Airtel Reduces Std, Roaming Charges

[chiradip 0]

Though AirTel has a few hidden charges, still they have not deprived their customers. They have brought first Lifetime Incoming offer, they have brought first Re 1 local calling. These suits have been followed by the other operators blindly. Now they have slashed the STD rates uniformly to Rs 1.5/min. The less call rate the more network usage, ultimately the revenue earning remails same and further gradually increases. Mr Sunil Bharti Mittal understands the business much better than Mr Anil Ambani it seems.

[Nirvana 4]

AirTel has reduced their STD rates to Rs 1.50/min for all customers. Reliance still charges Rs 2.65/min for the same feature (only thing that they have introduced a STV for Rs 98 which gives R>R @ Rs 0.33/min R>others @ Rs 0.49/min all STD @ Rs 0.99/min, though they have not announced on the web site). When they are reduce the STD charges for normal custemers?

Reliance's answer to AirTel's new STD offer is the Rs.440 / Rs.496 Unlimted STD offer. I don't think Reliance is going to lower the current STD rates for normal plan.

[Himanshu Singh 19]

Small telcos cry foul over Bharti's rate cut

NEW DELHI: When the big fish fight, the small fry scramble for cover. The plight of small telecom operators, who were forced into a corner following substantial tariff cuts by Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications earlier this week is a case in point.

Five small telecom operators allege that they will have to bear the cost of Bharti’s 40% tariff cut for roaming and STD calls. These telcos, which use Bharti’s national long-distance network (NLD) for routing their STD traffic and pay it a carriage fee for the same, will now have to pay double the amount. Bharti, which was so far charging them about 25 paise a minute for carrying their STD traffic, has more than doubled the rate to 55-60 paise a minute.

While these telcos admit that Bharti Airtel “is legally in the right” to charge a maximum of 65 paise a minute as carriage fee since this is the upper limit set by sector regulator Trai, they also add that the company’s recent move to double the fee was done with to ensure that regional and smaller players “find it impossible” to match the tariff cuts.

ET spoke to six operators, of which five confirmed that Bharti’s decision to hike carriage fees would impact their “ability to get into a price war”. The move to hike carriage fees is also forcing some of the smaller players to roll out their own NLD networks. Says Spice Telecom CEO Naveen Kaul: “It is a fact that Bharti has increased carriage charges considerably. Our response is that it may not impact Spice Telecom as we are in the process of setting up our own NLD network.”

Explained a top executive with another leading GSM telco: “Bharti has so far offered us a heavy discount for carrying our STD traffic on their network. This helped us greatly to drop long-distance tariffs in the past two years. RCOM and BSNL were not offering such discounts, while other players like Tata Communications (VSNL) do not have the same network coverage.

The hike in carriage fees is a severe competitive disadvantage to smaller operators, who were all along using Bharti’s NLD network. Second, by nearly doubling carriage charges from other operators, Bharti has ensured that the revenue impact of the recent tariff cuts it has announced is minimal or even positive

[kshah 452]

Though AirTel has a few hidden charges, still they have not deprived their customers. They have brought first Lifetime Incoming offer, they have brought first Re 1 local calling. These suits have been followed by the other operators blindly. Now they have slashed the STD rates uniformly to Rs 1.5/min. The less call rate the more network usage, ultimately the revenue earning remails same and further gradually increases. Mr Sunil Bharti Mittal understands the business much better than Mr Anil Ambani it seems.

True, it seems AIRTEL is leading second telecom revolution, first led by reliance but eventually Reliance became "YET ANOTHER TELCO" where as Airtel started as JUST ANOTHER TELCO now becoming leaders of change.

[kshah 452]

AirTel has reduced their STD rates to Rs 1.50/min for all customers. Reliance still charges Rs 2.65/min for the same feature (only thing that they have introduced a STV for Rs 98 which gives R>R @ Rs 0.33/min R>others @ Rs 0.49/min all STD @ Rs 0.99/min, though they have not announced on the web site). When they are reduce the STD charges for normal custemers?

Means reliance is offering benefit first to Prepaid, where as Airtel did it for all. Thats the strategy.

[Himanshu Singh 19]

Small telcos cry foul over Bharti's rate cut

NEW DELHI: When the big fish fight, the small fry scramble for cover. The plight of small telecom operators, who were forced into a corner following substantial tariff cuts by Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications earlier this week is a case in point.

Five small telecom operators allege that they will have to bear the cost of Bharti’s 40% tariff cut for roaming and STD calls. These telcos, which use Bharti’s national long-distance network (NLD) for routing their STD traffic and pay it a carriage fee for the same, will now have to pay double the amount. Bharti, which was so far charging them about 25 paise a minute for carrying their STD traffic, has more than doubled the rate to 55-60 paise a minute.

While these telcos admit that Bharti Airtel “is legally in the right” to charge a maximum of 65 paise a minute as carriage fee since this is the upper limit set by sector regulator Trai, they also add that the company’s recent move to double the fee was done with to ensure that regional and smaller players “find it impossible” to match the tariff cuts.

ET spoke to six operators, of which five confirmed that Bharti’s decision to hike carriage fees would impact their “ability to get into a price war”. The move to hike carriage fees is also forcing some of the smaller players to roll out their own NLD networks. Says Spice Telecom CEO Naveen Kaul: “It is a fact that Bharti has increased carriage charges considerably. Our response is that it may not impact Spice Telecom as we are in the process of setting up our own NLD network.”

Explained a top executive with another leading GSM telco: “Bharti has so far offered us a heavy discount for carrying our STD traffic on their network. This helped us greatly to drop long-distance tariffs in the past two years. RCOM and BSNL were not offering such discounts, while other players like Tata Communications (VSNL) do not have the same network coverage.

The hike in carriage fees is a severe competitive disadvantage to smaller operators, who were all along using Bharti’s NLD network. Second, by nearly doubling carriage charges from other operators, Bharti has ensured that the revenue impact of the recent tariff cuts it has announced is minimal or even positive

Conclusions:

1. Operators without NLD services cant match the airtel offer, which means no std rate cuts for idea, vodafone, aircel, spice and so on in immediate future.If that happens it would be a big loss for such telcos.(this i mentioned in my earlier post well before ET reported that small telcos would find it hard to match this offer.)

I have my doubts about telcos not having their own long distance network like vodafone and idea matching the latest offer by airtel. as of now only bsnl, reliance, tata and airtel have std network. all other telcos have to piggyback one of these telcos for routing their long distance calls. so we might not see vodafone and idea matching this offer.

i will be really surprised if they do match this offer.

Guys I have some news that airtel is going to cut down the local call rate further to as low as 30 paise on its own network and 50 paise to other networks.

also airtel has cut down the std sms rates to 1.5 from 2.00

2. Airtel is a monopolist telco, which we all along doubted. Remember how airtel together with idea and vodafone tried to thwart the allotment of spectrum to new operators.

Edited May 5, 2008 by sachinrocks

[kesav 127]

As expected TATA delivers knockout punch.

TTML to reduce National Long Distance & Roaming call rates on best selling prepaid packs - Go One & Go Power

To start with Mah, Mum and Goa

:clap:

In addition to the other special features already offered on its best selling prepaid packs with Lifetime and 1-year validity, Go One and Go Power respectively, Tata Teleservices (Maharashtra) Ltd (TTML) today announced an unprecedented reduction in National Long Distance (NLD) and Roaming rates on these starter packs / recharge vouchers with effect from 15th May, 2008.

With an aim to offer the most competitive pricing advantage to its customers, TTML will introduce a special STD rate of Rs. 1.50/- per min for all existing and new subscribers of Go One and Go Power with effect from 15th May, 2008.

Go Power subscribers can already make local calls for rates as low as 19 p/min (night calling rate) to other Tata Indicom mobile or fixed phones while local calls to subscribers of other service providers are charged at 49 p/min. Roaming tariffs (incoming & local outgoing) are being reduced and will be fixed atRe. 1/- per min.

To remind all you guys TATA already has the following STV

Rs. 49(MRP) makes local T-T Rs.0.39(day)/Rs.0.19(night) and local mobile Rs. 0.49 in Mah,Mum and Goa.

Hence, certainly this combination is just awesome and its just says "one step ahead of competition"

As you already aware that in postpaid there's no match for TATA's 50p STD.

source :: http://www.indiaprwire.com/pressrelease/te...00805059298.htm

[Honest 836]

^^^

OH thats a great news from TATA my dear friends. Now hope that other operators will also do the same.

Regards.

[kesav 127]

After Airtel and TATA here comes the reply from Vodafone.......

http://www.rimweb.in/forums/index.php?s=&a...st&p=109676

I want TATA to spread it across all circles and I'm sure they'll do it.

Among big 5, I'm anxiously waiting the reply from BSNL/MTNL and Reliance.

[kesav 127]

Here is the official link to TATA's press release

http://www.tataindicom.com/pressroom/PR_Do...ng-Distance.pdf