Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has discontinued its Personalised Ringback Tone (PRBT) service for enterprise customers, affecting several public sector organisations. The decision has led to a surge in customer queries, with companies such as Syndicate Bank, Canara Bank, Coal India, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC), and Madhya Pradesh Police among the impacted clients. The telecom giant is now focusing on an AI-backed, ad-funded model to replace the service, ETTelecom reported, citing a source.
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Shift to AI-Backed, Ad-Funded Model Underway
PRBT, a network-based offering that allows subscribers to set custom ringtones or greetings for callers, was previously a key feature for BSNL's enterprise clients. The company has defended its move, asserting that the shift to an AI-driven, cloud-native platform will offer personalised services integrated with streaming and over-the-top (OTT) apps. BSNL aims to leverage the new model to enhance user engagement and create additional revenue streams.
"Last month, BSNL closed down PRBT service, offered to large enterprise customers which was part of its offerings. The development has prompted BSNL call centres to flood with customer queries," the report cited a source as saying.
Concerns Over Lack of Notice
However, the abrupt termination of PRBT has raised concerns, particularly among closed user group (CUG) subscribers who had included the service in their long-term plans. The lack of prior notice regarding the change has been a point of contention, as the regulatory framework mandates a six-month advance notice for such service alterations. The move has led to fears of potential subscriber churn, especially as BSNL faces increasing competition amid its ongoing 4G network rollout, according to the report.
"We are transforming BSNL’s PRBT service into a customer-driven, cloud-native or AI-driven platform that will offer personalised services, integrated seamlessly with streaming and over-the-top (OTT) apps," BSNL Chairman, A Robert J Ravi told the publication.
Further, Ravi reportedly said that they are examining an ad-funded model with dynamic content targeting to "enhance user engagement while unlocking new revenue streams" for BSNL.
New Cloud-Native Platform
In a recent tender, BSNL outlined its vision for the new ad-funded model, which will target dynamic content delivery to enhance user experience. The telco has also indicated that it may not recognise name tunes as content for revenue-sharing purposes and has reserved the right to buy out the deployed PRBT solution after a year-long contract at a nominal cost of Rs 100.
