Telecom regulator TRAI on Sunday said the government must consult it before taking any decision on uniform licence fee of 8.5 per cent of annual revenues for operators as proposed by the DoT, because the issue has wide implications for the sector.
The Department of Telecom (DoT) has decided that the existing variable licence fee structure for telecom operators should be replaced with a uniform rate. An internal note by the department suggests uniform licence fee should be 8.5 per cent for all types of services.
A senior TRAI official told PTI that DoT should consult TRAI on the issue of uniform licence fee as it has wide implications for the industry, stakeholders, subscribers and the government finances.
A senior DoT official said the proposed rate of 8.5 per cent will go to Telecom Commission’s approval this month before it could be taken as final.
If the matter is referred to TRAI, then DoT may insist on a time-bound response while TRAI would like to do it in the usual consultation and recommendation process, which is time consuming.
The uniform licence fee is mooted as it would help avoid arbitrage over integrated operators allegedly loading up maximum revenues on licences with lower fee.
