Illegal ‘Go Broadband’

GP has to pay Tk 30cr fine, says BTRC chief

Grameenphone, the largest mobile operator of the country, has no option but to pay Tk 30 crore as fine for providing illegal broadband service, Dr Shahajahan Mahmood, Chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), yesterday said after the 201th commission meeting. Dr Shahjahan told The Independent that the BTRC has reviewed and decided that Grameenphone (GP) has no way of evading the fine as their crime has been proved.
Earlier, as per the decision taken in the 200th meeting of the commission, the BRTC sent GP a letter to pay the Tk 30 crore fine for providing illegal broadband internet services under the banner of Go Broadband. Grameenphone, however, apparently did not pay heed to the letter and in its reply, asked the regulator to clear its stance on the issue. BTRC, after reviewing the GP letter and the nature of the illegal service provided by the operator, decided to uphold the decision to impose a Tk 30 crore fine on the operator. Sayed Talat Kamal, spokesperson of GP, told The Independent  on November 7, 2016, “We have received the letter from the regulator and we are now in the process of assessing the legality of the direction to decide on our next step.”
“We would, however, like to reiterate that the GO Broadband service was initiated with permission from the relevant authorities and under a valid partnership structure,” Kamal added.
Earlier, BTRC on October 31, 2016 fined GP. BTRC Chairman Shahjahan Mahmood approved the imposition of fine on GP following a decision in this regard at a commission meeting.
Earlier on July 13, the regulator issued a show cause notice to Grameenphone asking it to explain the illegal services provided by the operator under ‘Go Broadband’.
The BTRC also annulled a service agreement between GP’s ‘Go Broadband’ and state owned Sonali Bank. In the show cause notice issued to GP on July 13, the BTRC asked the operator’s CEO to cite reasons behind its breaching of telecom laws and the clauses in the licensing agreement over Go Broadband service, which it launched illegally.
The notice signed by SM Golam Sorwar, Senior Assistant Director, (Legal and Licensing Division) of BTRC, said as per the provisions of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulation Act, 2001 (Act, 2001) and the terms and conditions of the license, GP is obligated to perform the duties and responsibilities and to provide services in the manner stated in the-Act, 2001 and the licenses. But GP has failed to comply with these obligations, he added.
Therefore, the BTRC said GP has contravened the conditions of the aforementioned licenses and the Nationwide Telecommunication Transmission Network (NTTN) guidelines and the Infrastructure Sharing Guidelines read with sections 35 and 73 of the Act, 2001. In the letter, it was mentioned that the above telecom services were provided by GP to Sonali Bank Ltd beyond the purview of GP’s 2G and 3G licenses.
As such GP violated the condition Nos. 4.02 and 4.03 of 2G and 3G licenses respectively.’ BTRC said according to the provisions of NTTN guidelines, no person or business entity shall be allowed to develop, build, operate and maintain NTTN without a valid License issued by the Commission. As such GP violated the condition No. 3.01 of the NTTN guidelines.
Also according to the condition Nos. 4.7 and 4.8 of the Infrastructure Sharing Guidelines, cellular mobile phone operators will not be permitted to build optical/wired backbone transmission network, if such networks of NTTN operators are already available there. But GP building and using optical/ wired transmission network to provide services to Sonali Bank Ltd by violating all those conditions.’
As per the letter, that GP failed to comply with the relevant guidelines and directions and/or directives of the Commission on Infrastructure and facility sharing. As such GP violated the condition Nos. 10.01, 10.02, 23.01 and 23.02 of the 2G and 3G Licenses respectively.
Earlier on June 22, the BTRC cancelled a service contract between GP and state owned Sonali Bank Ltd. Under the contract, GP has been providing Sonali Bank with the Go Broadband services which according to BTRC, is illegal.
In a meeting, the BTRC came up with the observation that GP was giving internet and telecommunication service to Sonali Bank through fixed connection through fiber optics cable violating its license contract with the BTRC, and the rules and regulation of the Telecommunication Act.
Grameenphone, in alliance with ADN Telecom and Agni Systems, offered ‘Go Broadband’ services that provide fibre-optic connections ‘by violating BTRC’s Wi-Max policy guidelines’, the telecoms watchdog said. After a series of scrutiny over the GP explanations regarding the services, the Engineering and Operations Department of the BTRC came up with the observation.
In a note, the BTRC’s Engineering and Operations Department also recommended that GP should be slapped with a monetary fine for this ‘severe violation’ of the articles 4.7 and 4.8 of the BTRC guidelines on telecom infrastructures. “The operator cannot share or lease its infrastructure without permission from the regulator.
Grameenphone, as a mobile phone operator, cannot provide wire-connectivity. The operator is also providing fibre connectivity, which can only be done by NTTN operators,” a BTRC senior official told The Independent while explaining the nature of the violations by mobile operator GP. “It is providing wire technology connectivity to 551 branches of Sonali Bank without obtaining permission from the BTRC.
It is also providing modem services what wi-max service providers Qubee and Banglalion do despite obtaining no Wi-Max licence,” he continued. The BTRC, in its observation, said that by providing services to 551 branches without involving any NTTN operator and by concealing the information to the BTRC, GP did violated rules. It had been doing the ISP business without obtaining any license for doing this business, BTRC observed. Earlier, after receiving a complaint, the BTRC, in a letter issued on March 30, pointed out six allegations of irregularities and asked Grameenphone, ADN Telecom and Agni Systems to present their explanations by April 13.

 

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Illegal Go Broadband

GP has to pay Tk 30cr fine, says BTRC chief

Grameenphone, the largest mobile operator of the country, has no option but to pay Tk 30 crore as fine for providing illegal broadband service, Dr Shahajahan Mahmood, Chairman of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), yesterday said after the 201th commission meeting. Dr Shahjahan told The Independent that the BTRC has reviewed and decided that Grameenphone (GP) has no way of evading the fine as their crime has been proved. Earlier, as per the decision taken in the 200th meeting of the commission, the BRTC sent GP a letter to pay the Tk 30 crore fine for providing illegal broadband internet services under the banner of Go Broadband. Grameenphone, however, apparently did not pay heed to the letter and in its reply, asked the regulator to clear its stance on the issue. BTRC, after reviewing the GP letter and the nature of the illegal service provided by the operator, decided to uphold the decision to impose a Tk 30 crore fine on the operator. Sayed Talat Kamal, spokesperson of GP, told The Independent on November 7, 2016, We have received the letter from the regulator and we are now in the process of assessing the legality of the direction to decide on our next step. We would, however, like to reiterate that the GO Broadband service was initiated with permission from the relevant authorities and under a valid partnership structure, Kamal added. Earlier, BTRC on October 31, 2016 fined GP. BTRC Chairman Shahjahan Mahmood approved the imposition of fine on GP following a decision in this regard at a commission meeting. Earlier on July 13, the regulator issued a show cause notice to Grameenphone asking it to explain the illegal services provided by the operator under Go Broadband. The BTRC also annulled a service agreement between GPs Go Broadband and state owned Sonali Bank. In the show cause notice issued to GP on July 13, the BTRC asked the operators CEO to cite reasons behind its breaching of telecom laws and the clauses in the licensing agreement over Go Broadband service, which it launched illegally. The notice signed by SM Golam Sorwar, Senior Assistant Director, (Legal and Licensing Division) of BTRC, said as per the provisions of the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulation Act, 2001 (Act, 2001) and the terms and conditions of the license, GP is obligated to perform the duties and responsibilities and to provide services in the manner stated in the-Act, 2001 and the licenses. But GP has failed to comply with these obligations, he added. Therefore, the BTRC said GP has contravened the conditions of the aforementioned licenses and the Nationwide Telecommunication Transmission Network (NTTN) guidelines and the Infrastructure Sharing Guidelines read with sections 35 and 73 of the Act, 2001. In the letter, it was mentioned that the above telecom services were provided by GP to Sonali Bank Ltd beyond the purview of GPs 2G and 3G licenses. As such GP violated the condition Nos. 4.02 and 4.03 of 2G and 3G licenses respectively. BTRC said according to the provisions of NTTN guidelines, no person or business entity shall be allowed to develop, build, operate and maintain NTTN without a valid License issued by the Commission. As such GP violated the condition No. 3.01 of the NTTN guidelines. Also according to the condition Nos. 4.7 and 4.8 of the Infrastructure Sharing Guidelines, cellular mobile phone operators will not be permitted to build optical/wired backbone transmission network, if such networks of NTTN operators are already available there. But GP building and using optical/ wired transmission network to provide services to Sonali Bank Ltd by violating all those conditions. As per the letter, that GP failed to comply with the relevant guidelines and directions and/or directives of the Commission on Infrastructure and facility sharing. As such GP violated the condition Nos. 10.01, 10.02, 23.01 and 23.02 of the 2G and 3G Licenses respectively. Earlier on June 22, the BTRC cancelled a service contract between GP and state owned Sonali Bank Ltd. Under the contract, GP has been providing Sonali Bank with the Go Broadband services which according to BTRC, is illegal. In a meeting, the BTRC came up with the observation that GP was giving internet and telecommunication service to Sonali Bank through fixed connection through fiber optics cable violating its license contract with the BTRC, and the rules and regulation of the Telecommunication Act. Grameenphone, in alliance with ADN Telecom and Agni Systems, offered Go Broadband services that provide fibre-optic connections by violating BTRCs Wi-Max policy guidelines, the telecoms watchdog said. After a series of scrutiny over the GP explanations regarding the services, the Engineering and Operations Department of the BTRC came up with the observation. In a note, the BTRCs Engineering and Operations Department also recommended that GP should be slapped with a monetary fine for this severe violation of the articles 4.7 and 4.8 of the BTRC guidelines on telecom infrastructures. The operator cannot share or lease its infrastructure without permission from the regulator. Grameenphone, as a mobile phone operator, cannot provide wire-connectivity. The operator is also providing fibre connectivity, which can only be done by NTTN operators, a BTRC senior official told The Independent while explaining the nature of the violations by mobile operator GP. It is providing wire technology connectivity to 551 branches of Sonali Bank without obtaining permission from the BTRC. It is also providing modem services what wi-max service providers Qubee and Banglalion do despite obtaining no Wi-Max licence, he continued. The BTRC, in its observation, said that by providing services to 551 branches without involving any NTTN operator and by concealing the information to the BTRC, GP did violated rules. It had been doing the ISP business without obtaining any license for doing this business, BTRC observed. Earlier, after receiving a complaint, the BTRC, in a letter issued on March 30, pointed out six allegations of irregularities and asked Grameenphone, ADN Telecom and Agni Systems to present their explanations by April 13. Related News: Grameenphone reluctant to provide MNP services to subscribers(12-06-2015) DRU accuses GP of cheating(23-06-2015) GP seeks until Tuesday to fix problem(05-07-2015) VIPs SIM cards cloned(17-09-2015) BTRC to start auditing GP on October 20(07-10-2015) GP under renewed fire from telecoms minister(20-10-2015) GP deprives railways of Tk 81cr a year: CAG(05-01-2016) BTRC seeks explanation from GP, ADN, Agni(04-04-2016) Five GP staff among 11 arrested over SIM cloning(20-04-2016) GP denies, CID remains firm(21-04-2016) Grameenphone Go Broadband illegal(31-05-16) BTRC cancels GP-Sonali deal(24-06-16) BTRC brings allegation against audit firm(28-07-16) GPs illegal business(18-06-2015) GP ghost bills(28-06-2015) NBR seeks bank statements of Grammeenphone(04-08-2015) Telcos ride on fake ID cards(20-09-2015) Ministers vent spleen on GP service(15-10-2015) GP under ACC probe(27-11-2015) BTRC orders GP not to hinder audit process(11-02-2016) GP clarification(05-04-2016) GP, ADN, Agni submit explanation(20-04-2016) BTRC seeks explanation from GP, ADN, Agni again(30-04-2016) GP, Airtel to be fine(10-06-16) BTRC issues show cause notice on GP(14-07-16) BTRC fines GP TK 30cr(31-10-16) GP sponsorships breach rules: Telenor (15-12-16)