MediaNama’s Recommendations To TRAI On Regulation Of MVAS

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has extended the date for submission of comments on its proposal to regulate mobile Value Added Services in the country, to the 23rd of August 2011. Please submit your comments to the TRAI at advbbpa@trai.gov.in or bbpa@trai.gov.in. Download the consultation paper here. They’re seeking answers to just 10 questions, so do write to them.

We’ve just completed our recommendations for submission (since the today was supposed to be the deadline). Click here to download our recommendations.

The executive summary is below, but we’ve explained our rationale for the recommendations, and specific responses to the 10 questions in the document. We’re open to feedback and suggestions for changes from you, our readers, so please feel free to write in. We’ll submit the final recommendations next week.

Executive Summary

1. MediaNama.com, the premier website for news and analysis of the digital ecosystem in India, welcomes the TRAI’s interest in ensuring the creation of a healthy and flourishing Mobile Value Added Services ecosystem, since this industry is an integral part of the nascent Digital ecosystem in the country, with the potential to impact the livelihood of hundreds of millions of individuals.

2. Mobile Value Added Services companies are currently operating as vendors to telecom operators, and the provisioning of their services and their fate is entirely in the control of the UASL/GSM/CDMA Access Service Providers. The MVAS business is already regulated by the authority through these Access Service Providers, and as such, we do not feel there is a need for further regulation of Mobile Value Added Services companies. Licensing is out of the question, since the digital content and services ecosystem is at a nascent stage, and licensing would act as a deterrent to entry of startups and smaller companies, which are often the most innovative.

3. The lines between MVAS, the Internet, Broadband VAS, DTH VAS, and services on connected devices (from tablets to cars and refrigerators) will blur in a ubiquitous environment, and any initiatives from the authority must take this into account: please view these services as being delivered over Internet Protocol, and not by platform company or access service provider. Digital Ubiquity is the future, and companies are Digital Service Providers, not just MVAS companies or Internet companies.

In that context, we would request the authority to initiate steps to break existing cartels, ease setting up of new businesses and unshackle these Digital Service Providers. This can be done by focusing on three changes:

a. Separation of ownership of identity of the Digital Service Provider from provisioning by Access Service Provider by creating a Common Short Code Registry, governed by a Common Short Code Registrar. At present, Digital Service Providers do not own the short codes they operate.
b. Separate billing for services/content from access charges, to bring transparency and standardization in consumer billing, and independence for the Digital Service Provider from Access Service Provider. We would recommend the removal of the existing revenue share mechanism as a means to ensure ubiquitous pricing mechanisms across digital platforms.
c. Enforce provisioning of independent mechanism for verification of billing, in order to address MIS issues, and bring billing for content and services in line with Mobile and Online Banking guidelines from the Reserve Bank of India. source

Wait Could Be Longer For Better 3G Services

The promise of high-end phone services by mobile firms through the much-hyped third generation (3G) telecom technology seems to have hit a roadblock as customers complain of frequent call drops and inconsistent internet speeds.

Experts say it could take between six and nine months for the service to stabilise.

Anuj Kumar, a Delhi-based banker, preferred switching back to the 2G network after he got exasperated by deficient service and inconsistent network coverage.
"Problems of call drops increased once I switched to 3G network. The voice quality also became very poor. I was left with no option but to switch back to the basic network. In my line of job uninterrupted calls are a must," Kumar told IANS.
Pratibha Srivastava, a sales manager with a leading private bank, had similar grievance.
"The connectivity on the 3G network is very, very poor, especially when a person is on the move. While the network disconnects frequently, the voice quality is also not good at all," said Srivastava.
Among the nine-million odd people who are estimated to have opted for 3G services in the country, there are many others like Kumar and Srivastava who are facing similar problems with their services across the country.
The private telecom operators who shelled out billions for buying spectrum claim that every new technology needed some time for maturing and becoming consistent. According to them it was a matter of time for consumers to experience the promised quality of 3G.
But Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Chairman J.S. Sarma does not agree with the claims of operators.
"It is high time customers start getting quality services for the money they are paying. You cannot go on saying that the problems are caused due to initial phase launch for so long. Such excuses can be accepted for a week or so," Sarma told IANS.
"We also need to look into what kind of investments these people are making," Sarma said and added that the telecom watchdog was looking into the matter and would come out with a quality check very soon.
Mahesh Uppal, a telecom analyst and director of consultancy ComFirst India, maintains the networks are having problems because they were moving customers from 2G to 3G.
"Even I am having problems with the 3G network. I feel that this is because the networks are in a transition phase. Therefore some hiccups are probably expected. These companies are moving into 3G in an incremental way," Uppal told IANS.
On the other hand the telecom operators say that every new technology takes time to find its feet and so it is with 3G.
"You have to realise integrating new technology with an older one takes time -- 3G is like going back to square one. Operators almost have to build an entire network," said Rajan Matthews, director general of Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI).
"The operators will take almost 6-9 months to straighten out things."
Though the telecom watchdog does not have a record on the specific number of customers who have switched from 2G to 3G so far, some telecom operators have revealed their data individually.
While the dominant player Airtel currently has over two million 3G subscribers, Idea Cellular has one million across the country. On the whole, there are 811 million mobile phone subscribers in the country.

Jaideep Ghosh, director, KPMG advisory services, too, agrees with operators. Since the technology was new to India and companies were still in the implementation phase, some technical glitches were bound to come up, he said.

"Some operators launched it six months back and some are still in the process across all the circles. So it will be too early to a conclude that the services are good or bad," Ghosh told IANS. "We should wait till all operators launch full-fledged services."

A few operators also blame scarcity of spectrum to be a hitch for the service providers not being able to perform efficiently.

"The larger problem is not 2G or 3G but spectrum allocation. If you do not have enough spectrum, how would you be able to provide better services?" queried a senior official with a leading telecom operator.

Tata DoCoMo was the first private player to launch the 3G services in the country -- in November 2010. Bharti Airtel, Reliance Communications and Idea Cellular are among the other operators who have launched their 3G services across the country.

Third generation telephony services are supposed to allow faster connectivity with some new applications such as Internet TV, video-on-demand, audio-video calls and high-speed data exchange.source

TRAI to float paper on mobile value services in April

Telecom regulator Trai today said it will bring out a consultation paper on mobile value-added services next month and will give its recommendations by the end of June. 

"Trai will come out with a consultation paper on the mobile value-added services (MVAS) in April and by the end of June, Trai wil give recommendations on value-added services," Trai Chairman J S Sarma said here in a FICCI event. 

In January this year, Trai had sought views of mobile operators on growth opportunities in value-added services, including policy framework and support infrastructure to usher in inclusive growth. 

Trai, in association with industry body Assocham, had also released a study paper, titled 'Mobile Value-Added Services (MVAS) - A vehicle to usher in inclusive growth and bridge the digital divide' on which Trai had sought comments from various service operators in February this year. 

Besides, Sarma said the recommendations on equipment manufacturing policy will be out by the end of this week. 

TRAI had in January this year floated a consultation paper on the telecom infrastructure policy, and which after taking in stakeholders' views, closed on February 21. 

The Authority had started the process for coming up with recommendations on encouraging telecom equipment manufacturing in the country from May 6, 2010. 

Sarma added that the recommendations on 'green telecom' will come out next week. The recommendations will deliberate on ways to check carbon emissions, promote energy-efficient technologies and manage e-waste in view of rapid growth in the sector.source

Govt can raise Rs 85,850 cr by selling 50% of defence airwaves

The telecom department (DoT) believes that the exchequer can get a minimum of 85,850 crore by selling just 50% of the airwaves the defence ministry vacates.

Its calculations are based on the assumption that about 20 MHz of second generation (2G) and an equal amount of third generation (3G) can be sold to mobile phone companies if the defence ministry was to free up these radio frequencies, according to an internal DoT note reviewed by ET. In total, the telecom ministry is seeking that the armed forces vacate up to 80 MHz of airwaves for commercial telephony.

The broadband wireless spectrum auctions in India last year delivered the government an unexpected bonanza of 38,543 crore ($8.25 billion), twice the amount predicted by analysts. The 3G and broadband spectrums jointly fetched 1,06,000 crore for the government against its estimates of 35,000 crore.

The telecom department's projections are part of its response to the defence ministry's latest threat that it will not release additional airwaves for commercial use. It also marks the first time that the department has put a value to the airwaves it is seeking from the armed forces.

Defence Minister A K Antony had recently told Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee that the telecom department had failed to meet all timelines on building an alternative communication network for the armed forces, and warned that it could result in the services stopping all vacation of airwaves.

This is because, as per the MoU between both ministries, the armed forces were to vacate 25 MHz for 3G and 20 MHz for 2G. This will happen in a phased manner and will be linked to the completion of the alternative network that the DoT is building for the defence forces. Besides, the telecom department was also slated to set up an exclusive defence band and defence interest zone for the armed forces to keep its part of the bargain.

While the armed forces have already freed up 15 MHz 3G spectrum, which was sold during last year's auctions, and also vacated 15 MHz 2G spectrum, which has been allocated to new operators, the remaining airwaves - 10 MHz spectrum in 3G (for two operators) and 5MHz in 2G - will be released only after the alternative optic fibre network being built by BSNL is completed.

Analysts say the telecom department may earn more than their estimates if 20 MHz each of 2G and 3G airwaves are auctioned.

38.3 Lakh Users opt for MNP

The number of subscribers opting for mobile number portability (MNP) has more than doubled in less than a month, data released by the telecom regulator revealed.

By February-end, around 38.33 lakh people had opted for MNP, a service that allows subscribers to switch service providers but retain their original cellphone number, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India said on Wednesday.

Till February 5, about 17.11 lakh subscribers had put in requests for changing their mobile service provider. However, the MNP impact has been limited, given that only a fraction of the 771 million mobile subscribers have so far opted for MNP.source

India to issue mobile TV regulations, spectrum audit

A regulatory framework for the introduction of mobile TV services by private operators in India is soon to be introduced by The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (I&B).

According to the Times of India, the Ministry is currently laying down the rules of engagement, with a draft mobile TV policy expected to be put before the cabinet within the next three months, the newspaper reports.

“In this context, the recommendations of TRAI [Telecommunications Regulatory Authority of India] have been examined and certain issues related to spectrum identification within the recommended band, the determination of service area licenses and the number of providers is under discussion,” said Raghu Menon, I&B secretary.

There is growing demand that some of India’s 700MHz frequency band, which is currently used for defence and broadcasting services, be auctioned for fourth generation (4G) mobile and wireless broadband applications.

The Controller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has, meanwhile, just announced is to undertake a comprehensive audit of the country’s total available spectrum, as well as its strategic and commercial use.

The move, reported by Business Standard, follows the country’s second generation (2G) spectrum auction debacle and a request last year by TRAI for a review of spectrum use, spectrum efficiency and solutions to current problems.

Communications Minister Kapil Sibal has also pledged that a blueprint on spectrum will be issued to operators by the government soon.source

June 2014 could be last date for cable TV digitalisation: TRAI

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India today said it will recommend June 2014 as the last date for completion of cable TV digitalisation in India to the government.

"We will send our roadmap to ministry of I&B (Information and Broadcasting) on Monday. We will ask for sunset date of June 2014 and preferably December 2013 (for cable TV digitalisation)," TRAI Chairman J S Sarma told reporters.

He, however, said the "sunset date" is prerogative of the ministry to decide.

TRAI in its recommendation to I&B ministry had set December 2013 as the date for completion of digitalisation of cable TV but the ministry had asked the sectoral regulator to set December 2015 as the last date.

"Ministry has agreed to most of our proposals. Sunset date is very minor issue. What is important is that ministry has agreed to complete digitalisation the way we have recommended," Sarma said.

As per TRAI recommendations, cable TV digitalisation is to be carried out in four phases. It had suggested that digitalisation of cable TV should be completed in the four metros by March 31, 2011; in all cities having population of over one million by December 31, 2011; in all urban areas by December 31, 2012 and in rest of India by December 2013. source

Pre-paid mobile services ban regressive

Terming the possibility of blanket ban on prepaid mobile services in Jammu and Kashmir as regressive, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday blamed the service providers for dragging their feet on verification. "It's the mobile service providers who are dragging their heels regarding verification and
the creating a problem for everyone else," Omar said on the micro-blogging site twitter.

Omar said imposing a blanket ban would be a regressive and counter-productive measure and ways have to be found to avoid it.

"I agree, a blanket ban is regressive and counter-productive. How to avoid it is to be worked out," he said.

Department of Telecommunication in a notification to mobile operations extended the permission for prepaid mobile connections in Jammu and Kashmir till March 31, 2011, giving rise to apprehensions that the service might be banned.

The notification was issued after discrepancies and shortcomings came to surface with regard to the verification of subscriber credentials in many cases.

Prepaid connections in the state were banned in 2009 as many SIM cards were recovered from the possession of militants and their sympathisers. However, the ban was lifted in January 2010 but strict guidelines for re-verification were notified to the telecom companies.

Vodafone says - Auctioning is the only way out of 2G mess

 

Vodafone Essar has told the Department of Telecom that auctioning 2G spectrum is the only right way forward to deal with the current mess. The mobile phone company said that recommendation by the telecom regulator to price spectrum based on calculations was incorrect and unjustifiable.

“Even though the one-man committee has criticised DoT for not implementing the 2003 decision of the Cabinet to move to auctioning of spectrum….even today the TRAI refuses to advice to move to an auction model and has come out with an arbitrary and flawed administrative way of charging for spectrum, designed to aggravate the discrimination between different operators,” the Vodafone letter to DoT Secretary said.

“We believe that there is only one way out of this mess viz. allocation of spectrum through transparent auctions. In respect of an administrative approach to address legacy issues, we believe that it at all it has to be applied, the only acceptable way forward will have to be a solution that is anchored around on uniformly applied principles — i.e. no distinctions between below and beyond 6.2 Mhz or between GSM and CDMA,” it said.

The TRAI has suggested that the Government should collect a one-time fee from operators with 2G spectrum at the rate of Rs 1,769 crore per Mhz of spectrum up to 6.2 Mhz and Rs 4,571 crore per Mhz for anything beyond that. This will cost the telecom firms about Rs 16,000 crore, according to Government estimates. Over the next few years, this could go up to Rs 40,000 crore, when the operators go for renewing their licences

Vodafone said that the TRAI had not granted a hearing. The company said that TRAI has no powers to impose retrospective charges for spectrum already allocated.

Last week, Reliance Communications had come out saying that the TRAI recommendations benefitted incumbent operators such as Vodafone as it had reduced the per Mhz price compared with the May 2010 proposals. In May last year, TRAI had said that 2G spectrum should be priced on a pro-rata based on 3G auction price.source

Old Telcos Likely To Challenge TRAI Fine

 Old telecom players — Bharti, Idea and Vodafone are considering a legal challenge against Trai’s recent recommendation to levy heavy spectrum charges on them. Trai has recommended this penalty for excess spectrum held by these companies.

The CAG, which had pegged the exchequer’s loss due to the 2G scam at Rs 1.76 lakh crore had also ascribed Rs 37,000 crore of the total to the excess spectrum held by these firms. “If the telecom department accepts the Trai recommendation, we will have no choice but to challenge them in the courts. The Trai recommendation are unjust and the charges they have announced are too high,” said a senior official from a telecom company.

In fact last year Bharti, Vodafone and Idea had challenged in TDSAT, Trai’s recommendation which had first talked about levying one time charge on these old telecos for the spectrum they hold beyond 6.2 Mhz based on the price discovered in then on-going 3G auction. These companies were forced to withdrew their petition because at that time telecom department had not accepted these recommendations and therefore the petition was not “maintainable.”

However, then Trai on its own had told the telecom department that it will study the matter in detail and will give recommendations separately on how to charge the spectrum beyond 6.2 Mhz. Last week, Trai finally came out with its report recommending that companies be asked to pay Rs 4,571 crore for every MHz of spectrum they hold on a pan-India basis over the contractual limit of 6.2 Mhz.

The government is expected to get additional revenue of Rs 16,000 crore if it accepts these recommendations, an analysis by Emkay Global Financial Services shows. BSNL, which holds the maximum amount of additional spectrum, will have to pay Rs 7,000 crore. BSNL has excess spectrum in 19 circles (61 Mhz), Bharti in 13 circles (32 Mhz), Vodafone in seven circles (19.6 Mhz), Idea in six circles (12.6 Mhz), MTNL in two circles (12.4 Mhz), BPL in one, Reliance in one, Aircel in one and Spice (now Idea) in one, according to CAG report.source.

Analysts are not recommending Airtel, Idea and Reliance.

Despite a sharp fall in telecom share prices, analysts are not recommending Bharti Airtel, Idea Cellular and Reliance Communications to investors. Following the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India's (TRAI) recommendation of a steep hike in 2G spectrum pricing, wherein telecom companies have to shell out additional Rs 16000 crore to the government, the telecom stock prices took a severe beating. The telecom stocks were one of the biggest losers on Thursday's trade.

According to analysts, no fresh buying is recommended at the current level. With an estimated price earning ratio (PE ratio) of 26.1x in FY11, Idea is recommended for sell. For Bharti Airtel, investors can hold on with an estimated PE of 20.4x, as suggested by Emkay Share.

“Telecom companies would not agree to the re-pricing proposal by TRAI. The proposal does not seem reasonable. Unless there is clarity on the re-pricing issue, no fresh entry is recommended. Market has already factored in the re-pricing issue. However, there could be further down falls based on the final outcome,” said an analyst on condition of anonymity.

TRAI has sent a final recommendation for re-pricing of 2G spectrum. This was a further intimation to recommendations made in May 2010 for re-pricing of spectrum above 6.2Mhz. Re-pricing is recommended for the remaining period (7 years) of spectrum at the price discovered in auction of 3G spectrum.

If implemented then it would erode profitability of Bharti and Idea with yearly outgo of Rs 580 crore and Rs 230 crore, respectively for 7 years. Cost for Reliance Communication is expected to remain miniscule at Rs 2 crore, according the Emkay research note.

Shares of Bharti and Idea ended at Rs 322.80, down 2.81%, Rs 65, down 1.89% respectively. RCom, however, was at Rs 96.25, up 1.69% at the close of day’s trading on NSE. The stock prices Bharti Airtel, RCom and Idea have corrected 15% on an average in last one month.source

Idea, RCom, Bharti, MTNL react to TRAI recos

 In a development that has huge financial implications for existing as well as new operators, telecom regulator TRAI has recommended fixing the price for 6.2 Mhz of pan-India start-up 2G spectrum at Rs 10,972.45 crore, more than six times the present cost of Rs 1,658 crore. 

In its recommendations to the Department of Telecom (DoT), Trai has also said that every Mhz of additional spectrum (on an all-India basis) beyond the contracted limit of 6.2 Mhz would cost a massive Rs 4,571.87 crore.

Most of the telecom firm, including Bharti, Vodafone , Idea and state-owned companies like BSNL and MTNL, hold extra spectrum beyond 6.2 Mhz and the new norms would put a huge financial burden on these telcos. 

Shares of Bharti Airtel were at Rs 333.65, up 0.11 per cent on the NSE . The scrip touched a low of Rs 324.65 and high of Rs 336.70 in trade so far. 

Idea Cellular was at Rs 66.55, down 1.85 per cent on the NSE. The scrip touched a low of Rs 65.40 and high of Rs 68 in trade so far. 

Reliance Communications was at Rs 108.35, down 1.90 per cent on the NSE. The scrip touched a low of Rs 105.15 and high of Rs 109.80 in trade so far. 

MTNL was also witness profit booking. The stock was at Rs 42.85, down 2.83 per cent on the NSE. The scrip touched a low of Rs 42 and high of Rs 43.60 in trade so far.source

TRAI wants GREEN TELECOMMUNICATIONS

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has today released a consultation paper on “Green Telecommunications”

1.Change in the world’s climate and the ensuing natural calamities like floods and typhoons are attributed to increased greenhouse gas emissions(GHG), mainly that of Carbon Dioxide, resulting from increased consumption of energy by manufacturing and service sectors. With more and more subscribers being added to the telecommunication networks, energy consumption and contribution of the telecom sector, to the global greenhouse gas emissions, is increasing. The total carbon footprint of the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) industry is about 860 million tonnes or 2% of global emissions and that of telecommunication network and devices about 0.7% of the global emissions.

2. There is a growing concern about GHG emissions in India. To cater to its large subscriber base, there are about 3,10,000 telecom towers of which about 70% are in rural areas. Many of these areas have deficient power supply and, according to some rports, about 40% of the power requirement of these towers is being met by grid electricity and 60% by diesel generators. According to industry estimates, the total consumption of diesel, for telecom tower equipment powering and cooling, is about 2 billion litres which produces about 5.3 million litres of CO2 annually. With the continued growth of the subscriber base these numbers are only going to increase. This is bringing into focus the need for energy efficient equipment and use of renewable sources of energy. In this context TRAI has issued a consultation paper today to collectively discuss, debate and take further action or recommend suitable measures.

3. The consultation paper takes up the following important issues for deliberations:

• Estimation of the carbon footprint of the telecom sector in India.
• Need and framework of carbon credit policy for the Indian telecom sector.
• Measures to reduce the telecom sector carbon footprint.
• Promoting use of energy efficient devices and renewable sources of energy.
• Standards, testing and certification products and services as green.
• e-waste management.

source

New Regulations on Indian SMS and Telemarketing Industry

Menace of Unsolicited Commercial Communications(UCC) is growing day by day and to curb this, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) issued a new regulationscalled “The Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations, 2010″ on 1st December 2010. These regulations are prescribed as protection of telecom users from the sending of UCC.

Effective 1st of Feb 2011 :

NO COMMERCIAL COMMUNICATION TO TELECOM USERS REGISTERED WITH NDNC/NCPR

How to register for National Consumer Preference Register (NCPR)

Telephone customers (landline and mobile) can register their telephone numbers with their telecom service provider for inclusion in the National Consumer Preference Register (NCPR) by dialing Toll Free or sending SMS “START 0″ to 1909.

For more details refer http://www.nccptrai.gov.in/nccpregistry

How to register for National Do Not Call Registery (NDNC)

For customers who would like to register/de-register their request for NDNC registry may dial 1909 or SMS to 1909 with keywords ‘START DND’ for registration and ‘STOP DND’ for de-registration

For more details refer http://ndncregistry.gov.in/ndncregistry/index.jsp

Operators may miss unsolicited calls deadline

Mobile subscribers looking for respite from unsolicited calls may have to wait for some more time as operators are facing technical difficulties in implementing system mandated by TRAI to check pesky calls.

With telemarketers mandated to use '700' series number, the originating operator now has to verify that the dialled number is not a part of the 'Do Not Call Registry' (filtering) and only after the verification is completed that the call can go through. The system currently analyses only the dialled number and not originating number (from where the call is made). "Operators have highlighted certain technical issues in implementing the 'filtering' requirements mandated by TRAI for originating operators," GSM operators lobby COAI Director General Rajan S Mathew told PTI. Asked if the operators would be able to meet the January 31 deadline, Mathew did not give a firm reply but said, "All operators are presently working to implement this." Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had set a deadline of January 1, 2011 for operators to implement the guidelines on unsolicited telemarketing calls and SMSs. This was, however, extended to January 31. "Operators had requested until March 31, principally to implement the filtering requirement. However, TRAI did not grant this request but provided an extension only until January 31 for implementation of this particular feature," he said. As per the guidelines, telemarketers will be issued a different set of numbers starting with '700', which will help subscribers identify commercial calls and decide whether to accept or reject such calls. Unlike the previous guidelines, which only provided for a 'Do Not Call' Registry, the new regulations give customers different options to list under the 'fully blocked' category (Do Not Call Registry) or the 'partially blocked' category, under which he/she will only receive SMSes in the categories chosen by him/her. "In order to do filtering, operators will now have to install new hardware and software to perform filtering and will also have to programme their mobile switches to facilitate integration of the new hardware and software installed to do filtering," Mathew said. Given the number of operators involved and the number of circles and mobile switches involved, this is a complex and large task, Mathew added."There are only one or two small manufacturers of filtering hardware and software and these manufacturers are finding it difficult to have their equipment handle the larger volume of calls experienced on the networks in India," he said. Operators had to get their networks ready for MNP during this same time period for national roll out, which has also posed a problem, he said.source

Mobile Tariffs Likely to ShootUp

In a field agitate in contract that haw attain ambulatory medium services costly, Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal today said henceforth every operators would impact to clear mart toll for initial as substantially added spectrum.
Delinking spectrum from the licences in the consequence of the 2G cheat , Sibal said, “In future, the spectrum module not be bundled with licence. The authorise to be issued to medium operators module be in the nature of ‘Unified Licence’ and the authorise bearer module be liberated to substance some of the varied medium services.
“In the event, the authorise bearer would same to substance wireless services, it module impact to obtain spectrum finished a mart unvoluntary process,” he told a advise conference.
As of today the medium operators were effort spectrum bundled with the medium licenses which had sealed the artefact for baritone tariff program and pure toll struggle among the assist providers.
But now, the newborn operators, if their licences are held valid, would impact to clear a mart toll for the added 1.8 Mhz of 2G spectrum and this haw attain their dealings financially unviable.
For the older operators same Bharti, Vodafone and Idea, who are retentive spectrum beyond 6.2 Mhz, they would impact to clear mart unvoluntary toll for the player airwaves.
These changes would be implemented with unmediated effect, Sibal said.
One of the newborn operators, when contacted, said that the newborn program has presented a field plus to the older operators by allowing them to keep 6.2 Mhz of spectrum patch the newborn operators would be at expiration as they impact to clear mart toll for the added 1.8 Mhz spectrum.
At a instance when the newborn operators are struggling to intend newborn subscribers, added outlay on them would impact them hard.
“We requirement to earnestly study the acceptation of an sell impact for portion and pricing of spectrum beyond 6.2 Mhz patch ensuring that there is competent rivalry in the sell process,” Sibal told reporters here. source

Way2Sms Will No Longer Allow Your Number As Sender

Until now, you are allowed to send SMS with your Number as Sender ID on Way2Sms. But the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recently issued new regulations on the SMS industry in India. With these new rules, you will no longer send SMSs with your number as sender. These rules will be followed by every SMS service provider from 1st Feb 2011.
Every SMS service provider has to adhere to the new TRAI NCPR (National Consumer Preference Register (NCPR)) guidelines. Way2Sms is the one of the first and reputed free SMS service provider and they also have to follow these rules strictly and have decided that they will no longer allow any user to send SMS with their number as Sender ID.

As part of implementing new TRAI guidelines, way2sms has worked tirelessly to further upgrade their internal processes, technology, and team to ensure 100% compliance of the new regulations. In order to adhere to TRAI guidelines way2sms is also changing its messaging policies from 1st of Feb. 2011 onwards.
New Policies

• According to the New TRAI guidelines, No SMS provider is allowed to deliver SMSs to NDNC/NCPR listed mobile numbers. So, Starting from Feb 1st 2011 way2sms does not deliver SMSs to NDNC//NCPR Listed mobile numbers.
• TRAI New guidelines does not allow any service provider to use Numeric mobile number as the sender. So, Starting from Feb 1st, way2sms is changing its Message structure.

So all messages sent via way2sms will be sent as " TD- XXXXX" as the  sender. No Longer you can use your mobile number as sender. Your Mobile number and a 8 letter Nick name will be inserted in your   message by default. However you can continue to enjoy 140characters  message same as before.
All free SMS service provider will have to follow these new rules otherwise TRAI has to take strict steps against service provider. So you can take advantage this month only or try to find another service provider who dares enough to stand against TRAI .
Meanwhile, if you want to send free SMS without any registration, check out this post 3 ways of sending free SMS without registration.source

TRAI after the SPAM SMSs now

Starting Feb 1st (2011), telecom operators will have to comply to new TRAI guidelines on SMS spam and while the deed is noble, it will create more confusion for consumers.

First, the fineprint.

- From Feb 1, there will only be 2 categories of messages- Transactional (Bank alerts, Railway & Airline alerts, Messages to parents from school etc) and Non transactional or Promotional (all remaining categories except mentioned earlier – like courier alerts, spam, marketing offers, news alerts, subscribed SMS services, intra company or group messages and so on)

- Only transactional messages will have full branded sender id (like TA-HDFCBANK) for others, there will be a 6 digit code (like TA-n12345 or TA-nABCDE), where n is the category of the message and further 5 digits are the unique code given by the telecom operator to each aggregator.

- All non-transactional messages will be compulsorily passed through the NDNC filter.(This means, you will NOT receive the subscribed/ paid news alert or even your courier status message if you are registered with DND) and will be allowed only during 9am to 9pm.

As a consumer, you will now have to open each and every non-transactional message to check on the content. So far, you could easily delete a message just by checking the names, but now ensure that you open each and every sms to see if there is something important.

Moreover, does this mean that you need to unsubscribe from DND to get other relevant & important messages (that TRAI considers non-transactional)?.

What’s your take? What will be the impact of this on bulk sms services? Operators have started testing this regulation – so chances of the implementation being delayed is minimal.source

Affordable Financial Services on Mobile

India's telecom regulator Trai wants to fix tariffs for banking and other financial services on mobile phones to ensure that this facility is affordable to the masses.

At present, market forces determine telecom tariffs in India, with very little intervention from Trai or the government. The regulator is of the opinion that 'the proposed framework for delivery of basic financial services is intended to promote financial inclusion, including transfer of funds under various government schemes and programmes targeted to poor people', which calls for regulating tariffs for such services.

"Tariff regulation would be crucial if adoption of mobile banking is to be encouraged especially among the unbanked segments of the population. In such a situation cost effectiveness of delivery of basic financial services through mobile phones becomes an important consideration. Every effort should be made to keep the provisioning of the services affordable for the target beneficiaries," the regulator said when launching a consultation process to gauge the industry's reaction to this proposal.

The consultation process will also enable the regulator to fianlise its recommendations on other policy issues that are vital for framing guidelines for mobile banking services.

Trai has also sought the industry's response on a recent government panel report, which had said that customers wanting to operate their accounts through cellphones must shell out a 2% commission to the bank.

The inter-ministerial group constituted to frame rules for banking services on cellular handsets had also said that that banks in turn must pay the telco a minimum of 2.25 per transaction or 1.4% of the total amount, while adding that the commission be gradually reduced to 1% over the 5 years. If the telco were to set up mini ATMs, and if the transactions were to happen through these, then banks must pay the mobile phone company a minimum of 3 per transaction or 2.25% of the amount, the report had added.

Earlier this month, the country's two leading cellphone companies announced separate tie-ups with the largest banks here to provide financial services on handsets. Bharti Airtel , the country's largest mobile phone company by both customers and revenues had formed a 49:51 joint venture with State Bank of India to provide mobile-banking and other financial services, and Vodafone Essar Ltd , majority owned by UK's Vodafone, unveiled a similar deal, by entering into a JV with ICICI Bank , India's largest private sector bank.

Other mobile service providers are also slated to announce similar tie-ups with banks over the next couple of months.

SBI-Airtel is targeting to get two million such accounts on a yearly basis which would be easily scaled up to five million accounts a year owing to the bank's wide reach and Airtel's 1.5 million touch points, Bhatt added. Similarly, ICICI said it plans to take use the strength of Vodafone, which also has over 1.5 million retail points, for acquiring customers and servicing them.

India has over 700 million mobile connections with a penetration of more than 60%. In comparison, a significant majority of the country's population does not have access to banking services. Latest estimates by the Central Bank say that only 50,000 of the 600,000 villages in the country have access to finance.
source

216 crore to GOVT from penalties on TELCOS

The government has collected nearly Rs 216 crore in penalties from new telecom service providers for not rolling out their networks within the stipulated timeframe after getting licence and spectrum.

"We have received Rs 215.6 crore as liquidated damages from the new service providers for missing out roll-out obligations out of total Rs 342.6 crore demand till January 21," Telecom Secretary R Chandrasehkar told PTI.

The DoT had issued 119 notices to new telecom operators for missing their network roll-out obligations last month and imposed hefty penalties on them.

He further added, "The companies who had moved to TDSAT are also expected to pay this (liquidated damages) as soon as possible."

As per sectoral regulator Trai's guidelines, in case showcause notices were issued for cancellation of licences, the operators would be given 60 days time to respond to the notices before a final decision is taken.

In the case of penalties imposed for for missing roll-out obligations, the operators were supposed to make payment within 15 days of the notice.

As per the conditions of the licences, the licencees were required to roll-out their services in 90 per cent of service areas in metros and 10 per cent in district headquarters within 12 months (52 weeks) from the date of award of licences.

Earlier, telecom tribunal TDSAT had asked Uninor and Videocon Telecom to pay a part of the penalty imposed on them for missing their roll-out obligations.

TDSAT's interim order followed a plea from Videocon challenging the demand notice issued by the DoT, which sought liquidated damages (LD) over the telecom firm's failure to roll out services within the stipulated period of one year after the grant of a licence.

The DoT had issued the notices to Videocon on January 1, demanding LD for four circles.

In a similar case, TDSAT had directed Uninor to pay 60 per cent of the penalty amount demanded by the DoT over the service provider's failure to roll-out services in 18 circles.

As per the conditions of the Unified Access Service Licence (UASL), the telcos are required to roll-out their networks within one year from the date of allocation of spectrum.

According to the agreement, in case new licencees fail to roll-out services within the stipulated period, the DoT is entitled to impose LD on the operators, or even cancel their licences.source