Well this appears to be the case of the telecom operators "influencing" the government to ensure that net telephony does not pose a serious threat to thie revenues..... read on...
NEW DELHI: Telecom regulator Trai has alleged that the government is stalling unrestricted internet telephony in the country and has allowed the
entry of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) without putting norms in place.
Trai officials said the government has not referred the issue of lifting curbs on internet telephony, a technology that will allow consumers to make STD calls for as low as 10-40 paise and possibly make free local calls from their computers, as claimed.
Last month, the Telecom Commission, the highest decision-making body of the Department of Telecom (DoT) had refused to clear the proposal for unfettered Net telephony and said it had referred the matter to Trai.
At present, voice calls over the internet can be made only between two computers and not between a computer and a mobile/fixedline phone within the country.
The regulator is also baffled by the government’s announcement last week that it had cleared the entry of MVNOs into India. "The communications ministry has sought clarifications on several key policy issues regarding MVNOs from us. We do not understand how the DoT can approve the entry of MVNOs and then seek clarity on norms from us," a top Trai official said.
MVNOs are companies that do not own any cellular infrastructure but buy airtime from existing operators and sell it using their own brand. UK’s Virgin and BT Mobile and Japan’s KDDI have based their telecom strategy on the MVNO model. At present, there are 360 MVNOs operating globally.
Trai has been advocating unrestricted internet telephony since last year. In November 2008, the regulator had recommended that internet service providers (ISPs) be allowed to terminate Net telephony calls on phones, including mobiles. The regulator had also sent a reminder to the DoT in January, emphasising the importance of internet telephony:
"Further liberalization in the internet telephony policy will bring in more competition in domestic telephony market and overall development in Internet-related services. Therefore, an early decision on these recommendations will enable growth of unrestricted telephony service in the country," Trai had said in its communication to DoT.
ISPs allege that the government is stalling the opening up of internet telephony to benefit telecom operators whose dominance could be challenged by lifting the existing curbs.
Net telephony can hit the revenues that telcos such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar earn from long distance services. Telcos say that ISPs should be made to take licenses that cost Rs 1651 crore before they are allowed to offer net telephony to ensure a level-playing field.
Source: Trai: Government stalling unrestricted telephony- Telecom-News By Industry-News-The Economic Times
NEW DELHI: Telecom regulator Trai has alleged that the government is stalling unrestricted internet telephony in the country and has allowed the
entry of mobile virtual network operators (MVNOs) without putting norms in place.
Trai officials said the government has not referred the issue of lifting curbs on internet telephony, a technology that will allow consumers to make STD calls for as low as 10-40 paise and possibly make free local calls from their computers, as claimed.
Last month, the Telecom Commission, the highest decision-making body of the Department of Telecom (DoT) had refused to clear the proposal for unfettered Net telephony and said it had referred the matter to Trai.
At present, voice calls over the internet can be made only between two computers and not between a computer and a mobile/fixedline phone within the country.
The regulator is also baffled by the government’s announcement last week that it had cleared the entry of MVNOs into India. "The communications ministry has sought clarifications on several key policy issues regarding MVNOs from us. We do not understand how the DoT can approve the entry of MVNOs and then seek clarity on norms from us," a top Trai official said.
MVNOs are companies that do not own any cellular infrastructure but buy airtime from existing operators and sell it using their own brand. UK’s Virgin and BT Mobile and Japan’s KDDI have based their telecom strategy on the MVNO model. At present, there are 360 MVNOs operating globally.
Trai has been advocating unrestricted internet telephony since last year. In November 2008, the regulator had recommended that internet service providers (ISPs) be allowed to terminate Net telephony calls on phones, including mobiles. The regulator had also sent a reminder to the DoT in January, emphasising the importance of internet telephony:
"Further liberalization in the internet telephony policy will bring in more competition in domestic telephony market and overall development in Internet-related services. Therefore, an early decision on these recommendations will enable growth of unrestricted telephony service in the country," Trai had said in its communication to DoT.
ISPs allege that the government is stalling the opening up of internet telephony to benefit telecom operators whose dominance could be challenged by lifting the existing curbs.
Net telephony can hit the revenues that telcos such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Essar earn from long distance services. Telcos say that ISPs should be made to take licenses that cost Rs 1651 crore before they are allowed to offer net telephony to ensure a level-playing field.
Source: Trai: Government stalling unrestricted telephony- Telecom-News By Industry-News-The Economic Times
