Trai lays conditions for resale of bandwidth

In a move that takes the country a step closer to introducing resale in the International Private Leased Circuits (IPLC) segment, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has submitted its final recommendations in this regard to Department of Telecom (DoT).

These include suggestion that resellers should provide end-to-end circuit capacity between India and the country of destination. Moreover, the applicant company for a reseller licence should have a net worth as well as paid-up capital of Rs 2.5 crore.

"The entry fee should be Rs 1 crore and the reseller should submit a financial bank guarantee (FBG) of Rs 1 crore. The licence fee may be as applicable to international long distance licence, which is currently 6 per cent of the adjusted gross revenue," Trai said in a statement.

The terms and conditions for foreign equity should be consistent with those of international long distance sector, as applicable from time to time, Trai said.

Trai also wants an amendment in the clause that prevents resale of international bandwidth in the country "" a move that is expected to further reduce bandwidth prices.

This would be a welcome move for the Indian telecommunications, business process outsourcing, and other bandwidth-dependent sectors.