New telecom licensing regime in June 

The government is set to approve the new telecom network and licensing policy in June after the finalisation of the current draft, according to Chief Adviser's Special Assistant for Posts Telecommunications and ICT Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb.

The "Telecommunication Network and Licensing Regime Reform Policy 2025" aimed at overhauling the country's complex telecom licensing structure is going through a phase of accommodating stakeholder opinions before finalisation, according to the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC). 

Taiyeb also warned, "In July, the government will act hard against companies that will not reduce internet prices, despite the set of government efforts to facilitate their way."

He was speaking at the press conference organised at the BTRC office ahead of World Telecommunication and Information Society Day on 17 May. This year's theme for the day is "Gender Equality in Digital Transformation".

Secretaries for Telecommunication, ICT attended the press conference along with BTRC Chairman Major General (retd) Emdad-ul-Bari.

The new topology 

The BTRC, in a bid to deregulate and simplify the existing network and licensing structure, has proposed eliminating the several licensing layers from the current licensing regime and limit the layers to just three major categories.

The categories are international connectivity service providers, national infrastructure and connectivity service providers, and access network service providers. 

As per the draft, services such as submarine or terrestrial cable-based international connectivity, IP transit, carrier contracts, and call termination will fall under the international connectivity category.

Licences for international gateway (IGW) and international internet gateway (IIG) services will be discontinued upon expiry, mostly by 2027. Existing licence holders may apply for the broader international connectivity provider licence, according to the draft.

Under the national infrastructure and connectivity service category, firms will provide services such as tower sharing and nationwide transmission. 

However, interconnection exchanges (ICX), existing in the voice industry, and the national internet exchange (NIX) licences will be discontinued after expiry. The existing licence holders may apply for a broader category licence.

In the access network layer, which serves end users directly, no licences will be revoked.

However, in a move to simplify the system, fixed broadband internet service licences, currently issued separately for national, divisional, district, and thana levels, will be merged into a single fixed telecom service licence. 

Smaller ISPs that do not meet the new requirements will be able to register as small ISPs through an enlistment process.

BTRC also proposed removing licensing or registration requirements for call centre services, vehicle tracking services, and telecommunications value-added services.