Worries about foreigners dominating 3G

Some telecom experts voiced their concerns yesterday in the first hearing by the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) on the draft of 3Gspectrum licensing terms.

According to the draft licensing proposal, the auction is the most transparent way to award spectrum licences.

The hearing focused on the best licensing methods, including auctions, a "first come, first served" system and a "beauty contest". This last method means those with the most viable 3G business plans would receive licences. The hearing also focused on the appropriate number of licences.

The NTC intends to award 2.1gigahertz spectrum licences for developing 3G mobilebroadband service in the middle of next year.

The existing cellular operators are waiting for the licences, as they are in need of a new spectrum to ease the constraints on their existing spectra and provide 3G service.

Hearing participants also wanted to understand what benefits they would gain from 3G technology.

NTC commissioner Prasit Prapinmongkolkarn said 3G technology would enable telecom operators to provide mobile broadbandInternet connection, particularly to those in remote areas inaccessible by fixedline broadband connections.