TelecomLive April 2024

[ News Bytes ] 56 TelecomLIVE April 2024 www.telecomlive.com the requirement to obtain aWOL for unified license, N L D , I L D , V S A T , GMPCS, M2M service etc have been removed with immediate effect. “However, for entities who intend to establish or operate a transmitting station and have not been granted any license under section 4 of Indian Tele- graph Act, 1885, WOL w i l l c o n t i n u e t o b e required as per existing procedure,” DoT said. The DoT, however, said the licensee, who obtains license under section 4 of Indian Tele- graph Act, 1885, shall still be required frequency assignment from the WPC wing of the DoT permitting use of appro- priate frequencies and parameters for the estab- lishment, maintenance or operation of transmitting stations. CCI denies interim order restricting Google from charging its service fee Competition Commis- sion of India (CCI) has declined an interim relief order that would restrain Goog l e f rom l evy i ng service fees on app devel- opers until a final deci- sion is made by the regu- lator. The regulator in its order said that while there might be concerns about the fairness of Google's fee structure, it was essential to recognise the costs and responsibil- i t i es assoc i ated wi th maintaining and operat- ing app stores. The plea was submit- ted by People Interactive India, which has brands such as Shaadi.com, and S a n g a m . c o m , a n d Mebigo Labs Pvt Ltd that owns the brand Kuku FM along with the Indian Broadcasting and Digital Foundation (IBDF) and the Indian Digital Media Indus t ry Foundat ion (IDMIF). Earlier, CCI ordered a probe into Google's Play Store billing policy for imposing an 'unfair ser- vice fee' on app develop- ers, while listening to pleas by some Indian companies. In its 21-page o r d e r , t h e C C I h a d observed that such impo- sition by Google resulted in app developers having f e w e r r e s o u r c e s t o enhance or develop their app offerings, thereby constraining the growth of the app market. The contention between app owners andGoogle is over a service fee of 11-26 pc t h a t t h e t e c h g i a n t charges fromselect devel- opers who use the in-app billing services. Apple reaches $490 mn settlement over CEO Cook's China sales comments Apple has reached a $490 mn settlement to resolve a class-action lawsuit that alleged Chief Exe cu t i v e T im Cook defrauded shareholders by concealing falling demand for iPhones in China. A preliminary settlement was filed with the US. District Court in Oakland, California, and r e q u i r e s a j u d g e ' s approval. The lawsuit stemmed from Cook's comment on a November 1, 2018, analyst call that although Apple faced sales pres- sure in markets such as Brazil, India, Russia and Turkey, where currencies Vaishnaw releases spectrum regulatory sandbox policy Union telecom and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has released the guidelines for spectrum regulatory sandbox and wireless test zones to streamline wireless equipment testing procedures and foster innovation and ease of access. Wireless test zones have been cate- gorised to allow experimentation in both unassigned and assigned spectrumbands. “Under the regulatory sandbox, we will be giving very easy portal-based permissions,” Mr Vaishnaw said. “For example, a college in Nagpur has designed a new kind of radio, or equipment that requires a spec- trum to be used for testing. Instead of coming to the Department of Telecommunications for a license, we can create a simple construct in which the college sim- ply logs in to a portal. And everything that needs to be done is done. By paying a token amount of Rs 1,000, they get the permission to test the equipment,” he said. Applicants can easily apply through the centralised Saral Sanchar Portal whichwill expedite permissions. DoT abolishes wireless operating license DoT has abolished wireless operating licenses for establishing and maintaining telecommunications, paving the way for a simplified regulatory regime and would also enable faster rollout of networks and increasemobile broadband penetration in the country. As per a notification issued by DoT dated March 11,