India is working on new rules and regulations which will relatively ease procedures for mergers and acquisitions among mobile phone service providers. This will be part of the new policy it plans to adopt by next month, according to Bloomberg.  

The Department of Telecommunications plans to have the new regulations, which also will fix a mechanism for pricing wireless airwaves, approved by the cabinet by December 31, R. Chandrashekhar, secretary for telecommunications, said in an interview yesterday in New Delhi. 

"It is a priority for the government to remove roadblocks to consolidation, which currently exist," he said. "Every company can plan their long-term investments and their business strategy knowing that this is the direction in which the country will go." 

The rule changes may trigger consolidation in a market where 15 mobile phone companies -- including Bharti Airtel Ltd and the local ventures of Vodafone Group Plc, Telenor ASA and NTT DoCoMo Inc -- compete for subscribers, pushing call charges to one US cent a minute. India''s wireless market is forecast by research firm Gartner Inc to surpass 872 million active users by the end of 2015, compared with 609 million in August. 

"Currently, we've got too many players," said Mahesh Patil, who oversees about $3 billion in stocks as co-chief investment officer at Birla Sun Life Asset Management Co "Getting some clarity on mergers and acquisitions will be a win-win for the sector. Incumbents will be able to consolidate their position and struggling marginal players may find an exit option."