Bharti Airtel Ltd and Reliance Communication (RComm) have opposed the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India definition of a mobile virtual network operation?which entails the ?sharing of spectrum? between a mobile network operator and a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO)?and have asked for a review.
In separate communications to Trai, the country?s largest and second-largest mobile network operators have opposed its definition, claiming that such a ?sharing? of spectrum implies ownership or co-ownership, which cannot be true in the case of MVNOs, as that would amount to spectrum trading, currently disallowed in India.
An MVNO with spectrum would no longer be a virtual network operator, but a facility-based mobile network operator, making it indistinguishable from a unified access service provider, the two domestic telecom majors have argued. Only infrastructure sharing is allowed under existing norms. Internationally, mobile virtual network definitions typically do not mention spectrum sharing and both Bharti and RComm have asked the regulator to clearly specify that an MVNO does not have its own spectrum.
In their representation, Bharti and RComm have stated that MVNOs were successful in markets that have only a few players and where average revenues per user were on the high side. In India, however, the industry is extremely competitive, with 12-14 players in each circle, and tariffs are among the lowest in world. As such, MVNOs aren?t really the need of the hour, the two operators contend.
Citing the fact that MVNOs do not make investments in telecom infrastructure, RComm has said that by allowing them into the country without making such investments in infrastructure but virtually providing similar services, may prove to be a disincentive for existing operators. Bharti, in its communication to the regulatory authority, has asked Trai to allow MVNOs only to offer basic services until the market matures, after which other forms of MVNOs could be allowed.
The so-called ?thin model? would not require an MVNO to have any infrastructure and would allow it to piggyback an existing mobile network operator on mutually agreed terms, while letting the MVNO brand its own product.