The High Court has stayed the telecom regulator’s notice for auctioning 4G spectrum and inviting applications for licences.
Thursday’s order by Justice Naima Haider and Justice Zafar Ahmed came after a petition by Banglalion Communications, which cited that the regulator’s notice contradicts the 2008 broadband guidelines.
On December 4, Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) published the notice, saying it will auction 4G spectrum on February 13 and accept applications for licences until January 14 from telecom operators to offer the fourth-generation (4G) services.
In May last year, BTRC forwarded the draft of the spectrum allocation and licensing guidelines to the Telecom Division, reports bdnews24.
They were sent back to the regulator on November 29 following the final approval by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The guideline says:
>> No auction for licence will be held. Operators can take the licence by paying fees.
>> Application fee for 4G licence has been set at Tk 500,000. Licence can be obtained at Tk 100 million and the annual licence renewal fee is Tk 50 million.
>> Applicants must submit Tk 1,500 million as bank guarantee and pay 5.5 percent of its income in revenue sharing.
>> Base price for 1,800 megahertz 4G spectrum is $30 million.
>> For converting 2G and 3G services spectrums to ‘technology neutral’, operators must pay per megahertz.