TRAI makes per second billing plan mandatory for operators
The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on Friday made it mandatory for service providers to offer in each service area atleast one tariff plan each for both postpaid and prepaid subscriber with a uniform pulse rate of ‘one second’.
The rates for Premium Rate Services currently levied by service providers are substantially higher vis à vis the normal tariff applicable for a two way communication due to the fact that the charges levied also include the price for content.
“Keeping in view the fact that calls and SMS made for participating in competition and voting hardly contain any content, the Authority has mandated that tariff for such calls and SMS shall not exceed four times of the applicable local call/ SMS charges”, TRAI Said.
The amendment also provides flexibility to service providers to apply revision in ILD tariff uniformly for new as well as existing subscribers.
The service providers are already offering the per second billion options to their customers. Trai said that 'scrutiny of tariff offers available in the market shows that almost all the service providers currently have per second billing' options made available to subscribers for making local and STD calls'.
Traid said thati it has been observed that per second billing system is more acceptable among majority of the subscribers, because it enables the subscribers to pay only for the actual usage. In order to ensure that per second billing remains an assured alternative option for all subscribers, it has been decided to mandate that all service providers shall offer at least one pre paid and one post paid tariff plan with the pulse rate of one second for local and national long distance calls.
