RCOM to switch off voice services on 1 December

Reliance Communications (RCOM) has informed the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) that it will be shutting down its voice services on 1 December 2017, but will continue to offer 4G mobile data to customers. In order to ensure the transition proceeds smoothly, the regulator has requested that cellcos accept porting requests from RCOM users until 31 December. The move will see RCOM close down its 2G and 3G networks nationwide, leaving it with just its 800MHz LTE systems. In addition to its own LTE infrastructure in eight circles – Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Maharashtra, Utarr Pradesh East (UPE), Uttar Pradesh West (UPW), Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala – RCOM is planning to upgrade the CDMA network it recently acquired from Sistema Shyam Teleservices Limited (SSTL) to LTE in the following nine service areas, some of which overlap its existing footprint: Delhi, Rajasthan, UPW, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, West Bengal, Gujarat and Kolkata.