Spectrum to be as freely available as water: TRAI Secy

New Delhi, June 8 (UNI) Emphasising on the need for easy availability of spectrum, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) today said technology should make spectrum ''as freely available as water''.

''Technology should make spectrum as freely available as water.

Regulation should not handicap technological development in offering quality services, and the key to this lies in bringing in the Unified licensing system,'' TRAI Secretary Rajendra Singh told reporters here.

''It should ultimately be deregulated with the upgradation of mobile devices. What has benefitted the customers most is the competitive environment in the urban areas and we hope to replicate this to drive penetration on telecom services in the rural areas,'' Mr Jain said at the Thought Leadership Forum discussion on 'Seamless mobility to Connect the Unconnected', organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).

CII Director General S S Mehta emphasised the role of Information and Communication Technology ICT and seamless mobility for a sustainable India and said the key to success in the Indian market was innovation and sensitiveness of the Indian consumer towards the pricing of the products.

Motorola Global Chief Technology Officer Padmasree Warrior said that the future of the mobile communication lay in digitising all services and exploiting the use of the internet. She underlined the role seamless mobility can play, in bridging the gaps in connectivity. ''The challenges lie in providing extensive broadband access and intelligence on devices and interconnecting networks,'' she said.

Bharti External Relations Head Navaid Khan, while focussing on tapping the potential of the Indian hinterland, said ''for rural India, the key strategy would be affordability of pricing.'' He also emphasised the possibility of Wi Max and 3G services in rural India, upgrading and educating the retailers and the Indian consumers, which would ultimately help to bringing down the service and technology costs and help in spreading the mobile penetration in rural India.

Comparing India and China, Motorola India Chairman Firdose Vandrevala said, ''that the cost of providing infrastructure in India is substantially higher than that in China, while charges that service providers have to pay in India are twice more than China and have to be brought down.'' He said the Post Department has extensive rural acceptability and infrastructure, which if leveraged could reach out extensively and connect the unconnected.

Among the prominent speakers who participated were Motorola Global Chief Technology Officer Padmasree Warrior, Motorola Head of Manufacturing Stuart Reed, TRAI Secretary Rajendra Singh, Motorola India Chairman Firdose Vandrevala and Bharti External Relations Head Navaid Khan.

UNI RA PV VV1928