Cellular Firms Harden Stand Over Tariff Row
Cellular operators may not pay up the next instalment of licence fees if their standoff with department of telecommunications over the high fixed-to-cellular charges continues. This proposal was mooted at a meeting of the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) on Thursday.
A decision on the matter is expected to be taken after a Delhi high court hearing on Monday of the case between COAI and DoT. Cellular operators say they will be unable to pay the licence fees because their revenue projections have gone awry.
However, sources expressed apprehensions on whether all the 14 cellular companies in the circles would agree to the proposal. The move could fizzle out if even one operator says no, a telecom source said.
If all the companies agree to it, the risks are minimal. However, after spending hundreds of crores in setting up projects, companies will think twice before they take the plunge. This is too big a decision, he said.
The extreme step was being contemplated after company representatives felt that their business plans would not be feasible after the recent DoT directive hiking fixed-to-mobile call tariffs from Rs 1.25 per three-minute call to some Rs 28.