During festivals and special occasions such as New year celebrations, telecom firms charge extra for SMSes as they know that users will use them for wishing their friends and families.
This is done to maximize their revenues.
But state-run carrier BSNL has decided to stop this unethical practice.
Meanwhile 7 crore Airtel users can leave them, and opt for any other telecom operator. And Airtel is perfectly fine with this.
BSNL: No Blackout Days In 2019
In a big relief to all customers, BSNL has declared that there shall be no blackout days in 2019.
Blackout Days are those days wherein special plan or promotional pack regarding SMSes are not active, and generally per SMS is charged Rs 3 to Rs 5.
But BSNL has decided to stop this practice.
Hence, on New Year eve, that is December 31st, BSNL users can send SMSes based on their plan, and special packs. There shall be no extra charge for SMSes.
Inact, there will be no blackout days in entire 2019, from BSNL.
Will other telcos offer this New Year gift to their customers?
7 Crore Airtel Users May Quit
After Airtel and Vodafone-Idea decided to implement their minimum recharge rule, customers aren’t happy.
Now, fresh reports are coming in, which states that upto 70 million or 7 crore Airtel users may port out, if the minimum recharge rule of Rs 35 is implemented.
And the worst part?
Airtel is fine with this decision of users.
Describing such low ARPU or Average Revenue Per Users as ‘baggage’, an executive said, “I think we may shed a few customers — 50 million to 70 million — as some of them may not exist at all or these could be second SIMs. That’s ok… why carry the burden?”
We have already reported how Airtel and Vodafone-Idea have decided to force customers to recharge every month, with a minimum value of Rs 35. Unless they do so, their incoming calls will be also barred.
Although TRAI has instructed Airtel and others not to discontinue any mobile if they have some prepaid amount left, this decision of minimum recharge has rattled the entire telecom industry, and users aren’t amused.
We will keep you updated, as more details come in.
Related: Thugs Of Telecom – Airtel, Vodafone-Idea Will Sacrifice 25 Crore Users To Increase Profits