Telecom Tariffs

Trai proposes daily fines up to ₹5 lakh on telcos for delays in reporting tariff changes, aiming to tighten compliance and ensure timely disclosures

Bharti Airtel MD Gopal Vittal says telco in talks with govt on converting Rs 40,000 crore AGR dues into equity, seeks parity with peers, and will abide by final decision

The telcos have submitted details of the hike within the stipulated seven days

With 5G yet to be monetised, expect many more increases in telecom tariffs

In the post-paid segment, tariff adjustments range from 10-20 per cent, with popular plans seeing increases of 10-13 per cent

In the last two rounds of tariff hikes, Vodafone Idea (Vi) in December 2019 and Bharti (Dec 2021) took the lead, while R-Jio was the last one to raise tariffs

However, the Vodafone Idea stock is not a 'buy' yet as BofA awaits further clarity on funding position improvement post fiscal 2025- 26 (FY26) as the spectrum moratorium ends

The telecom industry is expected to take a 15-17 per cent tariff hike post general elections, according to an analyst report that termed the tariff increase in the sector as "imminent" with Airtel as the biggest beneficiary. The general election in the world's largest democracy is scheduled to be held in seven phases between April 19 and June 1, and results will be declared on June 4. "We expect the industry to take a 15-17 per cent tariff hike post the elections," a report by Antique Stock Broking said, as it described the tariff hike as imminent and Bharti as the biggest beneficiary. The last hike of about 20 per cent was in December 2021, it said. Offering a break-up of ARPU (Average Revenue Per User) for India's second largest telco, the brokerage note said Bharti's industry-leading current ARPU of Rs 208 is set to go up to Rs 286 by end of FY27. This will be driven by a tariff hike contributing Rs 55, upgradation of 2G customers to 4G contributing Rs 10, and customer upgradat

Both ATSC 3.0 for BPS in the US and D2M in India have the potential to deliver communications of national importance during crises and disasters independent of satellite systems and cellular telephony

The audit has to be conducted by a panel of auditors notified by Trai. Non-compliance or failure to submit the report can result in monetary penalties that can go up to Rs 50 lakh

IBDF President K Madhavan welcomes move; says result of constructive dialogue

Telecom operator Vodafone Idea (VIL) has said telecom tariffs in India continue to remain at "unsustainable levels" and the industry needs "tariff correction" to support continued investments. VIL has seen average revenue per user (ARPU) growth for five consecutive quarters now. Its average revenue or realisation per user at Rs 131 in Q2 FY23 was 19.5 per cent higher than the year-ago period, aided mostly by tariff hikes and subscriber upgrades. ARPU for the September quarter was higher sequentially as well, when compared to Rs 128 in Q1 FY23. "However, it is important to note that despite the price intervention made in the last one year, the tariffs in India continue to remain at unsustainable levels. And we believe that industry needs further tariff correction to support the continued investments going forward," Vodafone Idea CEO Akshaya Moondra said during the company's analyst call on Q2 FY23 earnings on Friday. Over the last one year, the company has taken several tariff ...

An analysis from shows that while overall bills are lower in India in absolute terms, they are a larger share of monthly income than in many economies

Global telecom gearmaker Ericsson's senior vice-president Nunzio Mirtillo believes that India will see one of the fastest 5G adoptions in the world

They say tariff could be raised even for 4G services in a bid to increase 5G adoption

The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has issued an order to re-verify the SIM of subscribers holding beyond nine connections across India and six connections in the case of Jammu and Kashmir, North East and Assam and disconnect in the case of non-verification. The subscribers will be given the option to choose the connection they want to retain and deactivate the rest of the connections, according to the order issued on December 7. "If during the data analytics carried out by DoT, it is found that an individual subscriber is having more than nine mobile connections (six in the case of J&K, NE and Assam LSAs) across all the TSPs (telecom service providers), all the mobile connections will be flagged for re-verification," the DoT order said. The order comes from DoT to check incidence of financial crimes, pesky calls, automated calls and fraudulent activities. The DoT has asked telecom operators to remove all the flagged mobile connections from the database that are not in use

Vodafone Idea's market share loss, according to reports, has continued in the first half of fiscal 2021-22 (H1-FY22) though the pace of market share loss has moderated

Analysts had guided for a tariff revision from Jio after competitors decided to go for a hike

The new unlimited plans will go-live on December 1, 2021, and can be opted from existing touchpoints and channels

Here are the best of BS Opinion pieces of the day