Reliance to launch mega telecom network today

Reliance Infocomm Ltd, which is building a 5 billion Rs 25,000 crore nationwide fibre-optic network, will on Friday launch its limited ra...

Reliance Infocomm Ltd, which is building a 5 billion Rs 25,000 crore nationwide fibre-optic network, will on Friday launch its limited radius mobility service which could intensify a tariff war and expand the market. Union Communications Minister Pramod Mahajan will launch the Reliance group8217;s basic telecom services along with limited mobility in 104 cities.

The service is likely to change the dynamics of the sector, an analyst said, adding, 8220;Reliance8217;s entry will force cellular firms to reduce their call charges, already the lowest in the world, to retain existing users.8221;

Reliance Infocom is likely to announce a few alternate tariff packages, besides the standard tariffs, but this was subject to approval by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Trai which has sought various clarifications from the company. The company has proposed different tariff proposals including lumpsum amount of up to Rs 14,400 with limited quota of calls per month and no monthly rental for 36 months, they said. The standard tariff envisages Rs 200 monthly rent, Rs 1.20 for a three minute outgoing call and free incoming calls. Neither Trai nor company sources confirmed the approval of alternate tariff proposals.

Reliance has acquired licence for basic telecom services in 18 states covering 104 cities and the main focus of their operations would be Wireless in Local Loop8212;limited mobility services.

Reliance Infocomm, 45 per cent owned by Reliance Industries Ltd, will offer services spanning telephone, Internet and entertainment through its 60,000-km optic fibre network linking 600 locales. 8220;It uses US-based Qualcomm Inc8217;s code division multiple access CDMA 2000 1X which offers better voice quality and higher data speeds compared with existing cellular networks which work on the rival GSM platform,8221; experts said.

Despite the Supreme Court verdict last week asking the Telecom Tribunal for fresh adjudication of the cellular operators8217; plea that limited mobility operations by basic telecom service providers was nothing but the back-door entry into cellular arena, the announcement by Mahajan that WLL was part of government policy and it was there to stay set aside all apprehensions of the consumers.