Following the announcement of the reserve price for spectrum for the upcoming 2G auction, by the Indian government, telcos expressed their dismay at the high prices and have indicated that there will be an upward revision of tariffs as they pass on the burden of their investments to the end-consumer. Here's what they're saying: - Base price would not affect us: BSNL- Chairman and Managing Director R K Upadhyay said that the 2G reserve price would not affect BSNL, however he did admit that it would be disadvantageous to the state owned telco, if the renewal process is undertaken. Read more at The Economics Times - Airtel says it might increase tariff: Bharti Airtel, has said that it was disappointed with the unreasonably high 2G reserve price announced by the government as it will lead to increased tariffs for consumers. The company also feels that the spectrum usage price of 3% to 8% is high, a sit should be just enough to take care of administrative expenses, when spectrum was already being auctioned. The company's CEO also added that the system favoured dual-technology telcos. read more at The Times of India. - COAI indicates 30p/min rise in tariff, Idea says no business case at Rs 14,000 crore: Rajan S Mathews, Director General of Cellular Operators Association of India, said that the higher prices would lead to a rise of 30 paise a minute in tariffs, and that tecos would have to raise additional debt of Rs 3,25,000 crore to fund bids, and…
