Reliance Jio ordered by TRAI to stop discriminatory tariff practices
What's the story
India's telecom regulator, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), has directed Reliance Jio to stop certain tariff practices. The regulator flagged these as "violating" transparency and discriminatory. The order comes after an investigation into Jio's discontinuation of some entry-level prepaid recharge plans that offered 1GB data per day. These plans were only available through Jio's own retail stores, according to the company.
Probe details
Device-specific tariffs flagged as discriminatory
The TRAI probe discovered that special tariff vouchers (STVs) priced at ₹249 and ₹199 were only available through Jio Stores, while a ₹209 STV could only be accessed via the MyJio mobile application. Device-specific tariffs for JioPhone and JioBharat users were also flagged as violating non-discrimination principles. The regulator has asked Reliance to make these offers available across all devices on par with its other tariff plans.
Compliance deadline
Jio has until April 14 to comply
The telecom regulator has given Reliance Jio time until April 14 to comply with its directions. First, the company has to publish all tariff offerings, including three special tariff vouchers: ₹249, ₹199, and ₹209, across all its platforms such as retail stores, customer care centers, website and app. Second, it has to restructure its exclusive Jio Bharat and Jio Phone tariff offerings so that they are available for all other devices too.
Regulatory stance
First-time recharges defense not acceptable, says TRAI
In response to Jio's claims of compliance with TRAI's guidelines, the regulator said that availability of tariffs is "inherently interconnected" and cannot be treated separately. TRAI stressed that non-availability forces customers to visit specific outlets for availing one service plan and another outlet for another offer, which goes against the spirit of Telecommunication Tariff Order, 1999. The regulator also noted that Jio's defense regarding first-time recharges only applies to the initial collection of a physical SIM card.
Discriminatory practices
Mobile number portability at risk, warns regulator
On device-specific tariffs, TRAI said that while Jio has listed Jio Bharat and Jio Phone as a segment, these tariffs are not being reported to the authority under the monthly segment report submitted by the operator. The regulator termed these discriminatory and disadvantageous to consumers since they can only access the offered tariff plans after purchasing a specific make/technology device. This effectively removes mobile number portability option from consumers, which is also discriminatory.