  Telecom Regularity Authority of India (TRAI) today released a consultation paper on Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO), as a rejoinder to the paper floated by Department of Telecommunications (DoT) on 20th March, 2008 soliciting TRAI’s recommendations on MVNO. DoT in the paper sought for recommendations on the need and timing for introduction of MVNO, and the various terms and conditions for granting license to operators.
The consultation paper addresses a gamut of issues related to the introduction of MVNO in India. It talks about the concept and definition of MVNO, various MVNO models, the need and timing for its introduction, regulatory approaches, and spectrum sharing. The Consultation Paper also discusses Licensing and Regulatory issues such as eligibility, scope of service, license fees, obligations, FDI, tariff, service quality and so on.
The paper also pays an important attention at discussing the possible business strategies of the MVNOs, like offering services with low price, focusing on specific customer segment, offering differentiated Value Added Services international clustering.
MVNO, which is basically a mobile phone operator that does not own any spectrum or any infrastructure network has gained popularity in the last few years with over 300 registered MVNOs operating throughout the world. |