Arun 795 Report post Posted November 12, 2012 Economic Times 12 NOV, 2012, 06.29 AM IST Sparks are flying ahead of Diwali in India's telecom market after the country's largest mobile phone company, Bharti Airtel, closed its network to incoming text messages from subscribers of two other operators, Aircel and Reliance Communications. Bharti AirtelBSE 1.31 % executives said the company was forced to do this after the two companies started flooding its network with what they described as "free spam messages", a charge that has been vehemently denied by RCOM and Aircel. "They (Aircel and RCOM) are sending free SMS to our networks, which, in turn, is impacting the quality of service on our network and, therefore, the quality of service to our own customers," an Airtel spokesperson said. Aircel and RCOM, in turn, allege that Airtel was resorting to pressure tactics just days before Diwali to force them to pay more towards SMS termination charges. Executives of the two companies also accused Airtel, founded by billionaire Sunil Mittal, of abusing its dominant position. "The timing of this step on the eve of Diwali reflects Bharti's blatant disregard for the interests of millions of customers and is another instance of abuse of market position by Bharti," an RCOM spokesperson said. RCOM, the second-largest mobile phone operator by users offering services on both GSM and CDMA technology platforms, also slammed Bharti for "unilaterally taking this coercive action on an issue that was sub judice before Supreme Court and was also under consideration by sector regulator Trai". But, an executive close to Airtel defended the company's move saying "allowing any misuse of our (Airtel's) network would compromise the quality of service for our own customers during the festival season". Companies may Take Dispute to Court "Bharti Airtel has asked us to sign a bilateral interconnect agreement, which says 10 paise per SMS will be charged to a non-Airtel customer. We are resisting this as the cost for our customers would go up significantly," the Aircel spokesperson said. The two companies may take the matter to court this week. The issue dates back to November 2011, when Airtel demanded that Aircel, which is majority-owned by Malaysia's Maxis, pay 10 paise for every text message terminating on its network. Subsequently, Airtel raised a bill of about 25 crore for the period from April to October 2011. In January, Airtel sent a notice asking Aircel to pay the amount by the end of that month. Aircel approached the telecom tribunal (TDSAT) claiming that the dues claimed by Airtel were "arbitrary, illegal, wrong, unilateral and without any basis". But, in September, the telecom tribunal ruled in favour of Airtel. Aircel has challenged the verdict in the Supreme Court. Denying the charges of Aircel and RCOM, the Airtel spokesperson said that the "company followed a completely non-discriminatory policy with all operators on the matter of interconnection for SMS services". "However, two operators have chosen to adopt a discriminatory practice. They are sending free SMS to our networks, which, in turn, is impacting the quality of service on our network and, therefore, the quality of service to our own customers. We are fully compliant with the court orders and/or the agreements on SMS termination. We advise these operators to follow non-discriminatory SMS interconnection practices to ensure uninterrupted and high quality service to their customers," the Airtel spokesperson said. The executive close to Airtel also alleged that the company had sent out "several reminders to all operators not honouring either the contract or court orders" on SMS termination rates. "Court has upheld that SMS termination charges have to be paid. In spite of this, some operators are not paying. They want to use the network without paying and without signing a contract. This contradicts the court orders," he said. Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/news-by-industry/telecom/bharti-airtel-shuts-network-to-smses-from-subscribers-of-aircel-reliance-communications/articleshow/17186313.cms Anyone notice it to be blocked? works fine for me here in Kerala circle. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
praveenwarrier 49 Report post Posted November 12, 2012 I am facing this issue since Saturday here in Mumbai!! Sent from my SPH-D710 using Tapatalk 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
vsevani 0 Report post Posted November 12, 2012 me too. am in mumbai too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KanagaDeepan 1,084 Report post Posted November 13, 2012 Thats why we call them as AirHELL, India's MOST ARROGANT OPERATOR... FREE DIWALI WISHES SMS of other operator is affecting their sh!tty network???? They even can m0lest COAI and TDSAT too... This is the problem, when NO.1 GREEDY company gets too much cash/PROFIT.. They will try all tricks in book to kill competition.. AirHELL is Indian example and Half eaten rotten fruit is International example... 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KapilAgrawal 340 Report post Posted November 13, 2012 Seems like AirHell's network is on the verge of Failure. It would fail soon like it did many times before. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ACS 130 Report post Posted November 13, 2012 This has been happening intermittently since years now.. Earlier it was about 'failed calls', now its 'failed SMS' complaints.. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SUDYEcaZ 67 Report post Posted November 13, 2012 my message are going.... Maharashtra RCDMA to Maharashtra Airtel Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
HetalDP 947 Report post Posted November 13, 2012 Joh tera hai voh mera hai ! Joh mera hai woh SIRF MERA ! 13 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
digitalnirvana 646 Report post Posted November 13, 2012 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
godfather_hari 1 Report post Posted November 14, 2012 in my case its vice versa. i sent sms to aircel number from airtel. but it fails. may be airtel stop outgoing sms to aircel too. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ni0987 179 Report post Posted November 14, 2012 and where is TRAI? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KanagaDeepan 1,084 Report post Posted November 14, 2012 ^^^^^ Nowadays not seen, where it usually was... May be we can find it in pocket of AirHELL... 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KumaarShah 143 Report post Posted November 15, 2012 (edited) For me, from my RCDMA to my Airtel mobile, SMS' are going perfectly, no delay or loss.... Maybe, the war has still not travelled south of the Vindhyas Edited November 15, 2012 by KumaarShah Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
