Govt looking at options to protect internet users: Pilot

Minister says Internet users will not be affected much from the 2G verdict.

The government today said it is looking at various options to protect the interest of internet subscribers following the Supreme Court’s latest order .

Customers will not be affected much from the 2G verdict as they have been given four months to cease operations which means that users have enough time to shift to another service providers.

”The government is looking at various ways in which it can help subscribers ensure that their interests are protected,” Minister of State for Communications Sachin Pilot told reporters at the sidelines of India Semiconductor Association (ISA) event.

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“The Supreme Court has given a time period of four months and from what I understand the subscriber base of companies that have been impacted by the 2G verdict is very minuscule.There is mobile number portability for them so there is not much on consumer per se,” he added.

However,the new licences bundled with 2G spectrum (4.4 Mhz) were issued by former the Telecom Minister A Raja in January,2008,for Rs 1,658 crore for a pan-India licence.Telecom operators have claimed that they have made huge

investments in acquiring licences and rolling out services.

Sistema-Shyam teleservice limited claims to have invested over 2.5billion (about Rs 12,500 crore) along with Telenor telecommunications company which also claimed to have invested over Rs 6,100 crore in equity and over Rs8,000 crore in corporate guarantees as a foreign investor,that trusts a licence stamped by the Indian government.These two companies have asserted that they would take legal measures to protect their investments on Indian operations.