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MOSL: Morning India (19/September/19): Telecom (a. TRAI floats consultation paper to revise ‘zero MTC’ implementation date; b. Subscriber consolidation evident)

MOrning India (19/September/19): Telecom (a. TRAI floats consultation paper to revise ‘zero MTC’ implementation date; b. Subscriber consolidation evident)

 Today’s top research idea

Telecom: TRAI floats consultation paper to revise 'zero MTC' implementation date; A delay positive for Bharti/VIL, negative for RJio

• In a complete u-turn from the Sep'17 order stating that the mobile termination charge (MTC) would be reduced to zero from the prevalent INR0.06/min, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has now floated a consultation paper raising questions whether the effective date of revision (Jan'20) should be postponed.
• The telecom authority cited the lack of migration on 4G and the imbalance of off-net traffic between operators as reasons for reconsidering the applicable date.
• Bharti/VIL stand to gain 4%/20% on 1QFY20 consol. EBITDA. On the other hand, RJio might see a 15% negative impact on EBITDA if the decision is deferred.

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