Reliance accuses VSNL for failure of talks

New Delhi, Aug 30: The negotiations between Reliance Communications Ltd's (RCL) Flag Telecom Group and Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL), under award of the international tribunal for determination of cost-based access charges at its Mumbai landing station, today failed due to what RCL calls as 'monopolistic and anti competitive attitude' of VSNL.

''VSNL's refusal to negotiate landing station access charges, and on basis of costs incurred, has resulted in failure of negotiations,'' a company statement said.

The failure of negotiations would harm the Information Technology enabled Services (ITeS) and Business Processing Outsourcing (BPO) and other user industries in India due to the exorbitantly high bandwidth prices and landing station access charges maintained by VSNL, which lead to unrealistically high costs of international connectivity for Indian enterprises, thus resulting in higher costs for the end consumers in India, the statement added.

The International Court of Arbitration of International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) had awarded an arbitral award in the matter on May 26.

Flag had approached the tribunal for its determination of the reasonable and cost-based access charges, since the 90 days period permitted by the arbitration award for negotiations was over.

FLAG has also approached the tribunal for setting up a time table for determination of damages due to the unlawful refusal of VSNL to grant access to FLAG from 1998 onwards.

UNI