TRAI Suggests the Right Way for MVAS Growth: IAMAI
The Internet and Mobile Association of India [IAMAI] has warmly welcomed the Telecom Regulatory Authority's "Recommendations on Spectrum Management and Licensing Framework" in so far as the recommendations pertain to the growth of the mobile value added service industry.
Tweet-- The Internet and Mobile Association of India [IAMAI] has warmly welcomed the Telecom Regulatory Authority's "Recommendations on Spectrum Management and Licensing Framework" in so far as the recommendations pertain to the growth of the mobile value added service industry.
IAMAI has particularly welcomed TRAI's correct understanding of the constraints that stand in the way of the development of the MVAS market and the Authority's suggestions on how to chart the growth path for the industry through the gridlock.
According to IAMAI, TRAI has rightly recommended that the mobile value added services are going to get a boost post the 3G auction [2.114 of TRAI recommendation] and suggested that given this accelerated growth the licensing/regulatory framework needs to be relooked.
TRAI has also sharply and clearly identified the bottlenecks facing the MVAS industry in as much as in its bold recommendation that "... the matter of revenue share becomes a major issue. Effective cooperation and collaboration amongst various participants is the key factor to form a healthy value chain of value added services" [2.116].
Commenting on the Recommendations, IAMAI president, Dr Subho Ray, mentioned: "The current recommendations go much beyond the recommendations made in the TRAI's MVAS Consultation paper of February 2009 and are in line of the possibilities that are now thrown open with 3G and BWA. "It seems that the Authority is finally ready to address the key roadblocks that are almost scuttling the growth of the value added industry", he added.
The association has supported TRAI's suggestion to start a consultation process soon with the view to "identify measures for the growth of the mobile VAS industry, including bringing them under the licensing process".
Commenting on the issue possibility of licensing for the sector, Dr Ray mentioned, "IAMAI was never opposed to licensing as long as there was sense in licensing. No recognised player is opposed to licensing as long as it solves the problems that the industry faces and as long as there is no duplication of license fees". It can be recalled that since most of the billing for value added services is at the hand of the Telecom Operators all the relevant taxes including "license fee" and service tax are collected and paid by them to the government.
"TRAI has always been very supportive of this industry and we are enthusiastically looking forward to consulting with them on the issue", commented Dr Ray.
Notes to Editor
About IAMAI
The Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) is a not-for-profit industry body registered under the Societies Act, 1896. Its mandate is to expand and enhance the online and mobile value added services sectors. It is dedicated to presenting a unified voice of the businesses it represents to the government, investors, consumers and other stakeholders. The association addresses the issues, concerns and challenges of the Internet and Mobile economy and takes a leading role in its development.
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