Huge incentives for mobile, telecom companies approved

Telecom policy 2015

Mobile, IT cos allowed to make traffic calls with Iran, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan; cos to be bound to get NoC from agencies; DTH operators can have access to satellite internet; Wi-Fi wireless in buildings, vehicles, external commercial hot spots to be allowed

ISLAMABAD: The first-ever Telecommunication Policy 2015 that was approved by the ECC on Friday, of which a copy is exclusively available with The News, unfolded huge incentives for mobile and IT companies under which they have been allowed to make traffic calls with Iran, India, Pakistan and Afghanistan through satellite, wireless and wire link service and for traffic calls, the concerned companies will be bound to get NoCs from security agencies.

For cross-border fixed line service, the concerned company will also have to get approval from the committee comprising representatives of the Ministry of Informational Technology, Ministry of Interior, PTA, security agencies, and Cabinet Division. Under the policy, the DTH operators have also been allowed to have an access to satellite internet service.

The DTH operators having licences from Pemra will be bound to provide satellite internet service along with the TV channels service. Mobile phone companies have been allowed to mutually use the 3G and 4G spectrums and towers. However, they will have to get approval from the PTA for sharing of spectrum and infrastructure facility.

Under the policy, the provision of Wi-Fi wireless in-building, in-vehicle and external commercial hotspots based on IEEE802.11 standards will be allowed.

The PTA will put in place necessary regulations, with appropriate adjustments in transmit power and hop length, to ensure that they are able to operate successfully while providing consumer protection and other regulatory arrangements that apply to ISPs more generally.

Mobile operators wishing to provide public Wi-Fi services or Wi-Fi offloading to their own customers may do so under a commercial arrangement with a fixed network operator. Prices and terms for backhaul from Wi-Fi hotspots will be fair and non-discriminatory.

For national roaming, the policy says that in the interest of quick rollout of services for consumers and to achieve the objectives related to provision of universal service for different classes of service, national roaming will be encouraged in accordance with mobile licence terms. Mobile licensees will be encouraged to offer nationwide service as expeditiously as possible at mutually acceptable terms. Licensees that are designated as SMP in a relevant market under the competition rules shall be required to introduce national roaming on a fair and non-discriminatory basis.

Spectrum trading, under the policy, will be permitted under specific conditions. Spectrum trading occurs through outright sale of the rights and obligations or term lease, subject to licence conditions and approval by PTA, Pemra and FAB.

A spectrum trading framework will be developed by the PTA and Pemra, and will be approved by the federal government. In relation to trading, the seller shall be expected to pay a Trading Fee, and in addition, a Processing Fee shall be levied to cover re-issuing of licences.

Trading will be a commercial decision for the licence holder, who can decide to trade its licence permits. The terms of the trade shall be a commercial agreement between the licensee and third parties.

Spectrum shall be traded only if the relevant licence that contains the spectrum assignment to be traded, permits trading. Spectrum assigned to a licence without such a permit shall not be traded unless the federal government specifically authorises the trade as being in the public interest under the framework.

All licensees will be required to publish a customer charter and provide standard terms and conditions for use with their customers. In addition, licensees will have to put in place mechanisms to prevent abuse of their systems that results in customers receiving unsolicited or fraudulent communications. All licensees will provide coverage and pricing information to customers in an easily accessible and understood form.

The corporate entities that wish to establish intra-corporate networks will continue to be facilitated. Licensees will be required to provide infrastructure and services for such networks at competitive prices. Corporate networks will be permitted to connect to a licensee’s public network in one or more places for the purpose of origination and termination of traffic. However, a corporate entity may not engage in any commercial activity that enables transit of voice or data across a corporate network between such points of interconnection.

A code for local authorities will be developed to ensure that ducts and associated access points are provided in new roads, footpaths and railway tracks, and those that are being rebuilt. PTA will work with the appropriate authorities for roads to develop a code for the construction of telecommunications ducts to be included in the specification for any road or railway construction or rebuilding programme. The code will provide a specification for ducts to carry telecommunications cabling including any necessary related power cabling and voids or spaces to be provided at critical points for the provision of buried or surface mounted equipment chambers.

To implement cost savings in the telecoms industry and to mitigate the delays incurred in procuring rights of way for new infrastructure, reducing environmental clutter, sharing of passive and active infrastructure should be considered before granting a new right of way or space to build towers or for other infrastructure. All licensees with significant market power are obliged to share infrastructure on fair and nondiscriminatory terms where practical. To this end, the PTA will develop the necessary regulations or amendments to licence conditions, codes of conduct and model contracts, and arbitrate between licensees in disputes over infrastructure sharing. Infrastructure sharing obligations encompass a requirement to lease facilities on a fair and nondiscriminatory basis, to other licensed service providers. The facilities provided include space, electrical power, air conditioning, security, cable ducts, space on antenna, towers, etc.

Infrastructure sharing (passive and active) will be provided based on the regulations and guidelines established by PTA, in consultation with MoIT, on the principles of neutrality, non-discrimination, and equal access.

Under the policy, the assignments in E-Band will be made on link by link basis. The principle of first-come-first-served will apply. Applicants will apply to PTA for approval. FAB will manage the database of the approved links on public domain. New applicants will apply for assignments taking account of the existing assignments and protecting the earlier assignments. FAB will arbitrate where cases of interference are identified.

The band plan approved by FAB, based on ITU Recommendations and best international practices, will be followed for making assignments. Applicants will be required to establish and commence operation within three months of the approval of the link. In case of non-utilisation, the approval will stand cancelled and database will be updated accordingly.

According to the policy, the PTA will put in place an environmental regulatory framework for the sector consistent with the 2005 Environmental Policy. The PTA will prepare environmental risk assessment guidelines for the telecommunications sector. Licensees will implement the 2005 Environmental Policy, subsequent policies and consequential regulations and laws.