Tata Tele quits 'autocratic' COAI

Other new entrants undecided whether to follow or not.

Tata Teleservices Ltd (TTSL) today resigned its membership of the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), alleging the body functioned in an “undemocratic”, “autocratic”, “non-transparent” and even “unethical” manner, by allegedly representing the views of only a few established companies.

In a strongly-worded two-page letter to COAI Director General Rajan Mathews, TTSL has said COAI “is not working in the universal interest of all its members” and on many key issues such as reduction of interconnect charges and the national numbering plan, the association “pursued the interests of only older players”.

Due to which, it has said, “TTSL and some of the new members of COAI, with great pain and reluctance, had to approach the regulator and licensor in many forums that COAI was not taking all its members’ views in consideration and therefore its views should be disregarded”. TTSL’s move might open the doors for other new operators, who have had reservations on the stance taken by incumbent GSM operators, to take a similar plunge.

Talks have been on to set up an alternative association of some of the newer entrants to the sector. Reliance Telecom, earlier a member of COAI, quit the exclusive GSM association late last year. The battle between COAI members came to a head when the association suspended the voting rights of three members – TTSL, Loop Telecom and Etilasat DB — for non-payment of some dues.

Sources among the new GSM operators say they were keeping a close watch. “If TTSL takes the first moves to form an alternative association, we could consider such a move. At the moment, we are waiting and watching”. Other say that they would prefer to continue a dialogue with COAI members. However, COAI’s Mathews said the attack was unwarranted. “The vicious attack by TTSL is uncalled for, as we run a very transparent organisation.The voting system, based on revenue, was well known to TTSL and is based on CII and Ficci structures. We are mystified by their resignation, as the problem lies elsewhere — TTSL has chosen two technologies, CDMA and GSM, and is a member of two associations which have conflicting interests. Unlike others like Reliance, which choose to go only with AUSPI (the rival Association of Unified Service Providers of India) and Bharti only with COAI, they were in both the associations.”

Mathews added the issue of legal dues was just a “smokescreen” to withdraw from the association and COAI had been in discussions with TTSL for the last three months to resolve the issue. Adding: “We do not file cases against our own members who have interest in GSM; however, we will have issues against CDMA (operators) and would have legal cases against them. TTSL, being in both, might be supporting those issues as a CDMA operator. What can we do about that, as they are in both places?”