Telecom regulator TRAI on Friday said that it has been receiving a number of complaints from subscribers regarding call drops and other network-related issues, especially after the rollout of 5G services. The regulator said that there is a need to review existing quality of service rules to measure network performance at the district level and bring 4G-5G services also under its ambit.
The TRAI said a thorough analysis of quarterly Quality-of-Service (QoS) performance reports has revealed that the existing approach, which involves a quarterly performance assessment across large areas like LSA (Licensed Service Area), might not adequately capture pockets or regions experiencing subpar quality due to averaging effects. This happens while service providers meet overall QoS benchmarks at the LSA level.
In response, TRAI has released a Consultation Paper titled ‘Review of Quality-of-Service Standards for Access Services (Wireless and Wireline) and Broadband (Wireless and Wireline) Services’. This move comes under the mandate of the TRAI Act, 1997, which aims to safeguard the interests of telecommunication service consumers by ensuring the quality of service.
The draft regulations in the Consultation Paper suggest implementing monthly QoS performance reporting not only at the LSA level but also at the State and UT (Union Territory) levels. This approach aims to offer a more accurate depiction of QoS status.
The regulator also noted that even with the technological advancement in mobile telecommunications and advancement in performance management tools, the quality of experience (QoE) of consumers has not improved as expected though such QoS requirements are supported by technology standards.
“Even with widespread coverage of 4G networks in the country and rollout of 5G services, there are increasing number of complaints of call drops, call muting, low data throughput etc. which raises question marks on the network design and provisioning of required network resources,” TRAI said.
The regulator has proposed to tighten call drop parameters, call success rate, etc under the quality of service rules.
“The issues related to the quality of telecom services are not only reflected in consumer complaints but also find substantial mention in Parliament Questions,” TRAI said.
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TRAI noted that existing Quality of Service (QoS) standards for Wireless Data Services were established during the 2G and 3G era, designed around circuit-switched networks. Their benchmarks matched the underlying technology’s capabilities. However, with over 75 per cent of the current telecom network relying on LTE (4G), LTE-Advanced, and 5G packet core networks, the present QoS benchmarks, aiming for latency below 250ms for wireless data services and 120ms for wireline broadband, no longer align with modern application needs.
TRAI also observed that though the service providers have launched mobile apps and web interfaces for customers, the consumer continues to face problems in registering their complaints due to complicated workflows. It said that the number of calls at call centres has not reduced, and service providers are not able to meet current benchmarks in many cases even after the rollout of mobile apps.
“Further, there is a significant number of feature phones in the mobile network that cannot use mobile apps for the registration of complaints. Therefore, the Authority is not in favour of relaxing this benchmark for the sub-parameter accessibility of call centre numbers and percentage of calls answered by operators (voice to voice),” TRAI said.
The regulator has fixed September 20 as the last date for comments and October 5 for counter comments of draft rules.