Despite difficulties encountered in overseeing the existing 841 VoIP Service Providers (VSPs), Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) is going to award an additional 159 VSP licences as asked for by the government.
The BTRC, through a web notification on July 4, released the names of companies set to be awarded new VSP licences, which will take the total number of VSPs in the country to 1,000.
“It is already an over-licensed market. More VoIP licenses may result in mismanagement in this sector,” Muazzem Hossain, convener of Bangladesh Association of VoIP Services Provider (BAVSP) told the Dhaka Tribune on Saturday.
According to the BTRC notification, the chosen entities will have to deposit Tk50,000 each to the commission by August to avail their licences. The licensees can start providing VSP services within six months of licences being granted.
BTRC has indicated that out of a total 1509 applicants, 1004 were eligible for VoIP licences.
At present the Bangladesh VoIP market handles nearly 70m calls per day, of which about 30m are still being done illegally, according to telecom industry experts.
