Telcos propose Trai to regulate data tariff by fixing minimum price

Telecom operators have proposed sector regulator Trai to fix a minimum price for mobile internet as no company on its own is in a position to decide on it due to fierce competition in the market, industry body COAI said on Tuesday. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), in a letter to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai), said that Reliance Jio, Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea have agreed that the data tariffs should be regulated, a move which was vehemently opposed by the industry players in the past. However, private telecom operators want call rates to continue to remain unregulated.

“All the current telecom service providers in the private sector, namely Bharti Airtel Limited, Reliance Jio and Vodafone Idea limited are in complete agreement that Trai be requested to regulate tariffs by setting floor price for data services,” COAI Director General Rajan S Mathews said in the letter dated December 3, 2019.