The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) on Thursday sent its recommendations on the terms and conditions of licence for the proposed National Integrated Directory Enquiry Service (NIDQS) for fixed and mobile telephones to the department of telecommunications (DoT), recommending an NIDQS licence to third party for developing the directory and has suggested guidelines for choosing a licensee. Amongst the various parameters, the eligibility criteria for selecting a licensee are, experience of three years in telecom network operations or IT-enabled services (ITeS), a minimum net worth of Rs 100 crore and an FDI limit of 74%. The awardee must be a public company or a government company, incorporated as such under the Companies Act 1956.
The regulator has also recommended a minimum entry fee of Rs 1 crore may be fixed for NIDQS licence, which would be determined by the open bidding process. While the licence fee for NIDQS should be 6% of the gross revenue of NIDQS provider.
Spelling out a few performance obligations, Trai has said that, “The NIDQS provider shall roll out the service in eleven service areas in the first year and the remaining service areas in the second year.”
The recommendations also include a nominal performance bank guarantee of Rs 2.5 crore for two years. Suggesting the duration of the license as a minimum of 10 years, Trai has noted that the license may be renewed after an initial span of 10 years.
Trai issues licence norms for national directory service
The regulator has also recommended a minimum entry fee of Rs 1 crore may be fixed for NIDQS licence, which would be determined by the open bidding process. While the licence fee for NIDQS should be 6% of the gross revenue of NIDQS provider.
Spelling out a few performance obligations, Trai has said that, “The NIDQS provider shall roll out the service in eleven service areas in the first year and the remaining service areas in the second year.”
The recommendations also include a nominal performance bank guarantee of Rs 2.5 crore for two years. Suggesting the duration of the license as a minimum of 10 years, Trai has noted that the license may be renewed after an initial span of 10 years.
Trai issues licence norms for national directory service