GSM mobile phone operators may be in for more unpleasant surprises. The department of telecommunications is planning to take idle spectrum back from them soon.
A DoT official told FE that, in step with new norms, the operators would be asked to expand their subscriber base within six months. If they fail do to so, they would have to return spectrum they have not utilised.
All the existing GSM operators like Bharti, Vodafone, Idea and Aircel will be affected by the move and will have to return spectrum they have not used as none of them has met the increased subscriber base norms of the Telecom Engineering Centre, the technical advisory wing of the DoT.
The new norms proposed by the TEC has increased almost eight times the number of subscribers each GSM operators must have for each band.
According to the existing norms, in a circle like Delhi, an operator needs to have at least a million subscribers to be able to use 10 Mhz of spectrum. The TEC has been increased that number to 4.8 million. Similar has been the norm for Mumbai, with the TEC?s new figure at 5.8 million users. Both
Bharti and Vodafone have 10 Mhz of spectrum each in these two circles.
Vodafone with 2.9 million subscribers in both Delhi and Mumbai, however, is entitled to have just 6.2 Mhz in both the cities, according to the new norms. Similarly, Bharti has 3.5 million subscribers in Delhi and, therefore, can have 8 Mhz. In Mumbai it has 2.1 Mhz. So, it can keep only 6.2 Mhz and return the rest.
Officials said, with operators returning the unutilized spectrum and 20 Mhz to be vacated by the defence forces, there would not be any major spectrum crunch in the near future.
