Trai in a bind as Vodafone Idea accuses rivals of predatory pricing

New Delhi: Vodafone Idea’s complaint against Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio, accusing the two bigger rivals of indulging in predatory pricing by giving unlimited 5G data, has put the industry regulator in a bind, officials aware of the matter said.

While there are no rules that bar a telecom operator from offering unlimited plans, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) may take some action if it feels that the market dynamics are being hurt due to such plans, they said.

But a former Trai official said any direction to stop offering unlimited plans may need to be preceded by a consultation process to avoid being challenged in courts.