Old Licensing Abolished; Four-Tier System Introduced for Fair Telecom Market

Issuing seven tiers of licenses but handing six of them to a single company—this discriminatory practice by the ousted government provoked public outrage. To protect the telecom sector from such “rogue operations,” a new license policy is indispensable, stated the Chief Adviser’s ICT & Telecom Special Assistant Faiz Ahmad Taiyeb.

On Saturday, 22 November, he wrote this on his official Facebook page. According to him, expanding the foundation of the digital economy requires shutting down the current 26 types of licenses and adopting simpler, converged licensing. Considering the country’s realities and the risks of monopoly, the new telecom license framework has not granted all operators a universal convergence model. Still, the newly introduced four-tier license structure will boost competition and broaden each tier’s operating scope.

In his Facebook post, he wrote that the ineffective, mafia-like license regime—an obstacle to the telecommunications sector’s growth—is being scrapped as the Telecommunication Network and Licensing Policy 2025 has now been published in the official gazette. This will allow review of more than three thousand legal and illegal licenses issued during the Awami League era.

He added that the newly published guidelines for license fees, charges and revenue sharing are still in draft form and will be finalized after further consultations with stakeholders and economists. He emphasized, “No step in the new license policy will increase the price of internet.”

Highlighting opportunities for domestic entrepreneurs and investment, he added that:
– NTTN licensees must release 35% shares,
– ICSPs must release 51%, and
– MNOs must release 15% of their shares or ownership in favor of domestic entities.
However, local entrepreneurs may retain full ownership if they choose. Alongside this, private 5G and MVNO businesses have been opened. Domestic investors can enter these two promising sectors. In short, no technological blocks exist in the new policy, so investors are urged to avoid outdated ventures and instead shift to modern telecom services and technologies.

Reflecting on flaws in the old structure, Taiyeb wrote that it failed to ensure access to the internet, access to devices, and access to fiber. Homes, businesses and industries across Bangladesh still lack fiber connectivity; only 22% of mobile towers have fiber backhaul. Due to insufficient fiber expansion, data consumption per capita remains one-fiftieth of India’s.

He further stated that the previous policy limited telecom to mere “connections,” whereas the sector must evolve into digital service–based operations. Mobile operators and ISPs still rely on bundles and packages; but Bangladesh has yet to see growth in ed-tech, health-tech, agri-tech, fintech, logistics tech or similar digital service startups within the telecom ecosystem.

He also questioned the quality of service provided under the former licensing model. ISPs, mobile internet providers, NTTNs and IIGs have not delivered QoS-based secure internet or digital services. Bangladesh lacks the concept of secure internet, with most providers lacking hardware security modules, PAM tools, software security, and firewalls—operating in an unsafe environment.

He wrote that the new policy will reduce licensing layers to eliminate intermediaries and ensure competitive services. This will allow affordable service delivery to customers without reducing government revenue.

He noted that the previous license policy allowed companies to engage in rent-seeking—making huge profits by investing only a few crore taka, collecting tolls, and extracting hundreds of crores even with 90% revenue sharing. These middlemen licenses have now been abolished under the new policy.

He emphasized the existing revenue challenge related to rationalizing the duty structure. Excessively hierarchical, intermediary-heavy licensing had prevented internet prices from decreasing as expected. However, recently published QoS reports show improvements in internet speed and service quality.

Finally, he assured that legacy investors will receive new licenses and continue business with fresh investments. He mentioned that IGW and ICX license applications have run out, and their equipment is nearing end-of-life. Therefore, instead of putting money into obsolete technology, new investment must shift toward new-generation telecom infrastructure.

DBTech/MJU/Muim/OR