(27 August 2008 2:00 pm)

NEW DELHI: The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal has ruled that the licence fee for direct-to-home (DTH) services should be based on adjusted gross revenue and not on the basis of gross revenue.

The case related to the DTH operator Tata Sky and the ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

Tdsat chairman Justice Arun Kumar, passing the order, said: “In spite of the all pervasive language used in defining gross revenue in a telecom licence, this tribunal has held that the concept of adjusted gross revenue will apply and income from activities of a licensee which are not part of the licensed activities cannot be included in gross income for purposes of calculating licence fee.”

The counsel of the petitioner Tata Sky urged that licence fee is chargeable only from revenue earned from licensed activity and cannot be charged on activities which are outside the licence.

The counsel of the respondent (MIB) had argued that the licence fee should be calculated on the basis of the entire gross revenue earned by the DTH operator, whether it arises out of licensed activity or from activities which are not related to the licence.