TRAI Sends Letter To DTH Operator Asking To Justify Its Tariff Plans Against The New Framework

India’s telecom regulator TRAI has asked Independent TV to justify its current tariff plans against the new regulatory framework, reports Economic Time.

In the letter sent on 27 February to the DTH operator with around 0.83 million subscribers, TRAI has also called for a meeting with the senior officials of the company on the said matter.

The regulator took the step after several consumers raised complaints over the lack of clarity in tariff plans and their break-up details for monthly charges.

"...You are hereby directed to provide all the information in the prescribed format as sought by TRAI.... Further you are also required to provide detailed justification that the present tariff plans, being offered by Independent TV are in line with the new regulatory framework clearly indicating the bifurcation of the Network Capacity Fee and other charges," stated the TRAI letter to Independent TV.

TRAI recently launched a new tariff order and regulatory regime under which the consumers will only pay for channels they view. The regulations mandated that all DTH operators provide every channel a la carte, with a transparent display of rates. The timeline for consumers to make their channel preferences have been extended up to 31 March, 2019.