TRAI Mandates Voice and SMS-Only Recharge Plans: What You Need to Know
TRAI Amends Tariff Rules(Recharge Plans)
India’s telecom regulator, TRAI, has made changes to the rules for mobile service providers. Now, they must offer recharge plans that are only for voice calls and SMS, without forcing customers to buy Internet data. This new rule, announced on Monday, aims to give people more options if they don’t use mobile data. It also allows special recharge plans to last up to a year, instead of just 90 days.
Who Benefits?
This change will help a lot of people in India, especially the nearly 150 million 2G users, those with dual-SIM phones, older individuals, and people living in rural areas. Now, customers can pay for only the services they need, instead of paying for data they don’t use. According to TRAI, data from telecom companies shows that about 150 million people in India still use feature phones, which is why there is a need for recharge options that don’t include data.
What About Jio and Airtel?
While TRAI is focusing on giving customers more choices, companies like Reliance Jio and Bharti Airtel are trying to get people to switch from 2G to 4G or even 5G. They want to make more money per user by offering plans that include unlimited data and voice services. Reliance Jio has been pushing for the end of 2G services for years. The Chairman of Reliance Industries, Mukesh Ambani, believes that moving to 5G will help them get more 2G users to switch to 4G. Bharti Airtel is also working on moving 2G users to 4G to make more money. Vodafone Idea (Vi) is expanding its 4G network to help with this transition.
Many People Don’t Need Data
TRAI found that many users, like older people, families with home internet, and those who aren’t tech-savvy, don’t need data plans with voice and SMS. That’s why they decided to make voice-and-SMS-only options mandatory. In a statement, TRAI explained that this change gives people who don’t need data another choice, without taking away the option for bundled offers with data.
Flexible Recharge Plans
TRAI also made it easier for telecom companies to offer different recharge amounts. They can now have recharge vouchers of any value, but they still have to offer a minimum recharge option of Rs 10. Before, recharge amounts were limited to Rs 10 and multiples of that. The goal is to give customers more choices while still making sure there are affordable options for mobile connectivity. But for big telecom companies, the challenge is finding a balance between what customers want and making money in a market that relies heavily on data.
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