Why TRAI has an issue with priority plans given by Vodafone Idea, Airtel

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has blocked Bharti Airtel’s Platinum and Vodafone Idea’s RedX premium plans that offer faster data speeds and priority services to customers

However, on Friday, the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) stayed the TRAI’s July 11 order to the telecom service providers asking them to stop offering premium and ‘priority on network’ services.

TRAI claims that the plans were violating net neutrality norms. It is said that these services were misleading and that they have not informed the non-priority consumers that you will get slower speed or we are giving better service to people we are charging more.

Read More ...  Why TRAI has an issue with priority plans given by Vodafone Idea, Airtel

TRAI asks Airtel, Vodafone Idea to hold priority plans promising faster speeds

TRAI asks Airtel, Vodafone Idea to hold priority plans promising faster speeds

New Delhi: The telecom regulator has asked Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea to put on hold specific plans that promised faster speeds to certain priority users, as it questioned whether the network preference came at the cost of deterioration of services for other subscribers.

A source said that the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has asked the two operators to withhold the specific plan for the interim period.

The TRAI has written to the two operators, Airtel and Vodafone Idea, and questioned them about their individual plans that promised faster speeds to certain priority users.

The regulator has asked if priority to high-paying customers in those specific plans came at the cost of service deterioration for other subscribers.

It has asked the operators how they are protecting the interest of other general subscribers.

When contacted, an Airtel spokesperson said: “We are passionate about delivering the best network and service experience to all our customers.”

“This is why we have a relentless obsession to eliminate faults and have been consistently recognized by international agencies as the best network in terms of speed, latency, and video experience. At the same time, we want to keep raising the bar for our post-paid customers in terms of service and responsiveness. This is an ongoing effort at our end,” the Airtel spokesperson added.

The Bharti Airtel had announced last Monday that it would give preference to platinum mobile customers, who pay Rs 499 and above per month for postpaid connection, on its 4G network.

The platinum customers will get better 4G speed on the Airtel network compared to other customers.

The TRAI has given Airtel seven days to respond to its questions, a person privy to the development said.

In case of Vodafone Idea, the company had launched a postpaid plan, REDX, promising up to 50 percent faster data speeds, besides other benefits and privileges.

Asked about TRAI’s latest move, a Vodafone Idea spokesperson said: “Vodafone RedX plan offers a range of benefits including unlimited data, calls, premium content, international roaming pack etc., for our valued postpaid customers who want more.”

“VIL is committed to serve its customers with the best in class offerings and high-speed 4G data across all markets. VIL’s fastest 4G speed in many markets, including metros, has been verified by global testing agencies, such as Ookla and OpenSignal amongst others,” the VIL spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, a VIL source, who did not wish to be named, said the company was taken aback at the TRAI’s letter over the weekend asking it to block the plan without any opportunity to respond on an important matter such as tariff.

The company source said that the RedX plan was filed with TRAI in November and further modifications to the plan were, once again, duly filed in May. The plan has been in the market for the last eight months and customers are already on-boarded.

The VIL source said that the company was of the view that there was no violation of tariff regulation on this plan.

Vodafone Idea posts highest-ever loss by Indian firm

Vodafone Idea posts highest-ever loss by Indian firm

New Delhi: Vodafone Idea, the country’s third-largest telecom operator on Wednesday, July 1 reported a staggering Rs 73,878 crore of net loss in fiscal ended March 2020 the highest ever by any Indian firm after it provisioned for Supreme Court mandated statutory dues.

The firm, which has to pay Rs 51,400 crore dues after the apex court ordered the non-telecom revenues to be included in calculating statutory dues, said the liability has “cast significant doubt on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern”.

In a regulatory filing, Vodafone Idea (VIL) reported a widening of March quarter net loss to Rs 11,643.5 crore. Its losses stood at Rs 4,881.9 crore in the same period a year ago and Rs 6,438.8 crore in the previous October-December quarter.

The Department of Telecom (DoT) estimates the firm”s adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues at Rs 58,254 crore for a period up to FY 2016-17, but the company put the dues at Rs 46,000 crore “after adjustment of certain computational errors and payments made in the past not considered in the DoT demand.”

Of the total dues, it has made a payment of Rs 6,854.4 crore.

The company took a hit of Rs 1,783.6 crore on account of AGR-related liabilities, and Rs 3,887 crore on account of one-time spectrum charges (OTSC), both of which were recognized as exceptional items during the quarter ended March 2019.

Revenue from operations for the just-ended quarter came in at Rs 11,754.2 crore.

For the full year FY20, losses ballooned to Rs 73,878.1 crore. Vodafone Idea”s losses stood at Rs 14,603.9 crore in FY19.

The company said that the financial results for the year ended March 31, 2020, are not comparable to those reported for the same period of the preceding year (a merger between Vodafone India and Idea Cellular had taken effect in August 2018).

The revenue from operations for full-year FY20 stood at Rs 44,957.5 crore. The same was Rs 37,092.5 crore in FY19.

In a statement, the company said that the revenue had witnessed strong growth of six percent quarter-on-quarter, driven by prepaid tariff hike effective December 2019.

Ravinder Takkar, MD and CEO, Vodafone Idea said “Our focus on rapid network integration, as well as 4G coverage and capacity expansion, has further improved customer experience.

“We thus continue to lead the league tables on 4G data download speeds across several states, metros and large cities. We have achieved our full opex merger synergy target.”

He added that the next Supreme Court hearing on AGR matter is scheduled to be held in the third week of July.

“Meanwhile, we continue to actively engage with the government seeking a comprehensive relief package for the industry, which faces critical challenges,” he said.

Gross debt (excluding lease liabilities) as on March 31, 2020, was Rs 1,15,000 crore including deferred spectrum payment obligations due to the government of Rs 87,650 crore.

“The network integration is in the final stages of completion but has been impacted by the nationwide lockdown due to COVID-19. As of date, we have completed network integration in 92 percent of total districts,” the company added.

Due to the continuation of nationwide lockdown, the remaining consolidation is expected to take longer than initially expected, it said.

Its subscriber base eroded to 291 million in the March quarter from 304 million in December quarter. The average revenue per user (ARPU) for Q4 improved to Rs 121 versus Rs 109 in Q3FY20, driven by the prepaid tariff hike effective from December 2019.

Vodafone Idea maintained its plans to monetize its 11.15 percent stake in Indus Towers on completion of the Indus-Infratel merger.

VIL said that is no material impact of the pandemic on its overall performance, but it continues to monitor the situation closely.

On AGR dues, the company said that it has recognized a total estimated liability of Rs 46,000 crore.

“The total estimated liability of Rs 460,000 million stands reduced at 31 March, 2020 to the extent of payment (Rs 68,544 million) made…,” the company said in a BSE filing.

With regard to OTSC levy, it said that Rs 3,890 crore has been recognized as exceptional item during the quarter.