INDUSTRY
TRAI’s new quality of services rules will add to compliance and cost burden: COAI
- IBJ Bureau
- Aug 05, 2024
The Cellular Operators’ Association of India (COAI) has said that the new quality of services (QoS) rules notified by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) will increase compliance and cost burdens for telecom operators without benefiting consumers.
The COAI, which represents major telecom operators, has expressed disappointment with the TRAI’s new norms, citing challenges related to right of way (RoW) norms and equipment theft.
“The industry expresses concern over the proposed regulations, which not only tighten benchmarks but also shift from quarterly to monthly reporting and site to cell level reporting in many cases,” COAI Director General S P Kochhar has said in a statement.
According to Mr Kochhar, telecom operators still grapple with RoW issues when acquiring permissions for infrastructure deployment on public and private land for installation of cell towers and fibre-optic cables. The situation is further aggravated by the additional requirement of street furniture for 5G networks, he has said.
Telecom companies report that interference from various sources, such as other wireless devices and electromagnetic interference, degrades signal quality and network performance. The use of illegal boosters and repeaters by unauthorised agents as well as equipment theft also negatively impacts QoS, the association has added.
Additionally, frequent removal of overhead fibre by authorities significantly impacts QoS. Telecom operators have limited control over these external factors that adversely affect service quality, they have noted.
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