Communication is not shared – Newspaper Kommersant No. 164 (7365) dated 09/07/2022

RSPP has criticized the draft law of the head of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy Alexander Khinshtein on the joint use of communications infrastructure by operators, since this may deprive companies of competitive advantages. The initiative, actively supported by the Ministry of Digital Development, is designed to solve the problem of the shortage of telecommunications equipment, including keeping the deadlines for the implementation of specialized national programs. Officials assume that operators will share capacity on a commercial basis, but it will not be easy to agree on a price, market participants admit.

“Kommersant” got acquainted with the letters of the President of the RSPP Alexander Shokhin to the Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, IT and Communications Alexander Khinshtein and the head of the Ministry of Digital Development Maksut Shadayev, sent on August 30 and September 5. They are accompanied by the conclusion of the commission of the RSPP on communications and IT that the obligation of telecom operators to provide their infrastructure to competitors threatens the quality of services.

Such a requirement is introduced by a bill submitted on July 7 for consideration by the State Duma committee on information policy. According to the document, an operator providing services in the territory of at least two-thirds of the settlement (donor) must provide the frequency spectrum and communication facilities to another operator licensed to provide services in the subject where the settlement (recipient) is located. The list of settlements will be formed by the Ministry of Digital Development. Operators are required to conclude an agreement within 90 days from the date of applying to the donor. The measure will ensure “continuous provision of communication services to subscribers and users, including government agencies and socially significant facilities.”

The adoption of the bill will have a negative impact on competition in the communication services market, reduce the interest of operators to be the first to enter a certain territory, which will lead to a slowdown in infrastructure development, the RSPP believes. Also, the measure may reduce the volume of investment programs and deprive operators with the most developed networks of advantages.

At the same time, the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs clarifies that a lack of technical capabilities may become an obstacle to fulfilling the requirements: for example, Huawei equipment does not allow for the simultaneous use of the frequency spectrum in 2G technology for more than three operators. In addition, operators may not have a license for the vendor’s software, and the purchase of equipment and software in the “current environment is difficult.”

The Ministry of Digital Transformation told Kommersant that the letter had not yet been received, noting that the bill provides that in small settlements, including along roads and in areas with low population concentration, the dominant operator will provide subscribers of other companies with communications and Internet: “Now in such territories it is economically inexpedient for all operators to install base stations due to low payback”. It is planned to adopt by-laws on the document by the end of 2022, and implement it in 2023, the ministry said.

As the interlocutor of Kommersant, who is familiar with the development of the initiative, explained, it is aimed at solving the problem of equipment shortages against the background of foreign vendors leaving the market. The deficit has already begun to affect national programs in the field of digitalization. Thus, plans to equip remote villages with 4G communications have been threatened due to the lack of hundreds of base stations (see Kommersant of September 5). It is the sharing of communication networks and base stations, according to the Ministry of Digital Development, that will solve the problems of the national program.

Vimpelcom and MegaFon specified that the arguments of the RSPP are supported by the industry. Rostelecom and MTS declined to comment. Tele2 did not answer “Kommersant”. A Kommersant source in one of the major telecom operators shares the fears of the RSPP. According to him, it is assumed that the contract with the donor operator will be commercial, but the capacity of the network may not be enough for the second and subsequent operators. As a rule, the market in the regions is already occupied, and the donor must share the subscriber base, which is “not very attractive,” Kommersant’s interlocutor added. Another Kommersant source adds that this is why it will be difficult for operators to agree on the cost of sharing stations.

Julia Silence