BSNL unveils internet telephony service Wings
State-owned telecom operator Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) has announced soft launch of its first Internet telephony service Wings in India to be rolled out from August 1, 2018. It also launched prepaid initiative in its landline offerings and a rent free landline connection for existing subscribers.
Wings
To use the service of Internet telephony through Wings, customer needs to install soft app on any of its smart devices (like smart mobile handset/tablet/ laptop) having internet to make and receive calls from anywhere in India and abroad with any party (mobile/landline). Through wings, customer can make or receive calls by using internet service of any operator. This service will use mobile numbering scheme, provided using IP based access network of IMS NGN Core switches to allow users to make and receive calls over the Internet via their landline or mobile phone.
Background
This comes after Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) had refreshed VoIP guidelines in October 2017 and that was approved by Telecom Commission in May 2018. It has allowed full-fledged internet telephony by telecom operators which will enable calls from app to app of licensed service providers as well as on phone numbers
It only allows authorised licensed holders to provide full-fledged internet telephony and not over-the-top players like Google Duo, WhatsApp that allow only app-to-app calling. In effect, telcos have been allowed to piggyback on each other’s data networks in case of voice calls over WiFi and these calls can terminate on mobile or landline networks.
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Month: Current Affairs - July, 2018