DoT panel recommends unified licence for telecom and broadcasting services
If the panel recommendation is implemented, unified licence holder may deliver all services to the end user on a single platform, without needing own a full infrastructure.
A Department of Telecom (DoT) committee has recommended a unified licence for telecom and broadcasting services. If implemented, users will have a range of services including mobile, landline, cable TV, DTH from a single company.
The new licence dubbed as the Unified Licence (Service Delivery), proposed by the panel in its report on Union Licensing regime under National Telecom Telecom Policy 2012 (NTP 2012), allows its holder to provide all the services to its subscribers, without needing to owning the full infrastructure. The licence holder may user other companies’ infrastructure for delivering the communication services.
The report of the panel has recommended that “UL (Services delivery) licensee need not create its own full infrastructure and at the same time delivers the services to the end users on a single platform”, says an Economic Times report.
The DoT committee has also suggested another new licence – Network Service, which will have the network infrastructure could be used by Services Delivering licence holders.
Earlier, a DoT panel had suggested two licences – Unified Licence (National) and Unified Licence (Service Area) – for the telecom operators.
According to the panel recommendations, the Unified Licence (National) will be including telecom services and will be delinked with spectrum, have limited terms and conditions for spectrum. The move will help administering services at a national level, the panel observed in its note.