DoT Amends Licenses to Allow M2M Communication

On Monday, the Department of Telecom has amended the telecom license norms to enable M2M communication, an important use case of 5G.

DoT to Enable M2M Communication

PTI reported that while the DoT had issued guidelines for M2M communication back in May 2018, the same was not a part of the telecom licensing norms.

While the DoT had issued M2M guidelines in May 2018, the clause related to their provisioning was not part of the telecom licenses. However, according to a circular, the telecom department has incorporated the same with a pan-India permit as well. However, that pan-India permit has been limited to circle and district levels.

The DoT has added that the telcos interested in providing M2M services across India will have to submit an entry fee of ₹30 lakh, a PBG of ₹40 lakh. Also, the telcos have to submit an FBG worth ₹2 lakh, taking the total payment to ₹72 lakh.

For the circle level, however, the payments reduce significantly. The entry fees reduce to ₹2 lakh, the PBG to ₹2 lakh, and the FBG reduces to ₹20,000. Furthermore, the fees further reduce at the district level; the entry fees become ₹20,000, the PBG becomes ₹10,000, and the FBG becomes ₹2,000. The DoT, notably, has made the amendment across all telecom licenses.

Why is this move Important?

One of the most talked-about use cases of 5G remains Industry 4.0 applications. Almost all of the Industry 4.0 applications, such as smart manufacturing, include hundreds, if not thousands, of devices, connected over a single high-speed, high-capacity 5G network. Therefore, without a permit, no telco can provide M2M communications. With this move, the DoT has enabled telcos to properly monetize 5G networks and equipment.