Archive for the 'TRAI' Category

TRAI: Disppointing response from Appellate Authority

Published on 02nd Feb 2010 in Broadband in India, Digital Divide, General Thoughts, India Broadband News, Indian Telecom, Other Frustrated Customers, Personal Experiences and TRAI. 0 Comments Tags: , , , .

As per the previous post, it is clear that they have sought to “play down” my response and call it as “hypothetical question”. If it doesn’t smack of playing favorites, then what else does? It’s the folks from the same department who are trying to cover each others ass!

I am terribly disappointed by their response. Hypothetical? My foot. I had asked pointed questions and everything here is in public domain. Even the response received from them which I got scanned and put it up here. To say that TRAI is full of assholes, is truly an understatement.

I was not even called for the appeal which is unfair. This case was decided “ex parte” which is not called for. Indeed, it is my privilege to attend the hearing; it is my call (as per the law) whether or not I need to go their dung infested shit holes.

I am not even surprised that they have not even bothered to go in the nature of the appeal but rather dismiss it as “fucking hypothetical”. What was the b**** even thinking about? Is it possible to quell the public opinion just because these motherfuckers are bedfellows with the vested corporate interests? What the FUCK is the Government of India doing as we all get raped for the public convenience that truly belongs to us?

I am sorry to say but we have juvenile delinquents hired as “regulators” who are not even fit to stand tall on their two feet but then it’s too much to ask for these creepy crawly lowly beings. They ought not forget that EVERYTHING about them is out in the public domain; although it is not a “personal fight” but based on their responses, I might even be compelled to ask them for their qualification, the reason they have been appointed for this job and their merits.

The second appeal, of course, is now the CIC, New Delhi and thats where I am headed. In order to maintain the transparency, each of the exchange of the email, the response received and the action taken would all be in pubic domain, that is, here on this blog.

May I also hasten to add that the frequency of posts has dwindled down in recent times because I am very busy with the academic pursuits and it is difficult to move ahead full steam with the present case as well as do justice to this blog. Nevertheless, I am expecting some response from CIC and since the courthouses are open for all, in the event that this case lands up there, I invite you all to present your side of the story.

I shall keep you informed via this blog or through the forums. Stay in touch and I am even more determined to take the fight to the finish.

TRAI: Second appeal filed with CIC

Published on 23rd Dec 2009 in Digital Divide, General Thoughts, Indian Telecom, Right to Information Act and TRAI. 2 Comments

After receiving no reply from the morons, I have filed a second appeal with CIC, New Delhi. The best part is that it’s free, it’s as easy as it can get by typing in the required information in the drop down boxes and all you have to upload is the copy of the letters sent to the earlier PIO.

This is my first experience with Right to Information Act and has been a learning one too. The excitement is palpable because I can feel that there is some delivery of justice at the ground level. If required, I would be going down personally for the hearing, press upon them the need for a better broadband, force TRAI to eat crow and for once listen to the consumers to act proactively.

For long, huge amount of public funds have been spent on supporting these morons in office. Where is the bloody accountability?

I am awaiting response from CIC regarding the pendancy of my application and it’s status. Once it is accepted, subject to the approval, I guess the next step would be to screw the PIO and his boss regarding the denial of information. Let’s see what happens!

I shall duly update the whole thing here.

TRAI: Response to RTI application

Published on 22nd Nov 2009 in Broadband in India, Other Frustrated Customers, Right to Information Act and TRAI. 0 Comments

This was disappointing to say the least. It was expected from a regulator which is staffed by nincompoops. Let’s merit their response to the various points I had raised.

1) To the definition of broadband, TRAI maintains that they have adopted the ‘minimum’ definition of International Telecom Union (ITU) as the speed. Let’s see the context in which the definition of ‘broadband’ has been adopted in their “vision document”

Many people associate broadband with a particular speed of transmission or a certain set of services, such as digital subscriber loop (DSL) or wireless local area networks (wLANs). However, since broadband technologies are always changing, the definition of broadband also continues to evolve. Today, the term broadband typically describes recent Internet connections that range from 5 times to 2000 times faster than earlier Internet dial-up technologies. However, the term broadband does not refer to either a certain speed or a specific service. Broadband combines connection capacity (bandwidth) and speed. Recommendation I.113 of the ITU Standardization Sector defines broadband as a “transmission capacity that is faster than primary rate Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) at 1.5 or 2.0 Megabits per second (Mbits)”.

So there is NO question of this being ‘256 kbps’ as is the current ‘definition’ of Broadband as we know it.

2) TRAI does not define the meaning of the term ‘fair usage policy’ or ‘unlimited internet’. This means that everything which is being advertised is against it’s rules and does not have the sanction of the regulator. To my question of taking action against the advertisement of such claims, TRAI is silent.

3) TRAI in it’s RTI application only mentioned about the various tariffs that need to be reported to it about 5-7 days in advance before they are introduced in the market. The tariffs are under “forbearance” and TRAI has no rule in framing the various tariff plans. But does it act when there are only a few players in the market? Does it act against the established oligopolies?

TRAI cannot deny me the information; I am filing a repeat RTI and also appealing against the the present reply to the appellate authority.

The fight against the established players and lobbies continues. The first step is to actually commit these idiots to “change the definition of broadband” from measly 256kbps to a bare minimum of 2Mbps as per the definition of ITU.

LETS SCREW THEM!!!

Indian Telecom: End of the boom?

Published on 08th Nov 2009 in Airtel, General Thoughts, Indian Telecom, Mobiles, Reliance, TRAI, Tata Communications, Telecom News, Vodafone India and Vodafone Sucks. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , .

This is what the headlines in Business Standard say. Let me highlight the relevant portions of the report for your eyes only:

Rising competition (13 licences for each circle), falling tariffs (lowest in the world, falling further because of per-second billing), rapidly declining average revenue per user (ARPU) because the newer subscribers are the low spenders in semi-urban and rural areas, and high taxes (about 30 per cent in all) ……….have put paid to the aspirations of not only the new entrants but also incumbents……..deleted.

Forget about fancy valuations. I have always contested the claim about the “lowest tariff in the world” because it is not in consonance with the actual “gini coefficient”; which means that we pay more than we can actually spend. It is a bitter truth but then the newspapers need a lifeline of their advertising spends, so rest assured, this truth will NEVER be out.

……Nearly 15 million more users came on board in September….. It has also brought into focus the phenomenon of dual SIMs — existing subscribers are acquiring additional connections, resulting in a seeming increase in subscribers but in fact merely leading to a bill being split between two or more service providers….Deleted.

For the first time, to my knowledge, a newspaper daily has mentioned this in black and white. Let me also repeat. The operators keep the discarded number for a period of atleast 3 months before it is “terminated”. So even though, a customer has left in the middle of month, the disconnection would not be reported for another 3 months (which, I believe is an industry practise). The same customer may acquire multiple connections or dual SIMS; so it is the growth of the SIM cards and perhaps not the customers which is reported. In any case, the simple headcount may not be feasible.

Industry executives blamed much of the ills on the government and the regulator. With falling tariffs, they need to cut costs, but their hands are tied because 35-40 per cent of their costs are taxes and other regulatory expenses. They have to pay 5 per cent of their revenue even from rural areas towards the universal service obligation fund which is meant to promote rural telephony. They said there was no need for the regulator to push for pay-per-second billing by all…… Deleted.

Now this is something that industry officials would always bleat about. Let them come out openly against the said “policies”…shadow fighting the Government wouldn’t help. For one simple reason. If these morons had any iota of service towards customers, I would have sympathized with them. But, they treat their customers like dirt; more so like crap cash cows who feeds in their kitties with little change so that likes of Mittal and his ilk can reap in obscene profits. In any case, let them prove their worth with their commitment to service, their willingness to be transparent, their approachability and customer care in the true sense of the term. People need their money’s worth but alas! My countrymen are basically lazy bastards who wish to have everything on platter without fighting for it.

…….the incumbents said they remain committed and focused on growth. “We will continue to enhance our market leadership and simultaneously open new revenue streams like m-commerce, m-entertainment, digital media and many other products……Deleted.

They have no real option but to focus on Value Added Services which is “babes, bikinis and bollywood”. Unless these people want to “focus” on phone sex services which would be a “high revenue earner” for them.

Rest of the write up seems to sum up the gloom and “brave words” just to reassure the shareholders that “we are up to it”. That we would weave our small little web of deceit, of lies and pull wool over the regulators and leave no stone unturned to defraud our customers because they are basically bunch of idiots and nincompoops. No one knows how much unaccounted for wealth flows in and out of system or whether this elaborate system allows them to launder their money in more effective way. There is no accountability to the customers because they are using a PUBLIC resource and merely by adding value to it doesn’t entitle them to the ownership of it.

Sadly, this isn’t mentioned anywhere. This of course, would be mentioned at all.

Tata Wimax India: Some praise for them

Published on 05th Nov 2009 in Airtel Broadband, Broadband in India, General Thoughts, Indian Telecom, Other ISPs, Personal Experiences, TRAI, Tata Communications and Tata Indicom. 0 Comments

Here is a low down of the Tata Wimax; a first user account of their services and the reasonable expectations from a service provider.

I am happy with Airtel providing me with an excellent DSL at my premises. However, in my opinion, I am paying a “heavy price” for 1 Mbps unlimited connectivity.

I am filing a RTI application with TRAI to know as to how the price has been ‘fixed” and whether it has the mandate from the regulator. It would take some time for “action” but in the meantime, I would continue to write about the “experience”.

I don’t endorse any of Tatas’ products personally but I guess, I need to be fair in my coverage. It’s very difficult to get a uniform view about the products because of various experiences with the companies and their products; given the fact that most of the customer surveys are funded by the companies themselves.

Over the Shyam’s blog for the low down on Tata Wimax.

Cheers!!

Vodafone India: Congenital idiots!!

Published on 25th Sep 2009 in General Thoughts, Indian Telecom, Mobiles, Other Frustrated Customers, TRAI and Vodafone India. 0 Comments

It has been a long long wait for the whole issue to be addressed. As mentioned in the earlier posts, it has been a long roller coaster ride and I wish to share my experiences via this blog.

Since the last email (and the last blog post),over a month has elapsed. I heard nothing from them. I had emailed to TRAI and came to know that indeed some action was taken on the complaint which addressed the issue of the violation of their own orders. I managed to get hold of a person in the network “team”- different from the usual nodal/ appellate authority crap. I pressed on the charges and suddenly some sense dawned on them.

It was a stinker of an email sent to their office which specifically mentioned the insults as well as the violation of various TRAI’s regulations. Surprise surprise. In the evening, I got a call from the network in charge as well their commercial office via a conference call. The nodal officer was a party to the same.

It was a free flow of the exchange of the ideas. I told them specifically that any of the concern needs to be given to me in writing. This in turn, would be proof of their inadequacy to service the customer. It appears that they had been well informed about the case; more so when they dropped names. It was worthwhile to name the nodal officer and their ilk about their utter incompetency and to make them work as well as see reason to ensure seamless coverage.

The big news was the mobile number portability which would kick in from this year end. In that case, we can always hold this as a bargaining chip to negotiate better contracts or better service levels.

In all this brouhaha, I learnt that the telecom operators are supposed to file in reports every quarter with TRAI regarding the status of complaints. Although TRAI doesn’t entertain the individual complaints directly, they do write in to the operators when their own regulations are flouted. Most of the operators who don’t respond or address the consumers in the given time frame, do so. Fact of the matter is that there is no point in cursing the idiots because the inherent system is not going to change overnight. The wheels of the Indian Government move slowly at a glacial pace. Hence a bit of patience is required at the same time.

I am toying with the idea of filing a RTI application regarding making those compliance reports as regards to the benchmarks public. Those compliance reports need to be put online; the same should be available on the website of each individual operator so that the status of a given complaint can be tracked. Further, the customer should be informed periodically through SMS regarding the pendency as well as the action taken through written or electronic means.

I threatened Vodafone’s bosses regarding filing of those reports through RTI as well as making these telecom operators little more answerable to their paying customers. I am sure that a strong message has gone and I waiting for the next week when something is promised to happen.

It’s high time something is done on an urgent basis to clean the augean stables.

Vodafone Essar: Ball in TRAI’s court

Published on 03rd Aug 2009 in Airtel Broadband, Broadband in India, Digital Divide, General Thoughts, India Broadband News, Mobiles, Other Frustrated Customers, Personal Experiences, TRAI and Vodafone India. 2 Comments

Vodafone Essar finds itself on sticky wicket or so much as I would like to believe. Over the past two years, I have been a customer of Vodafone in the place where I work; I have been facing a network issue by virtue of incomplete signal bars or call drops.

As usual, frequent call drops and inaccessibility has made my life miserable inside the campus. At first, they were “happy” to claim that an in building solution would be provided to address the issue. This was put down on some pretext or the other. I had no option except to grit my teeth and accept the status quo. It was then that Airtel installed it’s “boosters” and I sent a formal request to Vodafone to tie up with Airtel to share their infrastructure.

I understand that this is done on a revenue sharing basis; the company doesn’t want to incur on this cost for very obvious reasons.

It is from this time that the tug of war started. The first problem was the emphatic denial of the company that their network had no issues; which they claimed in writing. Unfortunately, a few hired dingbats from their company called in to narrate different versions of sob stories. One claimed that they needed permission from the Government to set up a cell site. Other bugger insisted that he’d be contend to “sweet talk” my pants off; for which I wasn’t forthcoming for very obvious reasons.

Finally, on a hot Sunday afternoon, I got a call from the Vodafone’s Nodal Office. It was supposed to be an official call but the idiot had it from me; specially when I quoted specific provisions of TRAI act which made it mandatory to ensure that there was no disruption of services.

Anyway, I mailed in to the Secretary of TRAI who, as per the information on the website, is supposed to ensure that the various regulations as passed by TRAI are enforced. On expected lines, the bloody leechy babu didnot even acknowledge my email. I mailed them on other occasions and specifically told that I’d be seeking the information through other means; to no avail.

I have now sought information under Right to Information Act, 2005 which is an amazing piece of legislation and perhaps truly empowers the citizens of India.

How are these two incidents related to each other? I want to exert pressure on Vodafone Essar to act; to get TRAI in the loop because these bunch of morons are good for nothing and to force them to act on my behalf.

It does take time for information to filter out but emboldened by this, I plan to seek information about the Broadband pricing; the various heads under which it is charged and why the official definition has not been revised in as many years.

Watch this space.

It’s high time we act in unison. I remember the time when we had forced BSNL (and it’s lethargic army of frigging idiots) to implement unlimited Broadband. At that point of time, I was totally convinced that a concerted public action can achieve wonders. At this point of time, it’s me who is alone in fight against the big bad corporate telecom company and I intend to take the battle in their court till the time I am assured of a decent network coverage; something that I pay for.

Oh by the way, it reminds me that so far, Vodafone Essar would qualify easily for the “COVETED” asshole of the year award!!