By a TRAI directive, Bharti Airtel, Jio, Vi, and BSNL are now selling 30-day plans.
Telecom companies, including Bharti Airtel, Reliance Jio, BSNL, and Vodafone Idea now offer recharge cards with a 30-day validity period with TRAI Order on the same day of every month. According to a statement released on Monday by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, such plans are affordable to clients through the websites of mobile operators and can be subscribed to (TRAI).
“Subscribers of Telecom Service Providers are advised by this information that 30-day coupons and vouchers are offered and that they can be renewed on the same day each month. They might use these coupons, which were made available in response to consumer demand.” In a news release, TRAI stated.
The move complies with the regulator’s directive from January, which directed all mobile operators to deliver a minimum of one plan voucher (PV), one special tariff voucher (STV), and one combination voucher (CV), each with a 30-day or monthly validity.
Telecom companies are now needed to offer 30-day vouchers and recurring monthly prepaid plans after the Telecommunications Tariff Order was changed by TRAI in January. Customers’ concerns about telecom service providers (TSPs) price shows that a 28-day validity term rather than a 30-day or monthly validity period led to the decision’s release.
Telcos are needed by Trai to deliver a single tariff package with a 30-day recharge validity.
This action will benefit consumers.
In a change from its long-standing practice of price forbearance, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) has mandated that telcos have at least one tariff plan that has a recharge validity of 30 days.
New mandates with TRAI order to telecommunication providersÂ
Changing the telecommunication order of 1999, Trai on Thursday said that every telecom service provider should offer at least one plan voucher, one special tariff voucher and one combo voucher that has the validity of thirty days.
Every service provider must also offer at least one plan voucher, one special tariff voucher, and one combo voucher, all of which must be renewed on the same day each month, according to a further addition to the clause.
New regulations will favour consumers more.
The regulatory body has noted that this action will benefit consumers and that, as a result of this revision, telecom subscribers will have more options for selecting service contracts with the right validity and length. Additionally, this would enable consumers to make better-informed decisions regarding tariffs.
Stakeholders’ reaction
In May of last year, Trai issued a consultation paper, asking all parties involved if they should get involved. According to the regulator, a sizable number of consumers have complained that having to recharge their phones 13 times a year for “monthly plans” makes them feel tricked.
The regulator explained the comments from the telcos and other parties involved, noting that the opinions of the parties involved are sharply divided, with service providers reiterating their preference for the continuation of the current system about the duration of tariff offers.
Contrarily, consumer advocacy organisations, consulting firms, and individual customers believe that in addition to mandating a 30-day tariff offer, a monthly tariff option that is reloadable on the same day of each month should also be made available.
International operators have been cited by the authority. No matter how many days are in a month, Verizon in the US and Vodafone in the UK both offer monthly prepaid plans. There is no justification for not making such a service available to Indian telecom users as well, according to Trai.
Because of other reasons, the telcos have resisted the regulator’s suggestion.
The billing cycle will be hampered by any modification to the current 28 days, 54 days, or 84 days, according to Vodafone Idea, who also stated that the operator would have to make significant efforts to raise consumer awareness and educate the retail channel. Although Reliance Jio Infocomm has consented to a 30-day recharge period, it has also stated that “tariffs wherein the consumer is expected to recharge on the same day every month with the same fixed amount is not technically achievable, as this is primarily a postpaid structure.”
A 28-day validity for such a sector of society means they budget their consumption every week, which helps in managing their mobile expenses in a better and structured way, according to Airtel, who noted that a large percentage of prepaid customers are from a very low-income category. There are numerous customers who are interested in taking TRAI order.
A prepaid customer whose recharge preferences might not even change as a result of the introduction of such an offering may not find any value in mandating a tariff offer with the specific validity of 30 days or a month with the requirement that the tariff be renewed only on the same date of each month, it was further stated.
edited and proofread by nikita sharma
