Latest Information Technology News in Pakistan: - Chairman Pakistan Telecom Authority, Dr. Ismail Shah said government has decided to APC, which was the main cause of gray traffic abolished.
He said that they hope that with this step on foreign exchange and illegal trade from abroad to Pakistan were to save. He said that TelecoAlert.com Ministry of Information Technology and Telecom has issued a policy directive after getting recommendation Telecommunications Authority. He said that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif M. wants to eliminate gray traffic and wants to fix APC set to zero. As par the International Clearing House Agreement, the rate at the moment is 2.9, which has now been abolished. Chairman PTA said that it is a major step by the Government of Pakistan to abolish the gray traffic.
Pakistani government has decided to withdraw the infamous International Clearing House or ICH, we have policy directive issued by the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunications.
With this development rates for international calls to Pakistan are likely to fall by around 400 to 500 per cent, we have checked with foreign providers.
"The overall market dynamics changed and there was an urgent need to change the ICH policy. The PM took this decision after consulting all stakeholders," said the sources. After the withdrawal of the ICH, it is now 15 LDI fight for their share, to the international calls to Pakistan (terminate ASR) with the bottom of the Access Settlement rate at around 5 cents per minute, which stood at 8.8 cents per minute level under the ICH mechanism.
The LDI operators - through agreements with foreign operators - stop international calls to local networks and a fee based on per minute.
Through the I all international traffic is handled by the PTCL, while other operators had withdrawn its trade agreements with foreign operators and closed their circuits for the termination of international traffic.
According to the ICH in a few months the international incoming traffic from legitimate channels decreased from 2000000000 minutes per month to less than 500 million minutes per month. The rest of the traffic is now marked as gray traffic through illegal channels.
Has Ministry of Information Technology and Telecom a policy directive in this regard, that its policy is reversed issued on ICH in 2012 issued a source that direct knowledge of the development has telecoalert said.
Pakistan Telecommunication Authority confirms that it has received a policy directive of MoIT for the revocation of ICH. PTA said that it was to communicate the industry on the Directive accordingly.
According to information we have received, the new APC (Access Promotion Charge) set to zero and LDI operators to their tariffs to negotiate with foreign operators for international incoming call charges. Here the text is policy directive below ....
Government of Pakistan
Ministry of Information Technology
(Rr & TELECOM DIVISION)
No.2-8l2011-DT Islamabad, the L7ft 1une, 201.4
Subiecfi policy review DIRECTIYE FOB DEVICE
INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE Clearinghouse, FOLT
Incoming international calls to
In exercise of the powers conferred by § 8 of the Pakistan
Telecommunication (Re-organization) Act 1996 (Amended 2Q06), Ministry of
Information Technology, issued a Directive on Privacy l, August 3, 2412 for restructuring
The way of international telecommunications traffic in Pakistan ended. To regulate incoming
Call rates, was also by the aforementioned Directive policy, all international mandate
Incoming calls are terminated to Pakistan through a single gateway called "International
Clearing House (ICH) "instead of individual gateways of the Long Distance
International (LDI) operators. Under this policy, Pakistan Telecommunication
Authority (IyIA), the sector regulator told, Approved Settlement Rates (ASR)
Including LDI operator’s margin and APC.
2 Given the consequences of ICH-arrangement of the
Standpoint of competition in the LDI sector for the termination of international calls, excessive
Call prices of Overseas Pakistanis and other callers, the significant increase in applied
Driven in traffic gray degree in Pakistan and to the cause of further market
Deregulated mechanism, PTA had recommended a review of the ICH policy.
3 awarded given the foregoing, and in exercise of powers under §
8 of the Pakistan Telecommunication (Re-organization) Act 1996 (amended in 2006),
Ministry of Information Technology is pleased to adopt the following revised Directive
Directive for compliance with the PTA;
I Data Protection Directive for the establishment of the International Clearinghouse
International Exchange for incoming calls, dated 13u'August shown in 2012
Vide letter no. MoIT 9-1/2002-DT shall withdraw
1 Relevant provisions and powers of the PTA under Section 4.3 of the "de-regulation policy for the telecommunications sector", 2003, restored in original. Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) is to determine the authority, approved Settlement Rate (ASR), including APC,
As I did before. For the purposes of effective competitor the APC of the ASR regime will be zero rated for the time being. Be treated in consultation with the Ministry of Information All additional matters that the setting of ICH regime by PTA
Technology. v. The revised policy will take effect on l,’t August 2014 and is
Remain in force until further evaluation.