TRAI suggests 8 percent of yearly revenue as licence fee for ISP

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Thursday recommended a uniform licence fee of eight percent on adjusted gross revenue (AGR) for all Internet Service Providers (ISP).

"A uniform licence fee of eight percent of the AGR shall be applicable for all ISP licences. Revenue for the purpose of licence fee for ISP licences shall include all types of revenue from internet services, allowing only those deductions available for pass through charges and taxes/levies as in the case of access services, without any set-off for expenses.

"Revenues from internet services shall also be included in the definition of AGR," said a TRAI statement.

TRAI suggested to up the licence fee from existing six percent in 2007, which was turned down by the department of telecom.

"For the existing ISPs who are holding BWA (broadband wireless access) spectrum from the 2010 auction, the value of presumptive AGR shall be equal to five percent of sum of the total bid amount by the licensee for the respective service area, as applicable to the licensees who obtained spectrum in the auctions conducted in November 2012 and March 2013," the statement added.