Govt Not To Limit Number Of Satphone Service Providers

The Union government does not propose to set a ceiling on the number of global mobile satellite telephony systems offering services in the country. In the draft satellite telephony policy, the department of telecommunications (DoT) has proposed that the voice and data traffic of the systems be routed through gateways of Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL).

It has decided that the frequency band in which these systems operate will have to be vetted by the wireless planning and coordination cell of DoT. It has further decided that no restrictions will be imposed on operators using the same satellite to offer both communication and broadcast services.

 

The draft does not detail the tariffs to be charged by such operators and has left the task to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), which has powers to set tariffs for all telecom services in the country. Sources said DoT had worked out tariffs, but withdrew it from the draft policy after TRAI assumed office.

The department has not set the licence fee for the service operators in the draft policy. But sources said DoT was in favour of a revenue sharing based licence fee for the operators offering services in India. This would include a nominal initial charge plus a percentage of revenues every year, a DoT official said. According to unconfirmed reports, a licence fee of about 5 per cent of gross revenues may be suggested by the department.

The draft global mobile satellite telephony policy along with the draft Internet policy is expected to be discussed in the next meeting of the telecom commission.

If cleared, the policy will remove considerable uncertainty among the operators.

The foreign investment promotion board (FIPB), for instance, kept deferring a proposal by Global Star a 48-satellite system promoted by Loral Corporation of the US and Korean investors until recently. The proposal was finally cleared earlier this month. In 1995 and 1996, the FIPB cleared the proposals of Ico Communications, Iridium and Afro-Asian Communications.