Airtel’s complaint to TRAI about Reliance Jio: Minister of state for communications reply in Rajya Sabha

Earlier this year, Airtel made a complaint to telecom regulator Trai about Reliance Jio allegedly unleashing predatory offers of live TV channels with its JioFibre home broadband plans. In its letter to Trai, Airtel had alleged that the JioFiber backup plans threaten to disturb the playing field in the DTH (direct to home) digital TV space, smack, smack of predatory pricing and are not in compliance with Trai’s NTO (New Tariff Order) pricing regulations. Jio also offers home broadband services, which provides access to content apps through a set top box.

The telecom regulator has now given a clean chit to Reliance Jio Infocomm in the case. The same was informed by the minister of state for communications Devusinh Chauhan in Parliament last week. “On receipt of a complaint, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) sought a response from Reliance Jio…on examination of the complaint and the response, Trai is of the opinion that the tariffs offered by Reliance Jio are not in violation of the tariff orders,” Chauhan said in his reply to a query in the Rajya Sabha.
Reliance Jio sent a counter letter to TRAI

Reliance Jio had sent a counter letter wherein it had called upon the regulator to warn Airtel not to file frivolous complaints. The telecom unit of Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) junked Airtel’s allegations and termed Airtel’s complaint a deliberate, malicious attempt to defame Jio’s consumer friendly tariffs in order to protect its narrow interests.
In its letter to Trai, the company said the JioFiber backup tariff plans are an earnest attempt by Jio to connect all consumers to fiber optics technology and it’s evident that the product offering is limited to connectivity services and does not directly include any subscription to OTT applications or any broadcasting services.
“Offering 400/550 live TV channels as part of a broadband offering well below market cost with a view to reduce competition is a clear case of predatory pricing and is in contravention of the TTO-1999 and requires immediate attention of the Authority,” Airtel had written then in its letter to Trai.