Trai proposes 48% hike in minimum bid price for 800 MHz spectrum

The telecommunications regulator has recommended a 48 percent increase in the minimum bid price for airwaves in the 800 megahertz band in a planned auction.The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India proposed on Saturday to set the auction reserve price at Rs 2685 crore per MHz of spectrum in the 800 band, compared with Rs 1820 crore set for a previous round of bids in March 2013.[caption id="attachment_1372897" align="alignleft" width="380"] A ministerial panel has the final say on the reserve price.[/caption]The 800 MHz band is used by carriers, including Sistema'slocal unit, Reliance Communications , Tata Teleservices  and two state-run companies, to provide services on the Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) mobile phone technology.But more carriers could be interested in the next auction as the airwaves can now be used to roll out high-speed 4G LTE services after government removed technology restrictions.A ministerial panel has the final say on the reserve price. The government has yet to set a date for the 800 band auction.India's auction of two other airwave bands this month raised $10 billion in total.Reuters