Post and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar on Thursday said that the telecom operators’ profit will fall if they can’t maintain their quality of services.

Jabbar said this at a roundtable meeting organized by Telecom and Technology Reporters’ Network Bangladesh (TRNB) at the Brac Center.

Jabbar added that a successful spectrum auction has happened this year.

“Increasing the quality of services is impossible without increasing the spectrum. That’s why telecom operators need enough spectrum in their stock,” Jabbar said.

Also read: Mobile operators must increase spectrum by December to provide better services to customers

He said that connectivity is becoming a basic need of the country’s people day by day.

“People want speedy net connections nowadays. The telecom operators have to dedicate themselves in providing speedy internet services,” Jabbar added.

The minister stressed the need of taking tower sharing to 100 per cent, which is only 17 per cent at present.

“We’re trying to formulate active sharing regulations as soon as possible. We’re also trying to ensure that the four telecom companies can use the towers altogether,” Jabbar said.

Although Bangladesh Telecom Regulatory Commission (BTRC) tried to sign a tripartite agreement (Mobile Operator-Tower Company-Mobile Operator) in May, 2021 and some telecom companies tried to share the towers of other network companies in the previous years, no tower sharing happened in the last four years.

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Among the network operators, tower sharing by Robi, Grameenphone and Banglalink is at 30 per cent, 18 per cent and 17 per cent, respectively. Among the 24.425 towers of the telecom operators, only 17 per cent is being currently shared.

The meeting was presided over by TRNB President Rashed Mehedi. TRNB General Secretary SM Masuduzzaman Robin provided the introductory speech, while the main essay was read out by TIM Nurul Kabir.