RESTRICTED
WORLD TRADE S/GBT/W/1/Add.24
8February 1997
ORGANIZATION(97-0498)
Original: English Group onBasic Telecommunications
COMMUNICATION FROM INDIA
Draft Offer onBasic Telecommunications
Revision
Thefollowing communication iscirculated attherequest ofIndia tomembers oftheGroup
onBasic Telecommunications.
_______________
Kindly refertoIndia'sdraftOffer onBasic Telecommunications, ascontained indocument
S/NGBT/W/12/Add.32dated25April1996,andtheListofArticleIIExemptionscontainedindocument
S/NGBT/W/19 dated 25April 1997. TheListofArticle IIExemptions remains unchanged.
India hereby submits thisrevised draft offer onBasic Telecommunications. Thisoffer is
conditional. India reserves therighttomodify, reduce orwithdraw thisoffer, inwhole orinpart,
atanytimeprior totheconclusion ofthenegotiations onBasic Telecommunications.
Indiafurther reserves therighttomake technical changes totheofferandtocorrect anyerrors,
omissions andinaccuracies.S/GBT/W/1/Add.24
Page2INDIA -REVISED DRAFT OFFER
Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orSub-sector Limitations onMarket Access Limitations onNational Treatment Additional Commitments
2. COMMUNICATION
SERVICES
C. Telecommunication
Services
(a) Voice telephone service
(CPC 7521**)
Limited tolocal/long
distance, forpublic use
overapublic
telecommunication
transport network.(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Theservice willbepermitted tobe
provided onlyafter theoperator getsa
licence from theDesignated Authority
whoshall determine theneed, ifany,
forissuance ofnewlicences. Theterms
andconditions ofthelicence willbeas
laiddown bytheDesignated Authority
orGovernment ortheprevailing laws in
thecountry.(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) UnboundThedefinition andprinciples
ontheregulatory framework
forthebasic
telecommunication services
subscribed tobyIndia are
contained intheannex titled
"Explanatory Paper on
Additional Commitments by
India".
Wire based (i.e.forfixed
network ofsubscribers).There willbeoneoperator other than
Department ofTelecommunications
(DOT)/Mahanagar Telephone Nigam
Ltd.(MTNL) ineach service areafora
period of10years from thegrant of
licence after which theposition willbe
reviewed.
Theprivate operator should bea
company registered inIndia inwhich
totalforeign equity must notexceed
25%.
Service operator willbepermitted to
provide longdistance service within the
licensed service areaonly.S/GBT/W/1/Add.24
Page3Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orSub-sector Limitations onMarket Access Limitations onNational Treatment Additional Commitments
Resale ofvoice telephone services will
notbepermitted. However, licensees
cangrant franchises oncommission
basis forproviding public calloffices
(PCOs) service.
Thedetailed terms andconditions for
providing theservice willbeasper
licence conditions.
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments.(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments
(c) Circuit switched data
transmission services
(CPC 7523**)(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Licensed voice telephone service
operators willbepermitted for
transmission ofdataonthePSTN
network initslicensed service area.
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Unbound
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments
(f) Fascimile services
(CPC 7521**)(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Licensed voice telephone service
operators willbepermitted for
transmission offacsimile onthePSTN
network initslicensed service area.
Franchisees ofservice operators can
provide commercial facsimile services
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Unbound
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitmentsS/GBT/W/1/Add.24
Page4Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orSub-sector Limitations onMarket Access Limitations onNational Treatment Additional Commitments
(g) Private Leased Circuit
Services (CPC 7522**)(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Licensed voice telephone service
operators willbepermitted toprovide
leased circuits totheir customers, for
their ownusewithin their licensed
service area. Resale ofsuch leased
circuits willnotbepermitted.
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Unbound
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments
(o) Other
Cellular mobile telephone
services.(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Theservice willbepermitted tobe
provided onlyafter theoperator getsa
licence from theDesignated Authority
whoshall determine theneed, ifany,
forissuance ofnewlicences. Theterms
andconditions ofthelicence willbeas
laiddown bytheDesignated Authority
orGovernment ortheprevailing laws in
thecountry(1) Unbound
(2) Unbound
(3) Unbound
Only digital (GSM) technology willbe
permitted andthiswillonlybeterrestial
based.
There willbetwocellular service
operators ineach service area. The
position willbereviewed after 10years.
Theright ofDoT/MTNL toenter into
each service areaisreserved.S/GBT/W/1/Add.24
Page5Modes ofsupply: 1) Cross-border supply 2) Consumption abroad 3) Commercial presence 4) Presence ofnatural persons
Sector orSub-sector Limitations onMarket Access Limitations onNational Treatment Additional Commitments
Theprivate operator should bea
company registered inIndia inwhich
totalforeign equity must notexceed
25%.
Thedetailed terms andconditions for
providing theservice willbeasper
licence conditions.
(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments.(4) Unbound except asindicated inthe
horizontal commitments.S/GBT/W/1/Add.24
Page6
Explanatory Paper on
Additional Commitments byIndia
Scope
Thefollowingaredefinitionsandprinciplesontheregulatoryframeworkforthebasictelecommunications
services.
Definitions
Users mean service consumers andservice suppliers.
Essential facilities mean facilities ofapublic telecommunications transport network orservice that
(a) areexclusively orpredominantly provided byasingle orlimited number ofsuppliers;
and
(b) cannot feasibly beeconomically ortechnically substituted inorder toprovide aservice.
Amajor supplier isasupplier which hastheability tomaterially affect theterms ofparticipation (having
regard toprice andsupply) intherelevant market forbasic telecommunications services asaresult
of:
(a) control overessential facilities; or
(b) useofitsposition inthemarket.
1. Competitive safeguards
Appropriate measures shallbemaintained forthepurpose ofpreventing service suppliers from
engaging inorcontinuing inanti-competitive practices ofthefollowing type:
(a) using information obtained from competitors withanti-competitive results; and
(b) notmaking available toother services suppliers onatimely basistechnical information
about essential facilities andcommercially relevant information which arenecessary
forthem toprovide services.
2. Interconnection
2.1 Thissection applies tolinking withsuppliers providing public telecommunications transport
network orservices inorder toallow theusers ofonesupplier tocommunicate withusers ofanother
supplierandtoaccessservicesprovidedbyanothersupplier,wherespecificcommitmentsareundertaken.S/GBT/W/1/Add.24
Page7
2.2 Interconnection tobeensured
Interconnection withamajor supplier willbeensured atanyspecified feasible point inthe
network asindicated inthelicence. Such interconnection isprovided.
(a) ofaquality nolessfavourable thanthatprovided foritsownlikeservices orforlike
services ofnon-affiliated service suppliers orforitssubsidiaries orother affiliates;
(b) upon request, atpoints inaddition tothenetwork termination points offered tothe
majority ofusers asperlicence conditions, subject tomutually agreed charges.
2.3 Public availability oftheprocedures forinterconnection negotiations
Theproceduresapplicableforinterconnectiontoamajorsupplierwillbemadepubliclyavailable.
2.4 Transparency ofinterconnection arrangements
Itisensured thatamajor supplier willmake publicly available either itsinterconnection
agreements, orareference interconnection offer.
2.5 Interconnection: dispute settlement
Aservice supplier requesting interconnection withamajor supplier willhaverecourse, either:
(a) atanytimeor
(b) afterareasonable period oftimewhich hasbeenmade publicly known
toadomestic regulatory authority toresolve disputes regarding appropriate terms, conditions
andratesforinterconnection within reasonable period oftime, totheextent thatthese havenotbeen
established previously.
3. Universal service
India retains therighttodefine thekindofuniversal service obligation itwishes tomaintain.
Such obligations arenotregarded asanti-competitive perse,since theywould beadministered ina
transparent andnon-discriminatory manner.
4. Public availability oflicensing criteria
Where alicence isrequired, thefollowing willbemade publicly available:
(a) Allthelicensing criteria and(b)theterms andconditions ofindividual licences.S/GBT/W/1/Add.24
Page8
5. Regulatory Authority
Thedecisions ofandtheprocedures usedbytheregulatory authority shallbeimpartial with
respect toallmarket participants.
6. Allocation anduseofscarce resources
Anyprocedures fortheallocation anduseofscarce resources, including frequencies, numbers
andrights ofway, willbecarried outinanobjective andtimely manner.