DoT Considering Administrative Spectrum Allocation: Report

According to a Financial Express report, the DoT might go for administrative spectrum allocation, along with putting some quantum on auction as well.

Administrative Spectrum Allocation - Speeding up 5G Rollouts?

According to the DoT, there are too few telecom players left, and it can get away with allocating a part of the spectrum it has available to the telcos. However, the telecom department has a few roadblocks ahead before it can go the allocation way.

First, the Telegraph Act, and the precedent set by the 2G spectrum scam. And second, the ongoing battle between telcos and Satcom companies for the mmWave band.

When the Supreme Court canceled the 122 telecom licenses awarded by A. Raja, the then telecom minister, it classified the spectrum as a natural resource. Therefore, the Apex Court said that the government should allocate spectrum via auction. The court had also recommended adding a transparent mechanism in place for the said auctions.

Therefore, the telecom department can't just distribute the spectrum as it pleases anymore. It will seek legal opinion on the matter and gauge if it can go for administrative spectrum allocation within the current Telegraph Act. If not, then the act might have to go through some amendments to allow that.

Though, not all telcos are keen on the idea of spectrum allocation this way; only Bharti Airtel has publicly supported the method. This means that Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea are still team auctions.

In 5G's case, the DoT is exploring giving telcos backhaul spectrum in quantities in some proportion of what the telcos bought during the previous auctions.

The mmWave Issue

Coming to the second issue, the telecom companies and satcom companies have been contentious over the mmWave, the spectrum that falls under the 26-28 GHz band. Historically, all satellite communication has happened using the mmWave spectrum. However, telcos plan to use the same spectrum in high-density urban settings given the former's high capacity.

Allocating spectrum administratively will at least sort this issue out; though the satcom companies have opposed this idea as well.

According to the DoT, the government needs to identify the ways in which the telcos can receive the spectrum, and create a clear policy framework according to that.