In the ongoing tussle over spectrum allocation, the Code-Division Multiple Access-based players like Reliance and Tatas on Tuesday said allocation of 1900 mhz band was crucial for expansion and to remain competitive with GSM-based operations.

CDMA development group, a global body promoting the growth of CDMA-based mobile operations said "CDMA operators in India do not have enough spectrum to support future growth and have requested the 1900 MHz band to deploy International Mobile Telecommunications- 2000 services.

"This allocation is consistent with International Telecommunication Union recommendations and will not inhibit other IMT-2000 technologies to be deployed in India", James S Person, director, Asia Pacific, CDG, said here.

GSA opposes TRAI's mixed band proposal

GSM operators say if the 1900 MHz band is allocated to CDMA players, it would block their migration to 3G services.

Countering GSM operators' contention that ITU had in 1992 recommended 1900 MHz band for 3G service and that this was the only globally harmonized band for IMT 2000 3G networks, he said ITU in 2000 designated four different bands for IMT-2000 - 806-960 Mhz, 1710-2025 Mhz, 2110-2200 Mhz and 2500-2690 Mhz and did not put priority on any of these bands.

He also said there is no mention of a 'core band'. It is upto individual countries to determine their plans within these guidelines and ITU has recommended flexibility to the administration to use any of the bands for 3G/ IMT 200.

These recommendations do not prelude their use for any other services to which these bands are allocated, Person said.

More CDMA operators in India are introducing the most advanced 3G technologies available today to provide high-quality voice and advanced data services to the consumer and they should have equal spectrum allocation as per international standards.

Spectrum flexibility and technology-neutrality are key to facilitating the deployment of 3G services, Person said.

B B Anand, president, regulatory affairs, Reliance Infocomm, said GSM operators continue to harp on the ITU recommendations of 1992, whereas these have been revised and changed several times since.

"CDMA operators have only half of the spectrum allocated to GSM carriers, which is not enough to support the minimum capacity required over the next two years for voice services only," Anand said adding "We need additional spectrum at 1900 MHz, for which CDMA2000 equipment and handsets are readily available".

"The allocation of 1900 MHz to CDMA operators will provide a level playing field for all operators in India to introduce 3G services," said Ashok Sud, Chief of Regulatory Affairs at Tata Teleservices.

There is no technical reason that the 1900 MHz allocation will prevent deployment of WCDMA (GSM's migration to 3G) in India, as the opposition claims.

WCDMA and CDMA 2000 are being deployed in the same bands, as the examples in the US and Japan show. Also, GSM operators can migrate their existing networks in 900 MHz and 1800 MHz bands to WCDMA.

Today, CDMA operators have only 5 MHz each in 800 MHz band and this is insufficient to meet the growing needs of customers for voice and data services, they said.