TRAI slashes various call connecting charges

Aiming to boost adoption of wireline network or fixed line phone connections in the country, the telecom regulator did away with charges that a landline service provider has to pay to other service providers for transmitting its phone calls.

This move by the regulator may reduce tariffs.

"To promote investments and adoption of wireline network (so that they become an effective vehicle for delivery of high speed internet in the country), the Authority has decided to prescribe Fixed Termination Charges (FTC) as well as Mobile Termination Charge (MTC) for wireline to wireless calls as zero," the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said in a statement Monday.

The TRAI Monday issued the "Telecommunication Interconnection Usage Charges (Eleventh Amendment) Regulations" which prescribed revised domestic termination charge (MTC and fixed termination charges) and International Termination Charges.

"Mobile termination charge (MTC) for all calls originating from wireless network has been reduced from 20 paise per minute to 14 paise per minute," the statement said.

"Termination charge for international incoming calls has been increased to 53 paise per minute from existing 40 paise per minute," the statement said.

Domestic termination charges are the charges payable by a telecom service provider (TSP) whose subscriber originates the call, to the TSP in whose network the call terminates.

In the prevailing Calling Party Pays regime, the calling party subscriber pays for the call to his TSP who, in turn, pays termination charges to the called party's TSP to cover the interconnection/network usage costs.

The International Termination Charges are the charges payable by an International Long Distance Operator, which is carrying calls from outside the country to a TSP in the country in whose network the call terminates.

"We welcome the regulation to the extent that it reflects part of our aspiration. Our stand always has been Bill & Keep. The regulation has prescribed this principle for calls between wired and wireless networks but not on wireless to wireless networks," Arvind Bali, chief executive officer & director, Videocon Telecom said.

"Keeping a termination charge of 14 paise for calls between wireless networks is, indeed, not equitable and to some extent takes away the impact of its forward look significantly," he added.