Interconnect exchange back on TRAI’s radar

In a bid to end the disputes relating to interconnection, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has revived the proposal of setting up an exchange that will facilitate connectivity among various operators.

The regulator has also proposed to set up a coordination committee that will expedite interconnection agreements between telecom operators.

Disputes related to interconnection have dogged the telecom industry over the last two decades. The latest in this episode is the ongoing battle between Reliance Jio and the incumbent operators. On Friday, the telecom regulator proposed a ₹3,000-crore penalty on Airtel, Idea Cellular and Vodafone for failing to provide adequate interconnection to Reliance Jio. Many other disputes are being heard in various courts.

“With a view to solving problems of interconnection, one option could be to establish an interconnect exchange. The exchange will provide interconnection ports to all variety of telecom service providers and, in turn, it will reduce the number of points of interconnection as all players can connect via this one platform,” said a top TRAI official.

Under the model being considered by the regulator, the existing inter-operator interconnection may continue as before but all new augmentation of ports may be mandated to be done through the exchange. TRAI is exploring the possibility of creating a new licensee, as has been done in the case of mobile number portability, to operate the interconnect exchange.

As for the formation of a coordination committee, the TRAI official said that even after setting up the exchange issues related to interconnection may surface. Therefore, there may be a need to have a coordination committee to facilitate effective and expeditious interconnection.

TRAI first mooted the idea of an interconnection exchange in 2005 when it did a feasibility study. The idea then was to have one exchange in each State capital. Similar models have been adopted in other countries, including Bangladesh.

“By using interconnect exchange the network architecture could get simplified and investments for interconnection could see a drastic cost reduction. The plug and play system would also make it easy for operators to get interconnected without any delays,” said an industry expert.

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