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Kripa Raman

Mumbai , Aug. 27

WHAT would keep the limited mobility services distinct from the cellular mobile services? Is it sufficient that the distinctions are those of form only, respecting the letter of the law, or must they be so in spirit and substance and function as well? Going by what they say, the limited mobility players appear to be of the view that the former is sufficient while the cellular players appear to insist on the latter.

The latest TDSAT judgment, which allowed fixed service providers to offer limited mobility services provided they are limited and that their nature and features are different from those of the cellular services, appears to have made no difference, with each camp claiming that its stance is absolutely valid, legally speaking.

The core difference between the two services is that limited mobility services can offer mobility only within a Short Distance Charging Area (SDCA) and the operators cannot employ Mobile Switching Centres (MSCs) which allow for extensive mobility but must engineer their systems to service customers only within their SDCAs.

The limited mobility players say they are playing strictly by the rules and that any future plan of theirs would also adhere to regulations.

"Our subscriber in one SDCA cannot move into another SDCA. However, he can take a second registration in the second SDCA where he would get a new number," said a spokesperson for Reliance Infocomm.

"This way, when the subscriber is called at his home SDCA number, a software platform would track him down to the SDCA to which he has taken his phone and forward the call to his number at that SDCA."

Some Reliance IndiaMobile customers already get this service. However the Reliance spokesperson said this service was being offered on a "test-basis" only.

"Even if we offered it as a full-fledged formal commercial service, we are completely within the law. We have consulted legal experts. Multiple registrations are allowed; and call forwarding is allowed, and these are what we are offering."

Cellular players are livid at this.

"Multiple registrations and call forwarding may be allowed. But the combination of these services clearly violate the sense of the law, and we are asking that the law be observed in the fullest sense," says the CEO of one of the largest cellular services in the country.

"You do cannot do everything that you are technically capable of doing, you can only do what you are licensed to do," he said.

In effect, says a representative of the Cellular Operators Association of India, the limited mobility players would functionally be offering full-fledged roaming.

It is an additional pinch for the cellular players as their subscribers pay STD charges to receive calls when they move out of their home territory.

Reliance Infocomm not only wants to offer the forwarding facility, but plans to offer this facility for 40 paise per minute. "Who says we are not charging STD rates; we are also charging STD rates," says a Reliance Infocomm spokesperson.

"Now, it so happens that our STD rate from a Reliance to Reliance phone is 40 paise per minute. And why not, it is our own network, we are free to offer the rates we want."

Tata Indicom, the other limited mobility services player, provides a voice mail to tell callers that the subscriber has moved to another SDCA, where he will be accessible through a different number accessed through a fresh call.

"But there are platforms which we can use to offer roaming in a seamless way," said a Tata TeleSservices official, at the time of the launch of the service in Mumbai. "We are waiting for more clarity on the regulations before we would deploy the platform."

It is now up to the regulator TRAI and the licensor DoT to decide which way the question of maintaining a substantial "distinction" between the two services can be brought about, and each of the two camps is hoping the authorities' interpretation will be in its favour.

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The fine line between roaming/ limited mobility

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