Though most illegal net phone operators promised to obtain licence, they will have to up the call charges in the changed circumstances with the government legalising the VoIP (voice over internet protocol).

The VoIP call charges will go up as the would-be operators will have to spend significantly on network, higher licence fees and security deposit.

The BTTB, on the other hand, proposed to cut call charges down to around Tk 13 a minute for the American region, which is currently Tk 40 during peak hours.

The call cost would be reduced proportionately to other regions including the Middle East and Saarc. The BTTB offers a 25 percent off-charge during the off-peak hours, starting from 8:00pm to 8:00am.

The BTTB will also reduce the incoming call charge of overseas operators to 3.5 cents for Dhaka and 6.25 cents for elsewhere after the benchmark calls. The BTTB regards certain number of calls made by overseas operators as benchmark calls, current rate of which is 14.2 cents a minute.

"This will help the BTTB to remain competitive after the emergence of the internet telephony in the private sector," said a senior BTTB official.

The BTTB plans to handle the fresh surge of calls through a special alternative gateway through which it will re-route phone calls without terminating the link to its International Trunk Exchange (ITX), he said.

"We would also be able to offer better voice quality through a managed network compared to the VoIP operators, who will for sure struggle to mange network," he said.

On BTTB's using VoIP technology, he said it can use the internet gateway without obtaining licence as per the country's telecoms act.

Cellphone operators meanwhile said the telecoms market regulator -- Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) -- should frame modalities for both private and public operators before awarding licence for internet telephony.

Private and public operators will set their own criteria to terminate and generate calls through VoIP from day one, an official with a leading cellphone operator said.

He said the market regulator should ensure a level playing field for both public and private operators.

Leaders of the Internet Service Providers Association (ISPA) termed the BTTB call charge reduction a move to hinder the growth of the information and communication technology in the private sector.