Reliance Jio users now have to pay to make calls to other networks

Reliance Jio

After provide more freebies offers to subscribers, telecom operators in India are now conflicting over Interconnect Usage Charge (IUC).

“So, for all recharges done by Jio customers starting today, calls made to other mobile operators will be charged at the prevailing IUC rate of 6 paise per minute through IUC top-up vouchers till such time that TRAI moves to Zero termination charge regime.”

-  says Jio.


IUC only applies when a voice call is made between two different operators and it doesn’t matter whether the other person receives the call or misses or disconnects it, the IUC charges gets bills.


Actually, the charges are basically for the duration of time the phone is ringing when a number is dialled.


Recently, Airtel alleged that Reliance Jio has reduced its ring duration from 35-40 seconds to 25 seconds to pay lesser IUC. This meant Jio subscribers unknowingly were giving more missed calls to other network users due to shorter ring duration and lead to more return calls to Reliance Jio’s network, enabling Jio to earn IUC while reducing its costs.


This is what forced Reliance Jio to come up with an ‘IUC’ pack. This means that Jio users will have to make recharges for talktime balance like other network users.


Jio said,

“The amendment to the IUC Regulations in 2017 was after considerable deliberations and consultations…the (new) consultation paper has created regulatory uncertainty and therefore Jio has been compelled, most reluctantly and unavoidably, to recover this regulatory charge of 6 paise per minute for all off-net mobile voice calls so long as IUC charges exist.


The price differential of free voice on Jio network and exorbitantly high tariffs on 2G networks causes the 35 - 40 crore 2G customers of Airtel and Vodafone-Idea to give missed calls to Jio customers. Jio network receives 25 to 30 crore missed calls on a daily basis. This huge missed call phenomena converts the incoming calls to Jio into outgoing calls from Jio to other operators. The 25 to 30 crore missed calls per day should have resulted in 65 to 75 crore minutes of incoming traffic to Jio. Instead, the call back made by the Jio customers results in 65 to 75 crore minutes of outgoing traffic.”

Now basically, the Jio customer has to pay the 6 paise per minute IUC. The moment you call make a call to a user on another telecom operator, these minutes will get deducted. This translates to IUC of 6 paise per minute. IUC is paid by a telecom carrier to the one on whose network the call terminates.


For Jio prepaid customers, there are four Jio IUC packs at Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs 50 and Rs 100. The Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs 50 and Rs 100 offer 124 minutes, 249, 656 and 1362 minutes of free IUC respectively. These plans will offer talktime to subscribers for making calls to other networks. And these plans will also offer 1GB, 2GB, 5GB and 10GB of free data respectively.


And for post-paid customers, it will be billed at 6 paise per minute for off-net outgoing calls with increase in free data.


Besides this, all Jio-to-Jio, Jio to landline and incoming calls are free.


These tariffs would be discontinued once TRAI (telecom sector regulator) brings the IUC charges to zero, as Jio said.


Trai had earlier said this IUC regime will end by January 2020, but this plan is now placed on hold to review whether the regime timeline needs to be extended.








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