The country’s VoIP service providers fear abolish of
their business as the telecom regulator’s new operational directive for
international call termination did not provide connectivity module of the VSPs.
The VSPs, mostly small time businesses that bring
international calls, were facing a hard time after the government in January
2013 issued 844 licences for the business in a bid to discourage illegal voice
over internet protocol.
In May 2013, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory
Commission in a directive to International Gateway services asked them to serve
35 VSP operators each under revenue sharing model.
In a recent move the BTRC in March 24 changed the
operation model for the international call termination business allowing only
seven IGW operators to control the entire business by an association.
The new rules also bar the IGWs to enter into any
connectivity contracts individually saying only the seven IGW operators,
controller of IGW Operators Forum, are allowed to deal with such issues.
‘Now all the international calls will be routed through a
common network switch which will be controlled by the seven IGW operators. The
VSPs were not given any instruction of connecting with this platform,’ a VSP
operator told New Age recently.
He said according to the BTRC order the IOF would be the
only party to control the international call.
‘Our rules allow us to connect with the IGWs separately
but now the IGWs are not allowed to such agreement as the IOF is in place. We
don’t know what to do,’ VSP operator said.
Another VSP operator told New Age that majority of the
VSPs were yet to get connectivity from the IGWs as per previous BTRC order.
‘We were not getting any revenue and losing business. Now
with the IOF in place, as we are not included as a party in the new operation
model, we fear that our licence will be abandoned,’ he said.
Asked about the issue Bangladesh Association of VoIP
Service Provider secretary Khondoker Romel said, ‘So far the VSP operators are
clueless about their status under the new call termination model.’
‘This is a question of our existence. If the new model
doesn’t include a place for VSP operators, there will be no way to run the
business,’ he said.
Despite several attempts by New Age BTRC chairman Sunil
Kanti Bose did not reply when asked about the operational procedure for the
VSPs under the new network topology.
A senior BTRC official, however, told New Age that they
had confusion about the issue.
‘We assume the VSPs will
operate in the way they are doing now. But we need to check the new operational
framework to be sure about the VSP issue,’ he said. (Source: New Age, April 2,
2015)