Tag: telecom regulatory authority of india

TRAI Aims to Tackle Call Drops Issue With Regulations; Improve Connectivity Inside Buildings

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will tackle the issue of call drops in the country, while helping the telecom sector grow with a level playing field, according to the regulator’s newly appointed Chairman. In order to tackle call drop issues facing mobile users in India, TRAI is considering the use of stringent regulation and implementation. The telecom regulator is also working towards improving the quality of services (QoS), allocating satcom spectrum, and implementing the Telecommunications Act, 2023 that was passed by Parliament last year.

In his first interaction with the media since he took over as TRAI Chairman on Tuesday, Anil Kumar Lahoti said (via ET Telecom) that the regulatory body’s most important priorities were to improve QoS in the country, and aid in the growth of the telecom sector. Lahoti’s predecessor, PD Vaghela, retired last September.

TRAI will focus on improving QoS for telecom subscribers, who have been complaining of dropped phone calls, and Lahoti says that more “stringent regulation and implementation” were necessary to resolve the issue. The chairman of the regulatory body also said the telecom and construction industries should work together to improve coverage inside buildings.

Now that the TRAI has a new Chairman, the regulator can focus on responsibilities that have been pending since the post was vacant for a four-month period. These include the allocation of spectrum for firms that are seeking to provide satellite connectivity in the country, including Reliance Jio, Starlink, Amazon’s Project Kuiper, and others.

Another task that the TRAI will have to tackle is the implementation of the Telecommunications Act that was passed last year. The new legislation replaces three older laws — the Indian Telegraph Act, 1885, the Indian Wireless Telegraphy Act, 1933, and the Telegraph Wires (Unlawful Possession) Act, 1950 — and contains provisions for more stringent punishments for violations of the Act, more flexible and transparent allocation and auction of spectrum, respectively.

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TRAI Warns Against ‘Illegal’ Fraudulent Calls Threatening Number Disconnection

The telecom regulator on Wednesday cautioned people against fraudulent calls in which callers falsely claiming to be from TRAI threaten to disconnect numbers, and termed such calls as “illegal”. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said it neither blocks nor disconnects any mobile number of any individual telecom customers, and said any such call or message claiming to be from TRAI should be considered potentially fraudulent.

“It has been brought to the notice of TRAI that some companies/ agencies/ individuals are fraudulently asking the public/ customers that they are calling from TRAI and mobile numbers of the public/ customers will be disconnected as the numbers are being used for sending unsolicited messages,” TRAI said in a statement.

Companies, agencies, and individuals indulging in such activities also mislead customers with claims that their Aadhaar numbers were used for obtaining SIM cards and were being used for illegal activities.

They are also trying to trick the customers/ public to come on Skype video call to avoid disconnection of mobile numbers.

“The public at large are hereby informed that TRAI does not block/ disconnect any mobile number of any individual telecom customers. TRAI never sends any message or make any call for disconnection of mobile numbers,” the release said.

TRAI also made it clear that it has not authorised any agency to contact customers for such activities and all such calls are illegal and are to be dealt as per law.

“Therefore, any call or message claiming to be from TRAI should be considered potentially fraudulent,” it added.

As per Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulation (TCCCPR) 2018 of TRAI, Access Service Providers are responsible for taking appropriate actions against the mobile numbers involved in sending unsolicited communications.

“Affected persons may take up the matter with the service providers concerned directly on their respective customer service centre numbers or on National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal cybercrime.gov.in or call Cyber Crime Helpline Number 1930,” TRAI said.

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TRAI Invites Public Comments on Ways to Make Smartphone Affordable in India

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 affordable and accessible to marginalized communities and underserved regions.

“Unequal access of infrastructure, limited digital literacy, and affordability issues could hinder the equitable distribution and utilization of emerging technologies, exacerbating existing disparities in digital inclusion. To ensure comprehensive digital inclusion, it is imperative to address the gaps which are likely to arise due to emerging technologies,” TRAI said.

The regulator has fixed October 16 as last date for giving comments and October 31 for counter comments on the paper.

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TRAI Directs Telecom Providers to Set Up Digital Platform for Customer Consent to Curb Promotional Calls, Messages

In order to curb the menace of pesky calls and sms, telecom regulator TRAI has directed service providers to develop a unified digital platform in two months to seek, maintain and revoke customers’ consent for promotional calls and messages.

In the first phase, only subscribers will be able to initiate the process to register their consent for receiving promotional calls and sms, and later, business entities will be able to reach out to customers to seek their consent to receive promotional messages, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) said in a statement on Saturday.

“TRAI has now issued a direction to all the access providers to develop and deploy the Digital Consent Acquisition (DCA) facility for creating a unified platform and process to register customers’ consent digitally across all service providers and principal entities,” TRAI said.

At present, there is no unified system to show the consent of customers for getting promotional messages.

“Considering the volume of work involved, TRAI has allocated two months time to develop such facilities by all Access Providers and thereafter implement it in a phased manner. This direction has been issued by TRAI under its Telecom Commercial Communication Customer Preference Regulations, 2018,” TRAI said.

Under the prevalent system, consent is obtained and maintained by various principal entities such as banks, other financial institutions, insurance companies, trading companies, business entities, real estate companies, etc.

The absence of a unified digital platform makes it impossible for telecom operators to check the veracity of consent.

“The DCA process shall have the facility to seek, maintain and revoke the consent of customers, as per the processes envisaged under TCCCP Regulation 2018. The consent data collected will be shared on the Digital Ledger Platform (DLT) for scrubbing by all access providers,” TRAI said.

Access providers, which include telecom players like Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel, and Vodafone Idea, have been further directed to use a common short code starting with 127 for sending consent-seeking messages.

“The purpose, the scope of the consent, and the principal entity or brand name shall be mentioned clearly in the consent-seeking message sent through the short code,” the statement said.

Only whitelisted or approved web or app links, callback numbers, etc will be allowed to be used in the consent-seeking messages, it said.

“Further, access providers shall develop an SMS, IVR (interactive voice response), online facility to register unwillingness of the customers to receive any consent-seeking messages initiated by any principal entity,” the statement added. 

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DoT Said to Be in Favour of Putting 20-Year Validity for Spectrum in Upcoming Auctions 

The telecom department is batting for a 20-year validity for spectrum to be put on the block in the upcoming auctions, according to multiple sources. The sources told PTI that the Department of Telecom (DoT) is going with TRAI-recommended reserve prices to the Cabinet, which will ultimately take a call on these crucial issues related to 5G spectrum auctions.

On the vexed issue of captive networks that has seen telcos and tech players locked in a battle, the sources said the DoT is not in favour of an immediate administrative allocation of spectrum for private 5G networks in this round.

They pointed out that sector regulator TRAI had mentioned that detailed studies would be done (to assess the demand and market) for such captive networks.

Conducting such studies would require more time, sources said.

Also, TRAI itself has not given any suggestions on modalities or rates for any such an administrative allocation, the sources said, adding in the same breath that the final decision on all of these matters will be taken by the Cabinet.

Overall, the telecom department is in favour of 20-year validity for spectrum put for auction, as the regulator TRAI had worked out its calculations for reserve price on a 20-year basis, according to the sources. In its 5G recommendations in April this year, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had said that the reserve price of spectrum allocation in case of 30 years should be equal to 1.5 times the reserve price of spectrum allocation for 20 years for the respective band.

The sources said that while TRAI has suggested a ‘1.5 times’ formula to calculate the base price for 30 years of validity, this may push up the interest outgo and instalments for players, running contrary to the spirit of reforms that sought to reduce the burden on telecom companies.

The mega auction was initially expected to be held in June, but those timelines are now likely to spill over given that the Cabinet is yet to approve the modalities of the 5G spectrum auction.

It was widely anticipated that the Cabinet will take a call on spectrum pricing for 5G auctions and related modalities at its meeting held on June 8 (Wednesday).

The sources said the DoT is very hopeful that the matter would be taken up next week.

Telecom regulator TRAI recommended about a 39 per cent reduction in the reserve or floor price for the sale of spectrum for mobile services, including 5G, but the industry has termed the spectrum prices suggested by the regulator as “too high”.

Cellular Operators’ Association of India (COAI) has argued that the industry recommended 90 per cent lower rates, and to see only about 35-40 per cent reduction recommended in spectrum prices “is deeply disappointing.”

Meanwhile, a war of words has also erupted between telcos and tech companies on the contentious issue of captive networks ahead of spectrum auction for next-generation services.

While industry body Broadband India Forum (BIF) has pushed for the direct allocation of spectrum for private 5G networks to enterprises at a nominal administrative fee, mobile operators have hit back saying that if independent entities are indeed allowed to set up private captive networks with direct 5G spectrum allotment, “the business case of TSPs (Telecom Service Providers) will get severely degraded”.

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