New DTH tariff regime will begin from Feb 1: Telecom Regulatory Authority of India

NEW DELHI: Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) chairman RS Sharma on Tuesday said the February 1 deadline for new direct-to-home (DTH) tariff regime will not be extended. “Consumers can choose monthly bill according to their choice. The new DTH tariff regime will start from February 1,” he said. “All DTH operators and multi-system operators have prepared a system to connect with consumers and accept their choices,” said Sharma. “About 70 per cent of consumers of some DTH operators have migrated to the new tariff regime,” he added. Furthermore, all operators have opened call centres to address the grievances of consumers. The TRAI’s call centre is also operational for addressing grievances, he said. For regulation of over-the-top (OTT) services like Whatsapp and Facebook, the TRAI has come up with a consultation paper. Telecom service providers say there is a regulatory imbalance between OTT providers and telecom service providers on same services. A decision on this will be taken by the end of February, Sharma added.