 "Telecom operators group asks govt to ban sale of unlicenced WiFi 6E routers")
A group representing telecom operators has sought a ban on the sale of WiFi 6E routers that use 6 GHz spectrum band for data transmission, making the request as the government has not yet determined the utilisation of the frequencies.
The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), whose members include Reliance Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea, claimed that the routers are being sold on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Flipkart, and Moglix, as well as through offline retailers, according to a report in the Economic Times (ET).
The COAI, in a letter to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on April 15, said the sale of equipment using the 6 GHz band, which has not been designated for this purpose or declared licence-exempt by the government, is unlawful and should be promptly prohibited nationwide.
"We would like to submit that DoT is yet to take a policy decision related to the 6 GHz band utilisation. Therefore, any sale of such WiFi 6E products, which utilises the 6 GHz spectrum band in a delicenced manner, is illegal and such sale would only result in unauthorised transmissions in our country," said COAI director-general S P Kochhar.
ET reported that the industry body attached an annexure with the letter, providing examples of WiFi routers from TP-Link and Google that operate on the 6 GHz band radio frequency.
"The websites/online platforms listed in Annexure-A are engaged in selling wireless equipment for 6 GHz band utilisation, which has not yet been assigned for this purpose or has not been declared as licence-exempt by the government," said Kochhar.
The COAI director-general further said people using the routers would be accountable for unauthorised transmissions and bear the burden of liability.
"We earnestly request the department to kindly intervene in the matter and take strict measures to put a complete ban on the sale of WiFi products operating in the 6 GHz band, whether offline or online through e-commerce websites/platforms, through an appropriate notification to sellers of such products in the country," said the letter.