Internet Telephony

Telecom Secretary Anshu Prakash indicated how telecom services had kept it all going during the Covid-19 crisis

The new amendment allows only authorised licenced holder to provide full fledged internet telephony and not over-the-top players like WhatsApp, Google Duo

A move that will bring down voice calling charges further, sectoral regulator Trai has clarified that internet telephony including voice calling can be provided by telecom operators using any internet connection and not just through their own network.The clarification by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) will allow telcos, who have got access service licence or unified licence, to offer VoIP (voice over IP) calls using any internet connection. The calls can be made to all mobile and landline numbers and the current interconnect charges will apply, which is 6 paisa for wireless calls and zero for landline calls.The move is going to benefit customers as call charges are likely to come down to as low as 6-8 paisa per minute as the calls will be made over the internet, where the cost is negligible. Users don't need to take a new number for internet telephony as calls can be made using the current number. As per an official in Trai, internet telephony was allowed in the country .

Trai started consultation on the subject in June

Internet-based calls sparked net neutrality debate when Airtel decided to charge such calls in Dec 2014 but withdrew after public protest