Tag: Airtel Zero

Airtel Introduces Super Cheap Unlimited Voice Calling Schemes for Broadband Subscribers

Following the footsteps of Indian cellular service provider BSNL, Airtel has announced plans to boost its landline service. Bharti Airtel launched an unlimited voice calling service for its broadband customers in the country.

The telecom company announced two voice packs: there is a Rs. 49 pack for unlimited local calls for a month, and the other is Rs. 99 per month plan to make unlimited local and STD calls.

Airtel said in a statement –

In an industry first, it will announce that its broadband customers can enjoy free voice calls to any network in the country 24×7. Customers can enjoy unlimited free local calls with the pack priced at Rs. 49 per month and unlimited free STD+local calls at Rs. 99 per month to any network, anywhere in the country to both landlines and mobile phones round the clock.

The new offers are for non-commercial use, and allow users to make calls to both fixed lines and mobile numbers.

Airtel has an extensive network of fixed-line telephone and broadband services in 87 cities of India, but its user base is smaller in comparison to BSNL. According to a study by TRAI, Airtel has around 3.39 million landline customers in the country, while BSNL had more than five times the fixed-line subscribers, at 16.6 million.

Recently, BSNL announced free unlimited voice calling from 9pm to 7am across India, which will kick off from 1st May.

April 27, 2015
Airtel Finally Speaks Up About Net Neutrality

In the past few weeks, Airtel has managed to unite the online world against it. It did so, by launching the infamous Airtel Zero plan, which is a clear violation of net neutrality. Earlier today, Flipkart, paying heed to the online negativity gathered, announced that it had made the wise decision of backing out of the Airtel Zero plan.

Read what Airtel has to say below:

Airtel fully supports the concept of Net Neutrality. There have been some misconceptions about our toll free data platform – Airtel Zero. It is a not a tariff proposition but is an open marketing platform that

1. Allows any application or content provider to offer their service on a toll free basis to their customers who are on our network.

2. Such customers whether on a data pack or not will therefore be able to access these toll free services free of charge.

3. No site whether on the toll free platform or not under any circumstances is blocked, throttled or provided any form of preferential access.

4. The toll free platform is open to all content providers on a completely non discriminatory basis and operates on the same principle as 1-800 toll free voice services.

The statement made by Flipkart regarding their decision not to offer toll free data service to their customers is consistent with our stand that Airtel Zero is not a tariff proposition. It is merely an open platform for content providers to provide toll free data services. The platform remains open to all companies who want to offer these toll free data services to their customers on a completely non discriminatory basis.

April 14, 2015
Flipkart Backs Off From Airtel Zero, Sticks to the ‘Larger Cause of Net Neutrality’

After facing a barrage of criticism for tying up with the controversial Airtel Zero plan, e-commerce giant, Flipkart, has withdrawn out of the service. According to a Flipkart spokesman, the e-commerce giant has taken the wise decision to walk away from their partnership with Airtel and instead they want to commit themselves to the ‘larger cause of Net Neutrality’.

A week back, Flipkart caused a major outburst when they announced that they would be joining Airtel Zero. This act allows companies to buy data from telcos and offer their consumers free internet access. This lead to violation by discriminating various Internet services on the basis of price.

Here’s the complete official statement from Flipkart:

We at Flipkart have always strongly believed in the concept of net neutrality, for we exist because of the Internet. Over the past few days, there has been an enormous amount of debate, both internally and externally, on the topic of zero rating, and we have a deeper understanding of the implications. Based on this, we have decided on the following:

We will be walking away from the ongoing discussions with Airtel for their platform Airtel Zero.

We will be committing ourselves to the larger cause of Net Neutrality in India. We will be internally discussing over the next few days, the details of actions we will take to support the cause.

We will be working towards ensuring that the spirit of net neutrality is upheld and applied equally to all companies in India irrespective of the size or the service being offered, and there is no discrimination whatsoever.

To protest against Airtel’s net neutrality violation, a website has been launched called www.SaveTheInternet.in, using which anyone can send a direct mail to TRAI in support of the cause. According to reports, within three days a record of 1.5lakh petitions were emailed to TRAI.

After Flipkart, many politicians are showing concern and have joined in to pitch in for Internet freedom. Next month, a panel of six members will be set up by the telecom department, who will give in their final take on Net Neutrality.

To know more about Net Neutrality, click here.

April 14, 2015