Jio says TRAI’s IUC review will harm users, punish efficient telcos, reward defaulters

Stung by sudden change in stand of the telecom regulator on charges for terminating phone calls, billionaire Mukesh Ambani’s Jio has slammed Trai for “retrograde” step to continue “windfall” gains for old operators such as Airtel, saying it was punishing the efficient telecom operators and harming consumer interest. The TRAI move to reopen the deadline for ending charges for terminating calls on rival networks beyond January 2020 had forced Jio to levy a 6 paisa per minute charge on its users last week, effectively ending its free call regime for life.

The “unwarranted exercise” which is an “act of utter haste” and inconsistent with TRAI’s past approach and decision, does not even deal with the issue of whether termination charge from January 1, 2020 should be 6 paisa or less, but merely with the question of deferment of the deadline keeping the termination charge intact at 6 paise per min “which would be wholly irrational”, Jio said in a 14-page letter to TRAI.