The government plans to lower the frequency usage fee for telecoms by adjusting frequency band coefficients to encourage the development of 5G service, the National Communications Commission (NCC) announced.
NCC spokesman Wong Po-tsung (翁柏宗) said the commission approved the proposed adjustment to the frequency usage fees at a meeting on Wednesday last week.
The revised coefficients must be made available to the public for two months before they take effect, he added.
Photo: Lo Chien-yi, Taipei Times
During the review period, members of the public are encouraged to comment on the standards, Wong said, adding that the commission would take any comments into consideration before finalizing the changes.
The adjustment was primarily proposed because the nation is to auction off bandwidth to be used for 5G so that the service can be developed by 2020, Wong said.
The commission also adjusted frequency band coefficients, as 5G service uses mostly high-frequency bandwidths, which have different physical properties and coverage ranges from lower-frequency spectrums.
Previously divided into three frequency bands for calculating usages fees, the proposal would divide the spectrum into four frequency bands: below 1GHz, 1GHz to 3GHz, 3GHz to 6GHz and 6GHz and above, with coefficients of 1, 0.75, 0.18 and 0.004 respectively.
The coefficient enables frequency usage fees to be adjusted according to the usability of the the license holder’s frequency band, the commission said.
Revenue from usage fees has gradually increased over the past few years: NT$2.42 billion (US$78.74 million) in 2015, NT$2.76 billion in 2016, NT$3.36 billion last year and NT$3.56 billion this year, NCC statistics showed.
The adjustment is expected to save telecoms an estimated NT$500 million following the fee adjustment, Wong said.
The commission has also adjusted the coverage coefficient to encourage telecoms to build infrastructure in rural areas, because signal coverage in some of the nation’s remote areas and along some of its transportation routes remains low.
The adjusted coefficient would also reduce frequency usage fees for telecoms working to improve signal reception in the tunnels along the North Link and the South Link rail lines, Wong said.
Taiwan is to have nine extended holidays next year, led by a nine-day Lunar New Year break, the Cabinet announced yesterday. The nine-day Lunar New Year holiday next year matches the length of this year’s holiday, which featured six extended holidays. The increase in extended holidays is due to the Act on the Implementation of Commemorative and Festival Holidays (紀念日及節日實施條例), which was passed early last month with support from the opposition Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party. Under the new act, the day before Lunar New Year’s Eve is also a national holiday, and Labor Day would no longer be limited
Costa Rica sent a group of intelligence officials to Taiwan for a short-term training program, the first time the Central American country has done so since the countries ended official diplomatic relations in 2007, a Costa Rican media outlet reported last week. Five officials from the Costa Rican Directorate of Intelligence and Security last month spent 23 days in Taipei undergoing a series of training sessions focused on national security, La Nacion reported on Friday, quoting unnamed sources. The Costa Rican government has not confirmed the report. The Chinese embassy in Costa Rica protested the news, saying in a statement issued the same
Taiwan is to extend its visa-waiver program for Philippine passport holders for another year, starting on Aug. 1, Minister of Foreign Affairs Lin Chia-lung (林佳龍) said on Friday. Lin made the announcement during a reception in Taipei marking the 127th anniversary of Philippine independence and the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (MECO) in Taiwan, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The decision reflected Taiwan’s commitment to deepening exchanges with the Philippines, the statement cited Lin as saying, adding that it was a key partner under the New Southbound Policy launched in 2016. Lin also expressed hope
Temperatures in New Taipei City’s Sindian District (新店) climbed past 37°C yesterday, as the Central Weather Administration (CWA) issued heat alerts for 16 municipalities, warning the public of intense heat expected across Taiwan. The hottest location in Taiwan was in Sindian, where the mercury reached 37.5°C at about 2pm, according to CWA data. Taipei’s Shilin District (士林) recorded a temperature of 37.4°C at noon, Taitung County’s Jinfeng Township (金峰) at 12:50 pm logged a temperature of 37.4°C and Miaoli County’s Toufen Township (頭份) reached 36.7°C at 11:40am, the CWA said. The weather agency yesterday issued a yellow level information notice for Taipei, New
RSS