By Muhammad Yasir

KARACHI: All long-distance and international (LDI) operators shall ensure full accounting of international traffic’s voice and data on the networks of cellular phones, wireless and landline operators.

The Pakistan Telecommu-nication Authority in its newly issued regulation titled ‘Monitoring and Reconciliation of Telephony Traffic Regulations, 2010’asked all LDI licensees to deploy monitoring systems that are capable of identifying, analysing and reconciling all data and voice signalling information through clear and transparent mechanism.

All networks having probes placed on all links carrying telephony traffic may be identified irrespective of any path, the regulations mentioned. “So the telecom regulator may provide traffic detail of communication of LDI and other operators (cellular firms, wireless local loop, fixed local loop) through their networks.”

LDI and other operators shall ensure that signalling information must be uncompressed, unencrypted, and unformatted which the installed monitoring system could enable to decipher using installed capabilities.

The LDI licensees and other operators shall provide access to the authorised representatives of the concerned authority for obtaining information directly through the system of any traffic routed through their network whenever PTA requires.

All information and interfaces provided by the licensees and other operators shall be maintained readable without any modification prescribed by PTA from time to time.

All licensees and multiple operators provide a scalable monitoring system to ensure modifications to meet the evolving policies, standards, formats, directions, rules and regulations of the authority.

According to the regulations, PTA may restrict future extension and expansion of the traffic links and capacity of the LDI and other operators if they fail to meet the financial obligations invoked in their mutual arrangements.

The authority can also suspend switches, circuits and traffic links of the LDI licensees and other operators proportionate to the relative pending financial obligations.

Operators shall be responsible to maintain, repair, upgrade their system, (software and hardware both), modify and enhance the capability of the monitoring system promptly and efficiently so that the authority is capable to add and install other elements if required.

All landing station and infrastructure licensees shall establish interface with the authority on its cost for the purpose of monitoring of telecommunication traffic within 120 days of these regulations.

PTA may allow the landing station licensee to enter into an arrangement with the LDI collective system that should be combined in accordance with the territorial limits specified in its licences as cost effective solution.
Source: Daily Times
Date:5/9/2010