Page 6 - Trai

May restrict services to Vodafone Idea if dues unpaid: Indus Towers to Trai

Indus Towers has also criticised the telco for 'wilful and continuous' failure to make the due payments

Reliance Jio gains 3.9 mn users in July, Vodafone loses ground: Trai

Trai data revealed that 11.7 million subscribers had submitted requests for Mobile Number Portability (MNP), signalling a sustained trend of Vi users migrating to other operators

Shift in leadership landscape? Non-govt chiefs at financial regulators

Will more regulators such as Trai follow suit?

6 GHz spectrum can be split between unlicensed and licensed use: Trai

The report noted that the United States' decision to make the full 6 GHz band available for unlicensed use has set a trend, influencing countries like Brazil and Saudi Arabia

Over regulation of internet may have discriminatory results: Cos to Trai

Founders and top leaders of many prominent startups, including Zerodha's Nithin Kamath and Paytm's Vijay Shekhar Sharma, have written a joint letter to regulator TRAI in support of net neutrality, and cautioned that any move towards "over regulation" of internet services categorised as OTT services could have "discriminatory consequences". The letter, signed by representatives of 129 startups, calls for the internet to be maintained as an open platform where network providers treat all content, application, and services equally, without discrimination. This includes not putting a service at a competitive disadvantage, either by imposing additional network fees or other regulatory obligations such as licensing under a telecommunications framework, according to the letter addressed to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) Chairman PD Vaghela. "As a key representative of the Indian economy and internet innovation ecosystem, we are writing to urge the authority to continue their

Lowering entry barriers

Trai's recommendations are unlikely to bring more operators

Trai recommendations on boosting telecom infra in NE progressive: COAI

Industry body COAI on Monday said regulator TRAI's latest recommendations on boosting telecom infrastructure in northeastern states are progressive and will drive socio-economic and digital progress in the region. TRAI's recommendation on exemption of Right of Way (RoW) charges in the rural, tribal and hilly regions for a five-year period will encourage telecom operators to invest further towards network deployments in lesser populated regions, the association said in a statement. "The industry is confident that if implemented in letter and spirit, these progressive recommendations will provide further impetus to proliferation of telecom and broadband services in the northeastern region of the country, thus propelling socio-economic and digital progress...," Cellular Operators' Association of India (COAI) Director General S P Kochhar said. Telcos, including Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea, are members of COAI. On provisioning power supply for the telecom sector, TRAI

No plans for OTTs sharing revenue with telecom companies, says govt

They point to an ICRIER report which has said that OTTs should contribute towards the network costs of telcos and not continue to ride for free

Trai recommends measures to boost telecom infra in north-eastern states

TRAI has issued recommendations for bolstering telecom infrastructure in North East, suggesting parleys with the state governments to harmonise their respective 'right of way' policies with related Central rules, as well as favouring provision of electricity to telecom sites on priority at utility tariffs. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) noted that while a number of initiatives have been taken by the government to improve telecom connectivity in the northeastern states, there is still a lack of high-speed mobile-based internet and fixed broadband connectivity, mainly due to the inadequate transmission bandwidth (optical fibre, Microwave and satellite). "The Northeast states continue to grapple with a significant digital divide due to various reasons such as inhospitable terrain conditions, poor availability of power supply, transmission media related limitations, poor return of investment prospects for TSPs, and Right of Way (RoW) related issues," the sector regulato

Trai moots 'concurrent PLI scheme' to boost telecom gear manufacturing

TRAI has mooted 'concurrent PLI scheme' focussing on components and sub-assembly manufacturing to facilitate collaborated production activities, as it released an extensive set of recommendations to promote manufacturing of networking and telecom gear in India through tax benefit, dedicated master fund and other sweeteners. With a sharp gaze on goals of scaling domestic production and local value addition in global value chains, TRAI in its recommendations favoured additional two per cent benefit under the design-led PLI scheme for product lines meeting a certain criteria, while also talking of a dedicated 'Networking and Telecommunications Equipment Development' fund. In order to spur innovation and encourage industry's drive towards beneficially owned resident Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs), lower corporate income tax has also been recommended. This would apply if the enterprise is continuously engaged in R&D driven manufacturing and attains half of its turnover based on ...

Trai recommends entry fee cut for mobile, other telecom service licences

Telecom regulator TRAI on Tuesday recommended a cut in the entry fee for mobile and other telecom service licences, and favoured merging of bank guarantees, in a bid to facilitate entry of new players and promote ease of business for existing ones. In a sweeping set of recommendations, the sector regulator has mooted that the entry fee for Unified Licence (UL) in case of access service be halved, which along with suggestions of merging bank guarantees and other measures will "facilitate the orderly growth of the sector". The measures will spur investment and growth, and in effect improve the quality of service and enhance consumer welfare, according to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). "Entry fee for following UL authorisations should be rationalised...Access service from Rs 1 crore to Rs 50 lakh for each telecom circle/ metro area; from 0.5 crore to 25 lakh for J&K and North east each," TRAI release said. For National and International Long Distance, TRAI has ...

Are private sector executives better than bureaucrats for regulators' job?

Former RBI Governor Bimal Jalan said it is better if the person's expertise is considered than whether he/she is a bureaucrat or a private sector executive

Trai invites view to make smartphones affordable for digital inclusion

Telecom regulator Trai on Thursday invited public comments to explore ways and means to make smartphone affordable in the country for digital inclusion. The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) as part of its consultation paper on "Digital Inclusion in the Era of Emerging Technologies" will assess if measures taken by the government such as focussing on local manufacturing are sufficient to bring down the prices of smartphones in India. "What measures should be taken to make digital devices and digital connectivity affordable to the citizens for empowering them to maximize the benefits of an inclusive digital society?" Trai asked in the consultation paper. In the paper, Trai has cited example of smartphone financing and exploring viability of second hand smartphones in the country. The regulator sees that the rapid pace of technological advancements and launch of 5G enabled services including artificial intelligence and machine learning can widen digital divide if not made

Trai to float a consultation paper on regulations for OTT players soon

One major issue that is expected to be covered in the consultation paper is the price parity between OTT video platforms and traditional platforms

Trai directs annual audit for telcos, asks to refund overcharged tariff

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

TRAI reduces audit compliance for LSAs, to cover max tariff offerings

Telecom regulator Trai has reduced audit compliance of licensed service areas to once in year from four times earlier but it will cover maximum tariff offerings, including related to international roaming, according to the new regulations on quality of service. The new regulations on Quality of Service (Code of Practice for Metering and Billing Accuracy) Regulations, 2023, dated September 11, 2023, will result in reduction of audit burden by almost 75 per cent and enhance Ease of Doing Business (EODB), Trai said in a release on Wednesday. "Each LSA shall be audited only once in a financial year unlike four times as per old regulations, thereby reducing the audit burden by almost 75 per cent," Trai said. However, while simplifying the audit process, it is also ensured to cover maximum tariff offerings under audit unlike in previous regulation which has the provision for audit of 15 most popular tariff offerings only leaving aside a good number of tariff offerings with less number of

Trai's latest recommendations likely to help FM radio find lost signal

India's Rs 2,100 crore radio business has been severely impacted by the pandemic, the rise of streaming, and a host of structural issues

Jio Satellite seeks flexible use of spectrum for satellite, mobile services

Jio Satellite Communications has written to telecom regulator Trai to allow flexible use of spectrum for satellite and mobile phone services networks. The company in a letter dated September 5 to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Chairman PD Vaghela said technology is evolving that will enable convergence of satellite and terrestrial networks and therefore the regulator should consider flexible use of radio frequency for terrestrial and satellite services. In the letter, Jio Satellite cited the decision of the New Zealand government to allow flexible use of high frequencies in the 24-30 Ghz band. "This suggestion for flexible use of spectrum is based upon the latest changes in technology and standards which have allowed the creation of integrated and converged networks. We reiterate the 3GPP specifications in its Release-17 have already enabled the convergence of satellite and terrestrial network," Jio Satellite said. Jio has already submitted its comments in response to Trai's

TRAI favours news, current affairs programmes on private FM radio operators

Broadcast regulator TRAI on Tuesday recommended that private FM radio operators be allowed to broadcast news and current affairs programmes for 10 minutes every clock hour. In its recommendations on 'Issues related to FM Radio Broadcasting', the TRAI also said that the programme code of conduct as applicable to All India Radio for news content may also be applied to private FM radio channels. "Private FM Radio Operators should be allowed to broadcast news and current affairs programs, limited to 10 minutes in each clock hour," it said. The TRAI also said that functions or features pertaining to FM radio should remain enabled and activated on all mobile handsets having the necessary hardware. "Built-in FM radio receiver in mobile handset must not be subjected to any form of disablement or deactivation," it said. The regulator said the annual licence fee of a FM radio channel should be de-linked from Non-Refundable One Time Entry Fee (NOTEF). It also said that the license fee shoul

Satellite spectrum: Reliance Jio sends second legal opinion to Trai

Letter by retired SC judge says any method apart from auctions may be constitutionally unsound