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Haath haath mein telephone Gaon gaon mein Internet

Transformation of Telecoms in India

ByDr T.H.Chowdary

* Director, Center for Telecom Management & Studies* Chairman, Pragna Bharati (Intellect India), AP

* Former Information Technology Adviser, Government of A.PChairman & Managing Director

Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd., BombayT: +91 (40) 2784-6137/6667-1191(O)

F: +91 (40) 6667-1111 (O) Talk @ FAPCCI, Hyderabad : 17th May '09

THC_CTMS April'09 2

Spectacular Growth Since NTP-1994

1947 1994 2009

Telephones 80k 400 mln

PT s 420 >4m

Waiters 2x the Haves no waiting

Waiting time 3 to 5 years upto 10Y on demand* Highest Annual Growth 100 mpa

* Highest Growth Rate in the world* World's 2nd largest system

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Wait & Wait.....

Telephonic address: “WAIT LIST” Apply for the grandson Consult: Sooth sayer when the Trunk Call

comes Post - It can't be slower ; Don't “telegram”

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Waiting Hataao!(like garibi/garibinko hatao!)

Renew by priced /prescribed forms (Rs. 10/-) 50% disappeared Re-renew by putting a deposit of Rs.1000/- 50% disappeared Own Your Telephone (OYT) First Rs. 3000;

revised to Rs.8000/-) 25% disappeared Tatkal Rs.40,000 deposit

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Wrong Numbers 1/2

Dead Telephones

“That is why I say, the burglar must be from out of town. He cut the telephone thinking it works”

Inflated Bills “Pay First: Complain later - “Fiat car for sale to pay telephone bills”

“Look! IT may be raining outside...

“No sir! There are only clouds!” “If it is wrong number why are you answering?”

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Wrong Numbers 2/2

Unsure in any Need. (Unsafe At Any Speed: Ralph Nader about US Cars)

“Lots of phones on the table.This for incoming callsThat one for outgoingThis for wrong numberThat farther one for cross talkThat beyond for musicAnd that last one – dead for 3 months Cables dead; Tent over a trench,for months

“men@work” In order to not inconvenience people frequently, we have

decided to leave it like that permanently”

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Rajya Sabha Question

M.P: What steps are government is taking to save people from wrong numbers, cross connections, dead phones, inflated bills, delayed trunk calls, call drops, very old telephone directories?

Minister: C.M.Stephen “There is no compulsion to have a

telephone. One is at full liberty to surrender”

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Monopoly's ills 1/2

Unbridled because it was by a government department

Socialism meant “telephone is for rich man, so fewer the better; the worse it works, the less the profiteering so, little investment & bad maintenance

Raise prices to generate capital funds 50% of billed amount not for service Plan to generate jobs, not for work

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Monopoly's ills 2/2

One employee for 12 telephones in the 1980s in DOT

(Now 1 for about 300 in BSNL; 1 for 3000 in P-Telcos)

No new services like mobile phones, e-mail, FAX; radio-paging, Internet, Video conferencing - all these are for the rich;

inadmissible in Nehruvian Socialism

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PCI

AX TSP

Time

(a) Affordability

A PCI/ Tele-Service Price- PCI: Per Capita Income- TSP: Telephone Service Price- A: Affordability

Bring down price to increase affordability

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Cost of an year's telephone service vs: PC GDP

• Affordability increasing rapidly.

• The annual cost for a basket of services was 2.5 times PCI in 1951; equal to PCI in 1994 and now 0.10 in 2009!

• So “Haath mein telephone: Carpenters, Vegetable Vendors, Milkmen, Mason, Plumber, Driver, Mazdoor, Electrician, Beggars ( in Tirumala, Shirdi..)

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Telecom Demonopolisation (1/2)

1984-'89: Rajiv Gandhi ended State monopoly on equipment production & launched C-DOT

1991: P V Narasimha Rao began ending State monopoly on services.

(socialism=state capitalism) 1994: National Telecom Policy ended case by

(suit) case licenses 1997: Statutory Telecom Regulator, TRAI May-Aug 1998: BJP-led NDA's IT &SW;

Internet policies

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Telecom Demonopolisation (2/2)

NTP 1999 Regulatory reform TRAI, TDSAT NTP '99 saved dying P-Telcos by migrating

them to revenue share & not upfront crippling licence fee payment unrelated to network & revenues

Level-playing field by corporatising DOT's services into BSNL in Y 2000 and end to STD/ISD monopoly.

Private capital, Indian & foreign (upto 74%)

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Beneficences

Printing Roadways;Railways; Electricity; Automobile;

Telegraph; Radio/TV; Computer Machines extended man's physical power ICTs & telephones are extending

mind/knowledge power Machines for work Men to think, divine & design Numbers replace names Convergence/ multi functional cell phone Telecoms become electronic-photonic

infrastructure for storage and transport and exchange of electronified information.

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Numbers exceed names! (population)

Nordic countries, Italy, UK,France Japan, Korea Delhi, Mumbai.... Some persons have cellphones from different

companies

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Investments Poured in (1/2)

P-Telcos put in Rs. 1,25,000 cr BSNL/MTNL share reduced to 28% Annual investment in the Sector > Rs. 40,000 cr Annual revenues Rs. 1,40,000 cr more than Rlys,

Electricity less than only the oil & Gas Sector Over 40 P-Telcos in fierce competition. Many more P-telcos got 2G licenses WiMaX & 3G licenses yet to be given

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Investments Poured in (2/2)

Telecoms transformed into globally connected electronic-photonic highways system for information enabling Bharat as IT, SW & ITES supplier to the world

Telecoms is the most lucrative portfolio for Ministers

Very scandalous licencing & PSU purchases. DOT coveted by Regional , “Secular” parties ( Rlys,

Highways, Seaports, Mines, Fertilisers too. 55 persons held the portfolio since Independence ( i/c

P.M, Vajpayee) Those remembered for distinction are: Rafi Ahmed Kidwai, Jagjiwan Ram, C.M.Stephen, Sukh

Ram, Mahajan. Arun Shourie

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Mis-use/ Misbehaviour

Cell phone talk in public places- roads,waiting rooms; in lifts; buses; trains; in queues; walking & talking

Addition of fiddling, profase SMS-ing Vulgar ring sounds, ring backs So smell, tantalisingly Thievable Annoyance & public nuisance increasing

THC_CTMS April'09 19

What are the services not provided No Telephone (Directory) Services

BSNL's by BSNL from BSNL numbers only. No P-Telco publishes whom to approach for

help / complaint / grievance Executive's Name Tel No / Mobile No / e-mail

BSNL Directories used to publish this information i/c hierarchy

P-Telcos don't hold Telephone Adalats ( i.e like BSNL does)

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What is yet to be realised

Internet to every village Internet to every Educational Institution & class

room Broad-band to every town/village Total territorial coverage Intellectual property creation (R&D); Manufacturing (China,Korea recently; Japan

earlier)

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Dhanyawad:

Thank You