NEW DELHI: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India has put a ceiling of four times on tariff for calls and SMSes meant for participating in contests and games; or for voting in television and radio programmes.

In the amendments to the Telecommunication Tariff Order (TTO), Trai inserted a new Schedule XIII for this purpose. These measures are being issued through amendment in Telecommunication Tariff Order (Fifty First Amendment); The Telecom Consumer Protection Regulations, 2012; and through two sets of Directions relating to publication of telecom tariff plans and preventing misleading advertisements.

Keeping in view the fact that calls and SMS made for participating in competition and voting hardly contain any content, the Authority has mandated that tariff for such calls and SMS shall not exceed four times of the applicable local call/ SMS charges. The amendment also provides flexibility to service providers to apply revision in ILD tariff uniformly for new as well as existing subscribers.

The Authority has decided not to interfere with the currently prevailing ceiling of 25 tariff plans that can be offered by a service provider at any given point of time.

But it has become mandatory for service providers to offer in each service area at least one tariff plan each for both postpaid and prepaid subscriber with a uniform pulse rate of ‘one second’. The rates for Premium Rate Services currently levied by service providers are substantially higher vis-?-vis the normal tariff applicable for a two-way communication due to the fact that the charges levied also include the price for content.