DoT directed not to charge ISPs for fixed phone access

BANGALORE, August 19: The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has directed the Department of Telecom (Dot) to withdraw its pay-up demand on

e-mail and Internet service providers (ISP’s) for fixed phone access and to refund

all payments received on this count so far.

Last month, TRAI sought clarification from DoT after the matter

was brought to its notice by the Internet Service providers Association of India

(ISPAI)

in March this year. Later, in May Dot withdrew the levy, but replaced the access charge

with telephone rental. After TRAI's intervention, DoT withdrew its January circular in May

1999, but said that the service providers would have to pay their dues for the past period

which in certain cases amounted to huge arrears spread over four to five years. This

charge has been levied through a circular by DoT dated January 15, 1999 under which it had

levied Rs 15,000 charge per access line on an annual basis. The sum was levied over and

above the rental for the PSTN line and was applicable to all e-mail providers and ISPs.

DoT has been asked to take all consequential action to refund any

payments received from e-mail and ISPs under the January circular. In its reply, ISPAI

claimed that DoT had never raised this point earlier and even its January 99 circular was

merely a re-issuance of an earlier circular issued by it in March 1995. ISPAI also said

that e-mail networks were neither private data networks nor closed user groups.