BSNL, Airtel offer free calls for landlines users

Recently, in a bid to promote fixed line services and arrest their decline, the telecom regulator TRAI removed call termination charges paid by landline service providers.

Close on the heels of state-run BSNL'S newly launched plan, Airtel too has introduced unlimited calling plans for its landline customers. While BSNL landline users will be able to make free calls for 10-hour period in the night without additional charge, Airtel broadband users can get 24 hours free calling via Rs 49 or Rs 99 pack.

BSNL has introduced unlimited free calling between 9 pm and 7 am from its landline phones to all other landline phones as well as mobile phones of all service provider’s network across India.

“With this unlimited free night calling scheme BSNL intends to promote Landline usage,” the state-run service provider had said in a statement.

For Airtel, the offer covers over 15 lakh of its broadband users. While users can avail of free unlimited local call facility by paying Rs. 49 a month, unlimited STD and local calls can be made at Rs 99 a month.

Like in the case of BSNL, the pack includes calls made to both landlines and mobile phones across any network in the country.

“Landlines never went out of business. We have seen strong preference for landlines among users, particularly for long duration calls… We have introduced this plan to increase customer stickiness as there is renewed interest in broadband and competition in the space is increasing,” Hemanth Guruswamy, CEO – Homes, Bharti Airtel (India) told The Hindu.

Recently, in a bid to promote fixed line services and arrest their decline, the telecom regulator TRAI removed call termination charges paid by landline service providers. According to TRAI data, wireline subscriber base declined from 26.72 million at the end of February 2015 to 26.59 million at the end of March 2015.

While the two-PSUs BSNL and MTNL hold the lions share of the wireline market at 75 per cent, private players have remaining 25 per cent. BSNL has the biggest market share at 61.71 per cent, while Airtel’s share in 12.83 per cent. The share of urban and rural subscribers for landline stands at 81 per cent and 19 per cent, respectively.

As on March 31, 2015, the top five wired broadband service providers in the country were BSNL (9.96 million), Bharti Airtel (1.43 million), MTNL (1.14 million), Atria Convergence Technologies (0.67 million) and YOU Broadband (0.44 million).