CCI wants to be involved in Trai’s tariff policies
NEWDELHI: In a move that could set off a high-decibel regulatory turf war, the antitrust watchdog wants the telecom regulator to consult it on matters such as predatory pricing.
Competition Commission of India (CCI) chairman Devender K Sikri wrote in a letter to the telecom industry regulator that assessment of market dominance and predatory pricing fall under CCI’s ambit.
In a July 21 letter to Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) chairman RS Sharma, Sikri asked the latter to consult the CCI on such issues, which he wrote may be at the “intersection of regulation and competition” and “are central to the enforcement of the provisions of the (Competition) Act relating to abuse of dominance.”
Mint has reviewed a copy of the letter.
Sharma of Trai did not respond to phone calls and a text message seeking comment.
Trai is in the process of coming out with policies on tariffs, including aspects related to abuse of market dominance or predatory pricing
The debate on predatory pricing and abuse of market dominance started after Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd started its rollout last year, announcing an array of free services to attract consumers, drawing criticism from established rivals that it was engaging in predatory pricing.
India’s largest telecom service provider Bharti Airtel Ltd in February filed a complaint against Reliance Jio with CCI , accusing the latter of “creating a monopoly for itself” to reap higher profits in the long run. In June, CCI said that in a competitive market, where there are already big companies operating, it would not be anti-competitive “for an entrant to incentivise customers towards its own services by giving attractive offers and schemes.”
In February, Trai floated a consultation paper to discuss whether tariff offers made by telecom companies are transparent enough and the current definition, such as ‘non-discrimination’, is adequate.
Sikri, in his letter, said the delineation of a relevant market is a critical step in the assessment of abuse of dominant position, which includes many other conducts apart from predatory pricing. The letter added that the Competition Act defines the relevant product market and relevant geographic market and lists out the factors that are needed to be considered in making such an assessment.