Easier Norms Likely For Small Telecom Firms

Trai considering differentiated regulation

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is considering a proposal for differentiated regulation of integrated and stand-alone telecommunications service providers.

Differential regulation will mean operators like Spice, Escotel, Hutchison and HFCL, which offer only one type of service, will face easier roll-out obligations and service conditions than companies like BSNL, Reliance and Bharti, which offer cellular, fixed-line and long-distance services.

At present, the regulatory framework is based on the type of service offered and not on the operators