Per-second tariff to be compulsory: Trai

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) is planning to make the one-second pulse a mandatory tariff option for all operators, a move that will benefit consumers by potentially reducing call charges and adding transparency to their tariff plans.

"We may ask all operators to consider the per-second pulse as a mandatory tariff option along with their other tariff plans," Trai Chairman J S Sarma told reporters on the sidelines of the International Telecommunication Union Conference in Geneva, Press Trust of India reported.

The move will benefit consumers because it will reduce the "wastage" per call, which some telecom companies put at about 18 per cent. Currently, most telecom companies fix the minimum pulse rate at 60 seconds. "On average, consumers do not use 15 to 20 seconds of a call but pay for it because of the one-minute pulse rate. A per-second pulse would mean they would save, " explained Romal Shetty, telecom analyst with consultancy firm KPMG. Other analysts said the change would make tariffs transparent since consumers will pay only for as many seconds as they use.

Sarma said TRAI will soon come out with a consultation paper on the subject. "Even in the per-second tariff plan, operators must ensure that all the riders and caveats are clearly brought out," he added.

Some telecom companies have already launched the one-second pulse rate plan. In Tata DoCoMo's case, for instance, the move has helped the company build a subscriber base of around 7 million since it launched GSM mobile services three months ago. The company offers one second for one paisa.

Last week, state-run Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd introduced the one paise per second pulse (for local calls) and two paise per second pulse (for national long-distance calls) in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa.

Telecom operators, especially incumbents, may see average revenue per user (ARPU) and revenues falling as a result of this new stipulation.

"The impact might be significant to operators since revenues might fall, but they could also make it up by increasing the per second tariff," said telecom expert Mahesh Uppal.