Trai spectrum prices high due to inconsistency in principles: Study

The spectrum price recommended by regulator Trai is high due to inconsistency in the principle applied by the watchdog for calculating base rates, a joint study by ICRIER and Broadband India Forum has claimed. “Our analysis … on the pricing of the 1800 MHz band finds that a bulk of the reserve prices not only continue to remain high, there are also inconsistencies in the principles applied,” the joint report by Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER) and Broadband India Forum said. It said that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has placed immense value on the bid price of previous auctions and this method does not always account for changing market conditions or operator circumstances even if the gap between two subsequent auctions is not significant.