RCom to take on Jio

In a move aimed at taking on Reliance Jio, Reliance Communications has launched ‘149 Unlimited’ Calling plan, which offers customers unlimited voice calling, including STD calls on any telecom network and 300 MB of data.

 The ‘149 Unlimited’ Plan, available across the 2G, 3G and 4G technology platforms, is targeted at incentivising 2G, 3G and 4G handset-owners across India to move to the RCom network. Regardless of the type of feature phones or smartphones used, customers will get unlimited voice calling, including STD calls, to any phone on any network in India — plus 300 MB of data access on RCOM’s 2G, 3G and 4G networks, the company said.

 Reliance Jio has been offering free voice calling and data since its launch as part of its introductory offer which ends on December 31, 2016.

 “Our new pioneering yet simple Unlimited Plan has the potential to trigger a paradigm shift in the way Indians recharge their mobile phones, creating a significant shift in the telecom market— as it moves away from the ‘Unit Rate’ charging regime to a ‘Single Recharge and Unlimited Usage’ regime,” RCom co-chief executive officer and Rcom consumer business chief executive officer Gurdeep Singh said.

 “Our Unlimited Plan will see millions of Indians benefit, and help RCom ramp up its customer base and engage with higher-value customers and greater average revenue per user,” Singh added.


SC dismisses SLP filed by I-T Dept against RCom

The Supreme Court has dismissed the special leave petition filed by the Income Tax department against Reliance Communications on taxing of the proceeds of foreign currency convertible bonds (FCCBs), treating it as ‘unexplained cash credit’.
 
The Supreme Court order has quashed contingent tax liability of RCom for about Rs 4,800 crore. Earlier, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal and the Bombay High Court had also upheld RCom’s appeal against the order of the Income-Tax Department, RCom said.
 
During financial year 2006-07, RCom had issued FCCBs, as per the extant guidelines of the Reserve Bank of India and applicable laws, aggregating $1.5 billion (Rs 6,485 crore). The Income Tax department took the view to assess the FCCB proceeds as ‘unexplained cash credits’ and had raised tax demands thereon.