Indian regulator Trai has delayed a plan to move to zero termination rates for mobile-to-mobile calls. The rates were planned to end in January but will now continue at the same level of 6 cents per minute until the end of 2020. The new deadline is 01 January 2021 to move to a 'bill and keep' system.
Trai said consultation with the industry found that the system needed further time for implementation. It warned already in September that the January 2020 date may not feasible as not enough traffic was IP-based yet.
The decision will prove a relief for Indian mobile operators Vodafone Idea and Bharti Airtel, which are already struggling with increased regulatory fees and intense price pressure. Reliance Jio, a net payer in the interconnection market, had lobbied for the rates to be scrapped.
Floor price for telecom services
Trai offered further hope to the sector with the opening of a consultation on tariffs. This follows calls from the mobile operators and their industry group COAI for the regulator to set a floor to telecom prices. Trai said it had received the operators' comments on tariffs and other issues from the Department of Telecom and a meeting was held with sector representatives to discuss the issues.
The regulator acknowledged the huge investment needed in networks to maintain capacity for the growing consumption of data services and ensure a high quality of service. Given the telecom sectors importance to the wider economy, "making sure that the telecom sector remains healthy and its orderly growth are equally important", Trai said in a statement.
Comments in the consultation can be submitted until 17 January 2020.
