Post and Telecommunication Minister Mostafa Jabbar said active sharing can be done with the permission of BTRC until the policy is finalized. The minister said this in view of the demands of ISPAB president Imdadul Haque in the round table meeting on ‘Challenges of sharing infrastructure in network development’ organized by Telecom and Technology Network Bangladesh (TRNB) at BRAC Center Inn at Mohakhali of the capital on Thursday (July 21).
Mostafa Jabbar opined in his speech of the chief guest at the discussion mentioning, asset sharing is an important issue. Keeping it in passive sharing doesn’t offer the same benefits. We are trying to speed up this policy. Until the policy is finalized, asset sharing can be done with BTRC’s permission.
Instructing the mobile phone operators present at the event to increase the quality of service along with the customers, the minister said that the trend of the mobile phone operators is that they want to increase the number of customers. But they do not increase the quality of service in comparison. They think whatever service they provide, customers will stay with them forever. He also warned that if the standards are not raised, it will disappear.
Calling the operators to increase the standards for their own sake, the Minister of Post and Telecommunication said, when you go to the Parliament, you have to hear the most questions – ‘why call drops?’; ‘No signals’ and so on.
He also said that the tower company sharing should be 100%. Four companies can use the tower.
Mentioning the need to share infrastructure to reduce costs, Mostafa Jabbar said to the operators that our biggest challenge is mobile phone quality service. The customer will be escalated but will not receive customer service. That won’t happen. If you do not provide good service, you will fall from the top position. Under no circumstances can the customer be retained if the quality of service cannot be maintained. There is no option to increase the quality of service. There is no objection to doing business or increasing customers. If you cannot provide quality service, you cannot survive.
Telecom expert TIM Nurul Kabir presented the key-note paper in the meeting presided over by TRNB President Rashed Mehdi and moderated by General Secretary Masuduzzaman Robin.
BTRC Chairman Shyam Sundar Sikder said in his speech as the special guest, “Some of our telecom service providers are focused on increasing the market size, but not so much on the quality of service. But we have to ensure quality of service. Where are the gaps in infrastructure sharing? There is a reluctance of operators to share, and some lack of coordination. BTRC can take guardianship. Referring to the issue of saving, the BTRC chairman said, sharing is the key to saving energy and electricity.”
In the meeting Teletalk managing director Sahab Uddin Ahmed, BTCL managing director Dr. Rafiqul Matin, E.co Bangladesh Country Managing Director Ricky Stein, Grameenphone Head of Regulatory Affairs Hossain Sadat, Banglalink Chief Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Officer Taimur Rahman, ISPAB President Imdadul Haque, Fiber at Home Managing Director and Chairman Mainul Haque Siddiqui, Robi’s Spectrum & Technical Regulation Executive Vice President Anamika Bhakta and economist and researcher Manjur Hossain spoke in the round table discussion.
On behalf of the operators, Banglalink Chief Corporate and Regulatory Affairs Officer Taimur Rahman said, “I think tower sharing should be made mandatory for all operators soon. In the present energy crisis of the country, we need to take effective action quickly. If we can jointly use the infrastructure, there will be proper utilization of electricity and other energy. I appeal to the government to make tower sharing mandatory at the earliest, so that all parties can benefit from this system.”
Hossain Sadat, CCO of Grameenphone said, “No agreement has been proposed by any operator for tower sharing in the last four years. It is not fair to blame an operator for sharing if no agreement can be reached.”
Robi’s Executive Vice President (EVP) Anamika Bhakta said, “Operators could not share towers in the last four years. They offered two operators but received feedback from one operator. Operators can decide which towers can be shared, if published on the website.”
Economist and researcher Manjur Hossain said that as a result of network sharing, the cost of the operator will be reduced, and they will be able to ensure quality services.