India, Russia and the UK

Unlike the previous chapter, this one covers three countries where developments warrant a somewhat lengthier analysis than for other countries. In all three cases, the underlying reason is the complexity involved in the licensing process. In the case of India, this is inherent in the nature of licensing all mobile networks, and hence much of the discussion relates to the problems—as yet not fully resolved—in completing the licensing of both 2G and 3G networks. Like India, Russia is divided up into regions—known as ‘circles’ in India—although three incumbents are effectively national in coverage. However, as in India, the government is prone to interfere and the situation has become highly volatile, with several parties other than the incumbents attempting to play a significant role in the development of LTE. In the case of the UK, it is primarily the regulator that has become mired in controversy and the resultant backlash from various parties has resulted in delays that have significantly held back the roll-out of LTE. There are interesting lessons to be gleaned from all three cases about the respective roles of free markets, governments and regulators. Whether other countries are learning them is another matter.