectrum to kick off their services. This, experts said, would also compromise the quality of their services.
The initiative comes at a time when the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is looking at ways to improve the quality of mobile telephone services in the country. The current plans of the GSM operators will require special permission from the telecommunications ministry.
"A lot of GSM operators have informed us that they were willing to commence operations where initial spectrum is less than 4.4 MHz.
At present there are a lot of circles in the country where the availability of initial spectrum is much less than 4.4 MHz," an officer in the Department of Telecommunications told Business Standard.
He pointed out that these circles where the GSM operators want to start their services include certain metros where higher bands have been allocated, and border areas where spectrum of just around 3 MHz is available.
When contacted, the Cellular Operators' Association of India, the lobby group for GSM operators, confirmed the development.
COAI Director General TV Ramachandran said: "Starting the services is our primary concern and we are ready to commence operations with lower frequencies in circles where higher frequencies are not available. We want the services to take off."