The lockdown situation around the nation due to Coronavirus has created stress for the telecom operators. The sudden rise in network usage is creating added pressure on the bandwidth and entire infrastructure of the telcos. To ensure seamless connectivity, Bharti Airtel has urged different telecom operators like Vodafone Idea, Reliance Jio, BSNL and MTNL to activate intra-circle roaming which would provide a smooth and hassle-free network to users. This news is reported by ET Telecom. The suggestion by Airtel will be beneficial for the entire Nation as the government has declared lockdown around the nation till March 31, 2020.
Intra-Circle Roaming Will Ensure Continuous Services
Bharti Airtel addressed Trai, telecom department and other telcos in its letter and stated that an intra-circle roaming would result in seamless connectivity as the entire Nation is lockdown and people are working from home to combat the deadly virus.
Also, the intra-circle roaming will be helpful in a situation where a site is shut, or Telecom service provider is not able to offer the service to users. Bharti Airtel also marked that the developments will be made in accordance with the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP-17) which has been issued by DoT. Randeep Sekhon, who is the CTO of Bharti Airtel, stated that the telco is continuously in touch with its government and enterprise customers for smooth and hassle-free functioning of the services. Also, Intra-circle roaming will facilitate work from home culture, which is the need of the hour.
Telcos Will Slowdown in Adding New subscribers
Coronavirus has forced people to shut themselves at home and avoid social gatherings. As a result of the outbreak, the telecom industry might also slow down. As per the reports, the stores have been empty, and people are not opting for new SIM cards. Usually, telecom operators add 3 million subscribers per month. As of the result of the outbreak, the telecom operators might add 1 million subscribers in March, which would result in a massive 2 million loss. However, telco experts marked that the new subscriber bill will usually take 30 to 45 days to impact the revenue of the telco giants. Still, telecom operators will face a huge drop in the number of new subscribers.
