SSTL plans to bid for pan-India CDMA spectrum
The operator is interested in bidding for the pan-India CDMA spectrum if the government revises CDMA base prices.
Sistema Shyam Teleservices, which operates in India under the MTS brand name, has revealed plans to bid for pan-India CDMA spectrum. However, India’s only-CDMA exclusive operators seeks prices of CDMA spectrum based on the same method used to determine the price of GSM spectrum.
“Why not? We already have network now. We can launch it in one month. It is very much possible if spectrum price is right,” SSTL Chief Executive Officer Dmitry Shukov is quoted as saying.
SSTL currently operates in 9 circles. With a pan-India licence, it will be able to operate in as many as 22 circles.
SSTL had earlier opposed the TRAI’s proposal to bar the company from participating in the coming CDMA spectrum.
In a detailed letter to Rahul Khullar, Chairman of TRAI, SSTL had said: “We have noted that the Authority in its Consultation Paper has made certain observations/suggestions which have a relation to SSTL.”
“SSTL feels any restriction on SSTL for participation in next 800 MHz auction would be unfair and therefore deem it necessary to provide our comments on the observations as also place certain facts for the consideration of Authority with respect to the spectrum allocated to SSTL consequent to the previous auction held in March, 2013.”
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will soon announce new CDMA spectrum base price for auctions. Earlier, the regulator had recommended against putting CDMA spectrum on sale, but had suggested reducing base price for GSM airwaves – 1800 Mhz band and 900 Mhz band
“SSTL has consistently maintained that it does not agree with the recommendations of TRAI specific to the 800 MHz spectrum band. The said recommendations have effectively blocked SSTL’s future growth path in India both in terms of expanding within its existing 9 circles and to other circles,” SSTL had then said in a statement.
Source: ET