The Hindu Business Line : VSNL response to USTR charges likely soon

Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd has questioned the allegations made by the US Trade Representative (USTR) accusing the Tata-managed company of throttling competition by creating an artificial shortage of bandwidth in India.

VSNL sources said that the company is likely to send an official response to USTR next week on the lines of the response given by the Singapore's regulatory body Infocomm Development Authority (IDA). The USTR report has also pointed out to alleged bottlenecks in other countries, including Singapore, as part of its latest review of the operation and effectiveness of US telecommunications trade agreements.

On VSNL, the USTR had said that it was preventing US operators from serving their global customers in India. "VSNL's persistent refusal to permit interconnection at its cable landing stations, its potentially anti-competitive provisioning practices and its failure to activate additional capacity on these cables, is resulting in artificial shortages of bandwidth into and out of India and inflating prices," the USTR said.

VSNL sources said that the USTR report was grossly inaccurate and a reply would be sent out soon. Earlier in the week, the Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore wrote to the USTR pointing out inaccuracies in its annual review. "

More Stories on : Broadband | Corporate Disputes | Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
VSNL response to USTR charges likely soon