Page 134 - SAMENA Trends - November-December 2019

REGULATORY & POLICY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

Tata Group’s consumer mobile operations at the Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT). According to the unnamed
Supreme Court. Airtel completed its acquisition of the official, however, the DoT has not taken the merger on
consumer mobile businesses of Tata Group’s Tata record and has instructed the heads of each circle to
Teleservices Limited (TTSL) and Tata Teleservices treat Airtel and Tata Teleservices Limited (TTSL) as
(Maharashtra) Limited (TTML) divisions on 1 July 2019 separate entities. The source went on to state that
– and integrated the cellco’s roughly 15 million mobile the regulator is in the process of challenging the tie-
subscribers into its user base – following a ruling in up via two separate ‘special leave’ petitions before the
its favor by the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Supreme Court. (November 11, 2019) Telegraph India

The Ministry of Communication and Information Berca is licensed to offer its hinet 4G LTE service in
(MCI) in Indonesia, known locally as Kementerian eight zones (covering 21 provinces and 298 cities/
Komunikasi dan Informatika (KemKominfo), is being municipalities), in the first ten years of operation it has
urged not to extend the 2×30MHz 2300MHz frequency only rolled out coverage to eight cities/municipalities.
Indonesia license of fixed-wireless broadband operator Berca In Ridwan’s opinion, Berca – a unit of Central Cipta
Murdaya (CCM) – should realistically have built out its
Hardayaperkasa (trading as hinet), because broadband
wireless access (BWA) is struggling to compete with network across ‘almost all the zones they won’ rights
rival services offered by the country’s mobile operators. to provide BWA services in by today, and now suggests
‘I see a very small possibility that 2.3GHz BWA that as per Article 23 Paragraph (1) of Government
telecommunications providers will be able to compete Regulation No.53 / 2000, Berca ‘should not have been
with cellular operators with GSM technology. This can able to maintain its frequency [license] because its
be seen from the number of BWA 2.3GHz operators that development targets have not been fulfilled, so that
have died, unable to compete with cellular providers it is ineffective’ and not providing any benefits to the
such as Smartfren, which have the same frequency at community – as its mandate required. As such, Ridwan
2.3GHz. Meanwhile, the development achievements believes that the government should act decisively in
of those that remain are very, very minimal. So [in the management of the country’s limited frequency
my opinion] all BWA operators should not be eligible resources and deny Berca’s license renewal for use
to have their licenses extended,’ IndoTelko cites the by cellcos wishing to develop their mobile broadband
Secretary General of the Telecommunications Policy offerings. ‘Companies that [fail to] commit to network
and Regulation Center of the Bandung Institute of construction [targets] should not be eligible to have
Technology (BTI), Dr. Mohammad Ridwan Effendi, as their licenses extended,’ he said.
saying. The BTI official went on to claim that although (November 14, 2019) telegeography.com

National Broadband Ireland (NBI) has announced the state-funded Wi-Fi in places like libraries, community
signing of what it called a ‘landmark’ Public Private centers and schools – will be delivered across all
Partnership with the Irish government, under which it 26 counties to ensure the public will have access to
will deliver the National Broadband Plan (NBP). In a high speed internet access at hubs across various
Ireland press release confirming the development, NBI said communities. In the wake of the contract signing, NBI
has launched a new website where the locations of
it expects to begin work on the project within eight
weeks, with surveying and design teams set to start BCPs can be identified and where the public can register
work in early January 2020 in the first deployment their interest for NBP updates. Additionally, once NBI
locations; these reportedly include Carrigaline in has integrated the final rollout map into its network
county Cork, parts of Connemara in west Galway, and design, it has said it will be possible to check whether
several towns in the counties of Kilkenny and Limerick. a premise is in the rollout area using a postcode, with
Ireland’s NBP project will involve laying 146,000km of an indicative date of when it will be passed with fiber.
fiber cable to connect 537,000 premises in the rollout NBI’s chief executive Peter Hendrick said of the matter:
area, which is focused on locations where high speed ‘Our experienced team with the best and brightest
fiber broadband is not currently commercially available. minds in telecoms from Ireland and around the world,
The full deployment across 96% of Ireland’s land mass has spent almost four years working on all the NBP
will reportedly take between five and seven years to requirements, delivering detailed network design and
complete, but approximately 250,000 rural residents build plans. We can’t wait to get out on the ground,
will be passed with fiber by the end of the second year delivering this essential utility across large tranches of
of the project. Meanwhile, in year one NBI has said Ireland that currently have no access to reliable high
that approximately 300 Broadband Connection Points speed broadband. It will be a game-changer.’
(BCPs) – digital community hubs that will provide free (November 19, 2019) telegeography.com

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