Idea Cellular: TRAI's IUC reduction is a body blow for all operators

New Delhi, Sep 21 : The proposed reduction by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) in the Mobile Termination Charge (MTC) is a body blow to all operators, Idea Cellular said in a statement here on Thursday.

"The Authority's verdict to cut IUC (interconnection usage charge) to a paltry 6 paise per minute, determined on the basis of a new cost methodology which brazenly ignores the stupendously high prices paid for the spectrum - a key raw material without which mobile telephony services cannot be delivered - compromises this principle, and will negatively impact the already stressed financial health of the sector," the company said.

It added: "Idea Cellular is deeply disappointed and expects that the TRAI decision will be recalled in toto."

The TRAI on Wednesday slashed the IUC rates to 6 paise per minute from 14 paise per minute. It also said the IUC regime will be done away with from January 1, 2020.

"In an avowedly technology neutral policy regime, a regulation which should acknowledge both subscriber handsets ownership and incoming calling patterns has, instead, erroneously determined that only one technology benefits," the operator said.

It said more than 900 million consumers in India rely on established 2G/3G/4G (non-VoLTE) networks for accessing voice services. 

"A majority of these users are located in the rural heartland, and are dependent on the enormous mobile telecom infrastructure investments, to stay connected. A large swathe of these rural sites are predominantly utilized for receiving incoming calls, and even in the erstwhile IUC regime were being subsidized by existing operators. The revised IUC rate further jeopardizes both rural coverage and connectivity," the company added.