State-owned fixed line operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) has reportedly received the go-ahead from India’s telecoms ministry to give back its BWA spectrum in several circles.
Telecoms secretary R. Chandrashekhar was quoted saying that the…
State-owned fixed line operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam (BSNL) has reportedly received the go-ahead from India’s telecoms ministry to give back its BWA spectrum in several circles.
Telecoms secretary R. Chandrashekhar was quoted saying that the ministry would likely re-auction the spectrum.
It has been suggested previously that BSNL is looking to surrender spectrum in the 2.6 GHz band because it is unsuitable for LTE time division duplex (TDD) technology. The latter has been chosen by most other operators using spectrum in the 2.3 GHz band. As a result, it might be difficult for the company to compete with these operators.
The company reportedly paid Rs83.1bn (US$1.68bn) to purchase BWA frequencies last year.
Mahanagar Telephone Nigam (MTNL), another state-owned telco, may decide to follow suit in selling back frequencies as both companies have met financial difficulties in recent years, according to reports.
