Talking terms

This is not as strange as it sounds. Cell players have been paying access charges for putting their subscribers8217; calls through to MTNL and BSNL, but dug in their heels when it came to coughing up the same to private WLL players since the latter have the advantage of lower tariffs and are inching towards full mobility, posing a real threat to them.

This is where the government telcos came into the picture since they were intending to act as intermediary carriers for private WLL operators8217; calls to cellular networks. When cell operators protested, both MTNL and BSNL cut them off with the minister in the loop all along.

Industry insiders were expecting Mahajan8217;s return on Monday to end the logjam and the minister did not disappoint. Short of telling the cellular lobby to put up or shut up, he did soften up and assure them, on behalf of the autonomous regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India TRAI, that it would come out with its guidelines on access charges and interconnect. The cell industry8217;s growing discomfort with the minister8217;s proximity to at least one large WLL player did increase greatly on Monday, but its constituents bought their peace and agreed to sign interconnect agreements even as they await TRAI guidelines.

From the user8217;s perspective, this should signal the rollout of the Reliance and Tata cheap WLL mobile services that have been on hold despite their big bang launches for want of access to the one crore cellular user base.

With full mobility a not-too-distant prospect for WLL operators, it will also mean the end of the cellular lobby8217;s long reign. This could be the beginning of a churn that may see an exodus from cell to WLL operators.