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Trai faces rejection from telecom operators for tariff plans
By siliconindia
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Monday, 06 December 2010, 19:48 IST |
1 Comments
New Delhi: Mobile phone companies are unhappy and dissatisfied with Telecom Regulatory Authority of India as Trai has proposed to frame new guidelines to make cellphone tariffs more transparent to subscibers. Trai which has always been in favour of the subscribers proposed that service providers need to inform their customers about their tariff plans more clearly and also all service providers need to have at least one standard tariff plan.
On hearing to the proposal, operators across the country reacted very aggressively and said that Trai should not interfere in their routine of tariff plans which is purely the customer's choice. Service providers also said that the regulator should not intervene in fixing a cap for premium SMSs.
"We are of the view that no further regulations or measures are required to enhance transparency," the Cellular Operators Association of India, the lobby representing GSM operators, said in its communication to Trai.
The Association of Unified Telecom Service Providers of India, representing CDMA players and dual technology operators, said: "The policy of tariff forbearance has worked well for the telecom market in India. It is suggested that regulated tariff should be resorted to neither in case of value-added services or any other product category and no limit should be imposed on any premium rate SMS services."
A mobile phone company can offer up to 25 different tariff plans in a circle and Trai said that it wanted to reduce this limit as customers were getting confused with too many tariff plans which made it very difficult for the customer to decide on one particular plan.
However, all operators have unanimously demanded that they be allowed to revise tariffs for "lifetime prepaid customers". It also pointed out that whenever prices of utilities like gas, water, and electricity are increased, it is effective for all consumers irrespective of when a subscriber started using the facility. Similarly, tariff rates for cellphone subscribers needs to be increased.
The Consumer Guidance Society has asked Trai to be more proactive. "Awareness and sensitisation of telecom subscribers should be given top priority by adopting a multi .pronged approach by giving a special thrust on rural and semi-literate subscribers as they are the worst affected owing to thrusting of unwanted services and tariff plans by the service providers by adopting unfair trade practices ," it said.
Voice, another consumer organization said that Trai should facilitate tariff comparison tool/software on its website wherein all applicable tariff plans are registered to ensure complete transparency. Trai had started working on the development of software in the year 2004. What is the status of that software and why is Trai not putting the up software on its website is still remains as the big question.
