New Delhi, Feb 14: Amid discontent among cellular industry over the "roam freely" offer of Reliance Infocomm, the group today said what it is offering to its subscribers is Multiple Registration System (MRS) which is different from roaming. The subscribers travelling to other cities having Reliance's network would be given a separate number and all calls would be forwarded to the new number, Reliance Chairman Mukesh Ambani told reporters after the meeting of telecom players with Communications and IT Minister Arun Shourie. "All our services will be as per the licence conditions. WLL services will be limited only in a local call area known as Short Distance Charging Area (SDCA)," Ambani said, adding that as of now the service would be available in 673 cities that have Reliance's network. He, however, said the company would withdraw the word "roaming" currently being used in its advertisements.

Later, Chairman of Bharati Enterprises Sunil Mittal said the new group constituted by Shourie to look into the WLL issues would understand the concept of MRS before taking a decision. Last week, Cellular Operators Association Of India (COAI) had approached Telecom Dispute Settlement and Apellete Tribunal (TDSAT) challenging Reliance's advertisement in which they promised roaming in 673 cities.
Bureau Report