Telecom tariffs unsustainable for industry: Bharti Airtel

Bharti Airtel CEO (India and South Asia) Sanjay Kapoor today said the present telecom tariffs are unsustainable for the industry which is facing intense competition.

"Is there a need to take tariffs up? I think absolutely yes. The way the industry is performing and the way the prices have come down...I think it is at unsustainable levels for most of the industry," Kapoor said when asked if there will be a hike in tariffs.

He was speaking at the launch of its network experience centre here.

Kapoor said the competitive intensity has not come down post the cancellation of licences by the Supreme Court.

The tariffs are, however, not likely to rise before the spectrum auction process in completed, he added.

The telecom industry has been saying that as a result of the high base price of spectrum for the upcoming auctions, call rates will rise by 30-40 per cent.

The government had fixed a base price of Rs 14,000 crore for 1800 Mhz band and Rs 18,200 for 800 Mhz based on the recommendations made by sectoral regulator TRAI.

Besides the base price, the Empowered Group of Ministers (EGoM) has recommended to impose a one-time fee on existing mobile operators for excess spectrum.

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