The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) on Saturday asked the Department of Telecom not to take any coercive action in enforcing a ban on 3G roaming arrangement between operators.
The Tribunal has asked the operators to submit the roaming agreements. The DoT has also been told to file its response to the operators' appeal. The Tribunal will hear the case again on January 3.
This provides a breather to the operators because they can continue to offer services through the roaming arrangements till the next hearing. Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular and Vodafone had moved the telecom tribunal on Friday challenging a DoT order, saying it would harm customers. The DoT had told the operators to terminate the roaming agreements by 3 p.m. on Saturday.
While operators are allowed to enter into roaming agreements under the existing Unified Access Services Licence, in the case of 3G, operators are selling connections in areas they do not have spectrum. This is being done through an intra-circle roaming arrangement signed between the three operators. For example, Idea Cellular does not have 3G spectrum in Delhi but is selling connection based on agreement with the other two operators. The DoT has held this to be illegal as it tantamounts to spectrum sharing. The operators, on the other hand, say that this arrangement is legal.
“We think that this decision of DoT is completely unreasonable. The 3G roaming agreements that Vodafone has entered into with other operators are in complete compliance with all Government rules and regulations and this issue was specifically clarified by the DoT before the 3G auction was held. Based on this clarification, we went into the auction in good faith. Now, to completely reverse the stand, is totally irrational,” said a Vodafone spokesperson.
The operators said that if the agreement was terminated, then it would affect millions of subscribers. “It is not only a breach of trust, but also an act that is expected to adversely impact over half the base of mobile users in India and negatively impact investor sentiment,” said Idea Cellular. Earlier, operators had written to the Government saying that either the roaming pact should be permitted or they would surrender the 3G spectrum.
because to pull back a strategic deployment such as intra-circle roaming, expert intervention is required as multiple aspects of CRM, network and IT are at play. More importantly customers have to be informed and their financial commitment towards the service has to be protected, as per the regulation.
“We are shocked at the arbitrary decision taken by the Department of Telecom (DoT) to issue instructions to stop intra circle roaming for 3G services. This is despite DoT having clarified on the matter prior to the 3G spectrum auction in 2010,” Airtel said.