Says service operated violating laws
The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission on Sunday asked mobile phone operator Banglalink to submit the financial details of Home Zone service which the operator launched in 2011 violating the relevant laws. The BTRC asked the company to submit the zone-wise earning of the Home Zone package by November 21 (tomorrow) as Banglalink failed to submit the document in the previous deadline of August 12.
The letter said Banglalink had violated Section-2 of BTRC’s interim tariff directive which bars mobile operators to offer a package based on geographic consideration.
‘If you [Banglalink] fail to submit the details within the stipulated time the commission will make a decision on the matter unilaterally,’ reads the BTRC letter.
BTRC officials said the Home Zone service offered lower call rates in Dhaka University, Jahangirnagar University, Rajshahi University, Khulna University, and Shahjalal University of Science and Technology and their surrounding areas. They said the service was also available in some district headquarters.
But the duration of the service could not be confirmed.
‘This is a gross violation of the BTRC rules as such offer deprives mobile users from different facilities because of their location,’ said a BTRC official.
He said Banglalink was not submitting the required documents despite several notices.
The BTRC rules allow mobile operators to offer dynamic pricing based on network traffic over the base transceiver station or BTS.
‘The network coverage is run through the BTS. When a particular BTS is less crowded, the users under that BTS can enjoy lower tariff. But, such offers will have to be valid for all the BTSs an operators has countrywide,’ said another BTRC official.
‘We have several times asked for the financial details of the Home Zone offer but the company is delaying to provide us with it,’ he said.
Banglalink has also kept delaying the refund of Tk 9 crore the operator collected by charging the subscribers of another unapproved promotional package in 2011, officials said.
The BTRC had asked Banglalink to refund Tk 92.33 crore it earned through unapproved flat tariff promotion on several occasions but the operator claimed that the amount would be much lower.
Later Banglalink said it had collected Tk 9 crore in extra money from the subscribers between July 8, 2011 and November 16, 2011 through a daily flat tariff promotion but did not refund the money.
The company is yet to pay a fine worth Tk 10 lakh which was imposed for violating the BTRC rules in the flat tariff promotion.
‘The Home Zone is an old issue and we were offering BTS-based pricing in that offer,’ Banglalink’s regulatory and legal affairs senior director Zakiul Islam told New Age on Tuesday when asked about the issue.
He, however, denied making any further comment on the issue.
-With New Age input
