Telecoms Ministry allows VoIP on internet: Polish web no longer mute

The Telecommunications Ministry has stated it will issue regulations next month allowing Voice over IP (VoIP). Although the department under former minister Maciej Srebro claimed the service was illegal, last year it allowed Era GSM, a mobile telecom operator, to run VoIP as an "experiment." "Soon every operator will be allowed to send voice via the internet," said one ministry official. Under the new regulations, all internet providers will have the right to share in profits from the calls of their clients. They will also set the price for all the connections. Telecommunications minister Tomasz Szyszko stated that concessions for internet providers will be abolished to boost market development. He also said the department was preparing a new license tender for UTMS operators. It is not clear how many licenses would be granted but the answer should be known by the beginning of the 2001. (Prawo i Gospodarka, page 3; Puls Biznesu, page 3) J.K.