Broadcast regulator TRAI is likely to fix the maximum retail price for television channels under the Conditional Access System regime, which will require a nine-month transition period as per the consensus, the government said on Monday.
Trai also recommended allocation of 3G spectrum in the 2.1 GHz band through auction in tranches of 2x5 MHz. And if this spectrum band was not adopted, it would be possible to provide spectrum only to two to three operators, apart from state-owned companies (Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited and Mahanagr Telephone Nigam Limited).
The proposals to get cable operators to offer digital signals aren't going to work unless the government mandates CAS-systems across the country.
In a blow to Tata Teleservices, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has asked the company to refund the excess amount charged from customers under its Walky plan.
New Chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Nripendra Misra said on Wednesday there were no differences between the regulator and the Department of Telecom.
Broadcast regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has struck down Nimbus' appeal to price its two sports channels at a premium to market rates, including in conditional access system areas.
Currently, the base price (Rs 5) is also the maximum retail price for pay channels in CAS areas. The biggest impact of price revision will be on the forthcoming 55-city roll out of CAS, as proposed by Trai, and also the extension of CAS in rest of the three metros.
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India may look at excluding SMSs while formulating a policy on unsolicited commercial calls.
Cable operators and MSOs in the city were happy with today's developments.
It is not the urban centres alone that are powering India's phenomenal growth in mobile telephony. Data on rural telephony, compiled by the telecom regulator, shows people in villages are subscribing to mobile services in large numbers
At present, in BSNL and MTNL, there is no such proposal for reduction of landline call charges and mobile roaming charges, officials of both the companies said.
The telecom regulator explains how he's hobbled by government policy and clarifies some parts of his latest recommendations.
The 40 per cent market share cap suggested by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) is likely to make mergers between existing telecom operators extremely tough.
Telecom regulator TRAI has said private GSM operators were acting as a "cartel" against MTNL and BSNL and charging higher tariffs from customers for calls terminating in the networks of the two state-run companies.
Trai suggested steps to ease regulatory norms for mergers and said that there should be no cap on the number of mobile operators in India.
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on Thursday released a common charter of telecommunication services for adoption by all the service providers.
After lifetime validity plans, differential tariffs have come under the scrutiny of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, which is planning to formulate policies to check discrimination in such tariffs
Work at Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) office on Wednesday came to standstill after Municipal Corporation of Delhi sealed its building.
The new broadcasting regulator Trai on Wednesday said it will strive to end the monopoly of cable operators by creating an atmosphere for entry of more players while regulating industry tariffs in the interim.
A day after reprimanding Zee-Turner for switching off TV channel signals to a subscriber without proper notice
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on Tuesday directed the cellular and basic telecom operators to provide accessibility to Internet services for cellular subscribers.
Since both are addressing the same consumer, the proposal has inter se equity as a plus point. And the business of capping the CAS/DTH bill to the TV-watching home has a certain populist appeal. The problem is that the basic proposal on CAS was unfair to channel owners and removed the incentive for channels to produce superior/differentiated programming that might cost more money and/or which commands greater audience pull.
Trai has announced that it may fix prices of pay channels on the direct-to-home (DTH) platform in line with the Rs 5 per channel cap on conditional access system (CAS) services in Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. This move will lower the fees but hit the income of broadcasters from DTH companies. However, new DTH entrants will benefit from the move as their cost of content will decrease. For the 2 existing DTH companies, Dish TV & Tata Sky, the current rates are likely to continue.
The average revenue per user, an indicator of revenues for telecom service providers, of GSM operators has declined, while that of CDMA operators is on the rise.
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India is understood to have taken a decision to recommend auction of spectrum for the launch of next generation (3G) mobile services.
Communications Minister Dayanidhi Maran on Thursday said the government was targeting a three-pronged solution to the issue including computer penetration, connectivity and good content.
The roll-out of the conditional access system will become mandatory in 57 cities in the country in a phased manner between January 2008 and March 2011.
Amid reports of telecom operators not responding to the grievances of the subscribers, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on Tuesday directed service providers to assign a fixed number for registering their complaints.
