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Informist, Thursday, Sep 19, 2024

 

 

MUMBAI – The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on Wednesday proposed a unified service authorisation for entities. This was part of the regulator's recommendations for a new authorisation framework for service providers. The authority proposed that the service providers would be allowed to shift to the new authorisation regime on a voluntary basis.

 

The TRAI released the framework for service authorisations after the government, in June, asked it to provide recommendations on the terms and conditions for authorisation as per the provisions of the Telecommunications Act 2023.

 

The regulator recommended that an entity holding unified service authorisation can provide services for mobile communication, internet, broadband, landline telephone, long distance services, satellite communication, machine-to-machine services, and internet of things across India under a single authorisation. Such entities will have complete flexibility for routing their domestic traffic, TRAI said in a press release detailing the new framework. The regulator proposed an entry fee of 120 mln rupees for unified service authorisation. 

 

The framework recommended that the Central government should grant service authorisation to entities under the Telecommunications Act instead of entering into an agreement with the entity. The authority also proposed that the guidelines for various service authorisations should be in the form of rules for the grant of service authorisations. 

 

The regulator has recommended three broad categories of telecommunication service authorisations--main service authorisations, auxiliary service authorisations, and captive service authorisations. The main service authorisations would cover services such as access services, internet, long distance services, satellite-based telecommunication, and machine-to-machine wide-area network services. The main service authorisations can be granted under two sub-categories--network service operator and virtual network operator, the framework proposed. 

 

Auxiliary service authorisations will include services which are provided to enterprise users and not to the public at large, such as public mobile radio trunking service, WiFi Access Network Interface, wireless personal area network or wireless local area network connectivity service, enterprise communication services, in-flight and maritime connectivity, and data communication service between aircraft and ground stations.

 

Captive service authorisation would cover service authorisations for the establishment of captive networks after obtaining spectrum from the Central government, such as captive mobile radio trunking, captive non-public networks, and captive very small aperture terminal and closed user group. The regulator proposed different terms and conditions for each of the services under auxiliary and captive service authorisations.

 

The recommendations proposed a reduction in the entry fee for different service authorisations to bring in new service providers, attract fresh investments, and boost competition in the telecom sector. The regulator also proposed to eliminate the entry fee during the renewal of authorisation, a move aimed to particularly benefit virtual network operators. It has proposed an entry fee of 10 mln rupees for long distance service authorisation and an entry fee of 5 mln rupees for satellite-based telecommunication service authorisation. 

 

 

Entry fee for access service authorisation has been proposed to be halved to 5 mln rupees from 10 mln rupees for each telecom circle or metro area, whereas the entry fee for the Jammu and Kashmir and northeast regions each has been proposed to be cut to 2.5 mln rupees from 5 mln rupees.

 

The authority proposed reducing the entry fee for internet service authorisation for category A to 2 mln rupees from 3 mln rupees. For category B, it has proposed to reduce the entry fee to 100,000 rupees from 200,000 rupees for each telecom circle and to 50,000 rupees for Jammu and Kashmir and north-east region each. The regulator's proposal suggested an entry fee exemption for category C of internet service authorisation, enterprise communication service authorisation, and all categories of machine-to-machine wide-area network service authorisations.

 

The framework proposed the entry fee for public mobile radio trunking service authorisation to be reduced to 20,000 rupees from 50,000 rupees for each telecom circle or metro area. An entry fee of 100,000 rupees has been proposed for authorisation of data communication service between aircraft and ground stations. TRAI proposed to reduce the entry fee for captive very small aperture terminal and fixed-satellite service authorisation to 750,000 rupees from 1.5 mln rupees.

 

To enhance the ease-of-doing business, the regulator has proposed merging financial bank guarantee and performance bank guarantee into a single bank guarantee for authorisations. The authority also recommended replacing the requirement of an affidavit with a self-certificate during authorisations. 

 

The regulator has proposed to permit the use of non-terrestrial network under access services. It has also proposed to extend the scope of internet service authorisation to include provision of leased lines and virtual private networks. There is a proposal to allow merging of national long distance service and international long distance service to form long distance service authorisation. Carrying domestic traffic through submarine cables connecting two coastal cities of India has been permitted under the merged authorisation. The framework also proposed the establishment of an international long distance gateway as well as cable landing stations for both domestic and international submarine cables. 

 

The regulator proposed merging the authorisations for commercial very small aperture terminal-closed user group, or VSAT-CUG, service and global mobile personal communications by satellite into satellite-based telecommunication service authorisation. The framework also proposed removing the current restrictions on very small aperture terminal operators from providing services to only closed user group. The authority also proposed merging the registrations for machine-to-machine service provider and machine to machine wireless local area network and wireless personal area network.

 

Another proposal of the new framework is to expand the scope of audio conferencing, audiotex, and voice mail service authorisation to include cloud-based electronic private automatic branch exchange service. The authorisation for such services has been renamed as enterprise communication service authorisation. The framework proposed allowing satellite-based telecommunications service providers to use the satellite earth station gateways established in India for providing service in foreign countries, after obtaining permission from the government.

 

With an aim to benefit small and medium-sized entities, the framework proposed allowing authorised entities to lease or hire telecommunication resources from cloud service providers, which are either empanelled as cloud service providers by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology or are authorised under the Telecommunications Act. However, the cloud has to be situated in India, the regulator said.

 

The TRAI also said in its recommendations that there are concerns among stakeholders about the government unilaterally changing the terms of the authorisation. "To provide regulatory stability, it has been recommended that for any substantial change in the terms and conditions of the authorisations... (the government) should seek TRAI's recommendations," TRAI said.  End

 

Reported by Steffy Maria Paul

Edited by Akul Nishant Akhoury

 

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