TRAI slashes IUC rates to 6 paise/ minute

Trai further said that there would be no call termination charges applicable from 1 January 2020.

By Priyanka
|

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has slashed interconnection usage charges to 6 paise per minute from 14 paise minute.

 
TRAI slashes IUC rates to 6 paise/ minute

TRAI said that For Mobile to Mobile, termination charge has been reduced from 14 paisa per minute to 6 paise per minute effective October 1. For other types of calls (such as wire-line to mobile, wire-line to wireline and wire-line to mobile) the termination charge would continue to remain zero.From 1st January 2020 onwards the termination charge for all types of domestic calls shall be zero."

 

Trai further said that there would be no call termination charges applicable from 1 January 2020.

The IUC rates have been the biggest issue between incumbents telcos and Reliance Jio.

"On the basis of comments received from stakeholders, in writing or during the open house discussion or during the workshop, the Authority has prescribed revised domestic mobile termination charges through these regulations," Trai said in the statement.

Incumbents have also demanded to increase the IUC rates to 28- 35 paise per minute from the present level of 14 paise a minute.

The prevailing IUC Regulation was notified on February 23, 2015, and came into effect on March 1, 2015.

In fact telcos such as Bharti Airtel and Vodafone also said that telecom infrastructure in rural areas largely depends on revenue from incoming calls and lowering or removal of such charges will hamper services.

However, the new entrant, Reliance Jio, brushed aside the logic, claiming that it will provide 99 percent coverage by the end of this year even if mobile interconnection charges are dropped.

Interconnection charges are paid by one telecom company to another for using the latter's network to complete calls.

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