The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released revised regulations for the Standards of Quality of Service (QoS) for Access and Broadband Services.
These consolidate previous regulations for wireline, wireless, and broadband services into a single framework to address technological advancements such as 4G, 5G, and fiber broadband.
Key features include mandating the display of mobile coverage maps, monthly monitoring of QoS performance, introduction of new parameters like jitter and packet drop rate, and adoption of a Six Sigma Quality Management Plan.
TRAI said that service providers must upgrade their systems for online monitoring and reporting, and graded financial disincentives have been introduced for non-compliance.
Features of the regulations
- Technology-wise Mobile Coverage Maps: Service providers must display 2G/3G/4G/5G mobile coverage maps on their websites to help consumers make informed decisions.
- Transparency in QoS Performance Reporting: Service providers are required to publish QoS performance against prescribed parameters on their websites.
- Global Standards Alignment: Benchmarks for latency have been aligned with global standards, and new parameters for jitter and packet drop rate have been introduced.
- Monthly QoS Monitoring: QoS performance of mobile services will now be monitored monthly instead of quarterly. Service providers have six months to transition to this new reporting frequency.
- Granular Performance Data Collection: Performance data will be collected at a cell level for parameters like network availability, call drop, and voice packet drop rate in both uplink and downlink.
- Uniform Measurement Methodology: A detailed and unambiguous measurement methodology has been prescribed to ensure uniformity among service providers.
- Tightened Benchmarks: Benchmarks for key parameters such as network availability, call drop rate, packet drop rate, and latency will be tightened in a graded manner over six months to two and a half years.
- Percentile Basis Measurement: Some key parameters will be measured on a percentile basis instead of average to identify degraded QoS performance areas.
- New Parameters Introduced: New parameters like significant network outages, jitter, maximum bandwidth utilization during busy hours, and SMS delivery success rate have been introduced.
- Rationalization of QoS Parameters: Parameters impacting consumer experience have been rationalized based on global benchmarks, with some parameters being deleted or shifted from compliance to monitoring.
- Online Monitoring and Reporting: Service providers are mandated to upgrade their systems for online monitoring and reporting of QoS performance.
- Six Sigma Quality Management: Service providers are encouraged to adopt a Six Sigma Quality Management Plan for continuous improvement in service quality.
- Graded Financial Disincentives: Graded financial disincentives have been introduced for non-compliance, increasing with continued non-compliance.
TRAI said that these regulations will come into force on October 1, 2024.