The Telecom Bill not touching the issue of regulating over-the-top (OTT) communication apps has not come as a disappointment for the telcos, and the industry is hopeful that it would be addressed separately at a later stage, Gopal Vittal, Airtel CEO & MD told FE in an interview on Wednesday.
Vittal said that the reform-oriented measures in the Bill, like giving legal backing to right of way for laying fibres and ducts and backhaul spectrum to connect cell sites, will ensure that quality of services, data as well as voice, will greatly improve. Further, allocation of spectrum for satellite communications without auctions is path-breaking as these services will help telcos provide services in remote and hilly regions where mobile services are not accessible.
Government sources told Fe that department of telecommunications, which piloted the Bill, looks only at carriers, while OTTs fall in the domain of ministry of electronics and IT, content is overseen by information and broadcasting ministry, and fintechs by finance ministry.
On the need to regulate OTTs and they sharing a fair part of revenues with telecom operators, Vittal said, “We feel that three to four large companies that use a disproportionate amount of the traffic (70-80%) must also contribute to building our networks, because ultimately what are we trying to do? We are trying to go to the remotest parts of the country in order to meet digital aspirations”.
He billed transition from licensing to authorisation, right of way (RoW) measures, and graded system of penalty, as progressive and forward-looking components of the Bill.
“A combination of simplification and ease of business is really what has happened in this Bill,” Vittal said.
Explaining on how quality of services for both data and voice will immensely improve, he said that since right of way – permission required from states and local bodies to lay telecom infrastructure – has got legal backing, delays in laying fibre and ducts, etc will be checked. Further, providing backhaul spectrum – airwaves which connect different cell sites – without auction will help in putting up infrastructure faster. The cell sites can be connected through fibre as well as spectrum. However, connecting through fibre takes time, whereas the same happens faster through spectrum. “With this Bill, the combination of both can happen which is an ideal situation. The call and data quality will definitely improve,” Vittal said.
Similarly, the move to allocate spectrum for satellite communication services will compliment terrestrial services in connecting remote and hilly regions. “Mobile operators can use the services of satellite providers to reach such regions which are very few, so there was no sense in auctioning spectrum for services which will cover very small areas,” Vittal said.
On spectrum-related reforms like sharing, trading, leasing, harmonisation and re-farming, Vittal said a clear roadmap has been laid. “The single biggest thing that businesses look for is clarity…in terms of the frequency plan that India is going to have in the next five years. You need to know that, to plan more investments accordingly and plan a spectrum strategy. That is now part of the new Bill,” he said.
Going forward, the government and industry will be able to use scarce resource in the most efficient way to meet the digital aspirations of the country, Vittal said.
One of the key aspects the telecom Bill addresses is the issue of penalties. Earlier, random penalties were put whether there was negligence or minor errors that led to litigation. “Now, there is a graded structure of penalties, which check randomness and reduce legal fights,” he said.
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