An Indian panel of ministers has approved the proposal to charge telcos a one-time fee for existing 2G airwave holdings.
The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) said that the fee would be based on a price at the upcoming auction scheduled for November,…
An Indian panel of ministers has approved the proposal to charge telcos a one-time fee for existing 2G airwave holdings.
The Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) said that the fee would be based on a price at the upcoming auction scheduled for November, according to media reports.
This decision will impact established operators such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone, who already had spectrum before the 2G auction scandal of 2008 when licences were said to have been illegally granted. The Supreme Court revoked eight operators’ licences in February as a result of the scandal.
The EGoM recommended to the cabinet that the companies with existing licences be asked to pay for airwaves beyond 4.4MHz at the auction-determined price, or relinquish the excess spectrum, said reports.
Stocks in the telcos which will have to pay the fee have fallen today following the ministerial ruling. Shares in Bharti Airtel fell 1.83% by 15.34 GMT, while Idea Cellular shares decreased 3.24%. Reliance Communications’ share price fell by 2.38%.
