It is not a good situation for only two companies to dominate the telecom sector: COAI

New Delhi, 30 August 2020 Sunday

The telecom industry's revenue is expected to grow by 14 to 15 per cent in the current financial year (2020-21). The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI), an association of telecom companies, has estimated this. The COAI said the average earnings per operator (ARPU) of the operator has increased slightly, which is expected to increase their overall revenue. However, the number of mobile connections during the financial year is expected to remain the same. During this time, the number of connections in rural areas will increase, which will offset the decline in the number of customers in urban areas.

The newly appointed Director General of COAI, S.P. Kochhar said data usage per customer will increase from 12GB to 15GB next year. The average revenue per subscriber will grow this year, but it remains to be seen if this increases significantly. Kochhar told PTI that it is not a good position for the existing three-four private companies to have a duopoly in the market, meaning only two companies dominate. He said there needs to be enough competition among service providers in the market to provide good services to customers at a good price.

He said the COAI would continue to function as a neutral body. We favor consensus and uniformity of opinion. Earlier he was asked about the differences between telecom companies. "We take into account the views of all members," Kochhar said. We ensure that when a matter is put before the government or regulator, there is no difference of opinion or bias in our views.

The financial crisis of the telecom industry

He said the economic crisis of the industry is not hidden from anyone. COAI will take up the issues of spectrum usage charges and reduction of license fees, exemption in Goods and Services Tax (GST) on them. Apart from this we also seek GST exemption on payment of spectrum received in the auction. Asked if the telecom industry was moving towards a monopoly or dominance of both the companies, Kochhar said it was in favor of competition. He said that in the end the common man should get the benefit of telecommunications, and this is not possible in the case of Duopoly.