The Hindu Business Line : Ban `illegal' voice calls: ISPAI

Wrong number Portals do not possess Government licence International long-distance calls at local call charges Offer termination in Indian fixed-line telephones too

New Delhi , July 18

After hauling up ISPs for enabling allegedly illegal long-distance calls, the Department of Telecom (DoT) now plans to bring messenger-based telephony services such as those offered by Skype, Yahoo, MSN, and Net2Phone, under the scanner.

The Indian ISPs have themselves urged the Government to ban these services or ask them to obtain appropriate licence.

The move is a fallout of the Government's decision to make Internet telephony services part of the long-distance licence with entry and licence fees.

Prior to January 2006, ISPs were offering Internet telephony at no cost but now the Government has asked them to pay a fee to offer the service even as messenger-based telephony services such as Skype offer voice calls without any licence from India.

In a letter to the DoT, the Internet Service Providers Association of India (ISPAI) said: "Internet telephony services can be offered in India either by an ISP specifically permitted to do so or by a unified access service licensee. However, several service providers such as Skype, Net2Phone, Yahoo, and MSN, are providing Internet telephony services to people in India. Most of these foreign service providers do offer termination in Indian fixed-line telephones as well."

The letter, sent on July 13, also said that these service providers do not possess the requisite licence as mandated by the Government of India, thus vitiating the level playing field for bona fide licensees, such as Indian ISPs.

"Moreover, such service offering is resulting in loss of revenue to the Government by way of licence fee as well as by way of service tax," said the letter.

Senior DoT officials said that they were looking into the issue and would take a view soon.

"We are aware of the issues involved. The Government will take appropriate steps, taking into consideration the security concerns as well as the interest of the consumers," said a DoT official. A larger number of Internet users take advantage of the messenger-based telephony services, which offer international long-distance calls at local call charges.

The Indian ISPs have pointed to a recent ban imposed on Skype by the South Korean Government for offering voice service without a licence.

The ISPs also said that the service could prove to be a threat to national security with no monitoring being done.

The DoT had earlier put on hold applications of at least 18 Indian ISPs seeking licence for Internet telephony for allegedly being unable to crack down on grey market operators who were using their network.

The Government has been plugging security loopholes in the telecom sector, including the mobile segment and the Internet.