Telcos urge DoT to implement Trai’s definition for international traffic

Telecom operators have urged the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) to adopt the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (Trai) definition of international traffic, a move that could potentially increase revenue from short messages (SMS) for telecom companies by over Rs 400 crore annually, according to a report by The Economic Times.

In a letter dated January 8 to telecom secretary Neeraj Mittal, the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) requested the DoT to accept Trai’s recommendations and update the existing unified licence agreement. The proposed amendments would align the definition of international and domestic traffic with the regulator’s guidelines, the news report said.

“We request the DoT to kindly accept the Trai recommendations and accordingly incorporate the definition of international traffic and domestic traffic vide suitable amendments in the existing unified license agreement as well as in the rules/terms and conditions associated with the various upcoming authorisations,” COAI stated in the letter, as mentioned in the news report.

Trai’s definition of international traffic

Last month, Trai recommended a precise definition for international traffic, classifying SMS messages that either originate or terminate on any electronic device, computer server, or application located outside India as international traffic.

COAI believes that adopting this definition will bring much-needed clarity to the industry.

Industry experts predict that once this new definition is included in telecom licences, operators could see an increase of more than Rs 400 crore in annual SMS revenues. This would be due to the stricter classification of messages, making it harder to disguise international SMS as domestic ones.

Telecom dispute over SMS classification

For years, telecom operators and multinational companies (MNCs), including e-commerce giants, have been embroiled in disputes over the classification of messages as domestic or international. MNCs have been accused of processing international transactions from servers outside India while sending SMS messages through domestic systems, allegedly to avoid paying higher charges for international messages, The Economic Times mentioned.

Trai has set rates for domestic SMS between 0.2 to 0.5 paisa, while international SMS charges vary between Rs 2-5 depending on the country of origin. However, international SMS rates are under forbearance, allowing telcos to set their own prices.

Trai’s A2P messaging guidelines

In addition to the new definition, Trai has recommended that any incoming Application-to-Person (A2P) SMS be classified as international if it cannot be generated, transmitted, or received without the use of an electronic device or system outside India.

Telecom operators believe this clarity will help address issues with A2P messaging, which is used by financial institutions, e-commerce companies, enterprises, and OTT platforms. These entities often use SMS aggregators and telemarketers without disclosing the origin of the SMS, the news report said.