The government has yet to settle on the subject of private 5G networks, which has been a bone of contention between telecom service providers and tech companies, thus the auction of 5G airwaves is likely to be delayed beyond mid-July.
According to a senior official, the government is leaning toward allowing carriers to lease 5G airwaves to private enterprises; nevertheless, requests from various companies demanding direct allocation of 5G airwaves are being considered. “It’ll be presented to the Cabinet.”
“They’ll make a choice together with other things,” the official said. The Cabinet will also decide on the price of 5G airwaves and the length of time that spectrum will be allocated after auctions.
This comes after the telecom ministry’s highest decision-making body, the digital communications commission (DCC), agreed to numerous of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s recommendations (TRAI).
The Department of Telecommunications will need some time after the Cabinet makes a final decision before issuing the notice inviting applications, which is the formal document advertising the auctions and soliciting interest from potential bidders.
This might take anywhere from two weeks to a month, according to experts. From the time the notification is given, the auction will take at least 45 days to complete.
The issue of private 5G networks has been a major source of contention, with telecom service providers at odds with the Broadband India Forum (BIF), which includes companies like Tata Consultancy Services Ltd, Amazon India, and Meta.
Private networks, according to BIF, were created to generate revenue for the government and would not pose a security problem because they were closed and unconnected from public telecom networks.
Businesses have argued and appealed to the government through various industry associations, urging the government to allow businesses to operate their own private 5G networks directly.
Businesses have suggested that this might allow them to run more efficient networks, increase government revenue through spectrum sales or leasing, and eliminate security issues because the networks would not be visible to the public.
In response, Indian telecom providers have encouraged the government not to adopt such a move, claiming that it would considerably reduce the money that telecom operators already receive from businesses.
Telcos have also said that removing enterprise business prospects will cause the industry to struggle, as India’s consumer telecom operations operate on razor-thin margins.
The government will now have to make a decision on the problem before beginning the 5G India rollout process with the first spectrum auction. If the deadline is extended beyond mid-July, the rollout of services may be delayed as well.
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