The department of telecommunications (DoT) on Thursday allowed Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) to provide full mobility services on the CDMA platform. This provides the two state-owned telecom companies a level playing field vis-?-vis their private sector counterparts.
BSNL and MTNL provide full mobility services using GSM technology, while CDMA-based WLL services are for limited mobility purposes. Last year, the firms had sought the government?s permission to upgrade their CDMA platforms.
DoT?s decision to grant them that upgrade is made possible thanks to the new dual technology policy, which was approved by the department last October. Under the policy, the government has allowed Reliance Communications Ltd and Tata Teleservices Ltd, which were hitherto CDMA operators, to also provide GSM-based mobile services.
BSNL?s ability to now offer a wider range of CDMA mobile services comes as a major boon for the company at a time when it is fighting to retain its marketshare due to capacity saturation. The company has 34.57 million GSM mobile subscribers and another 4-5 million users of its limited CDMA services who will now be upgraded to full service subscribers. Further, BSNL can now aggressively market its CDMA services on an all-India basis, unlike at present, where they are largely offered in rural areas.
DoT?s decision also offers MTNL an opportunity to increase its subscriber base. The firm, which offers services in Delhi and Mumbai, has 3.12 million GSM subscribers and about 6-8 lakh CDMA limited mobile users.
The two firms have for long complained that by not allowing them to provide full mobility services on the CDMA platform, the government was preventing them from effectively competing with their private sector competitors.