URT to look into Internet communications
The Telecommunications Regulatory Office (URT), the telecom industry watchdog, will determine if communications operators can legally offer voice connections via Internet lines, in a report to be issued this month.
Jacek Strzałkowski, the URT's spokesman, declined to indicate the agency's ruling on voice-over Internet protocol (VoIP) service as the report is still being completed. But he said the URT's decision could prompt changes in telecom legislation regarding the legal provisions for VoIP operators in Poland, thereby inviting more competition in the telecom market.
The URT's review came as a result of a push by national monopolist Telekomunikacja Polska (TPSA) to restrict VoIP services offered by other operators to protect its monopoly, especially in the lucrative international calling market. Under the telecommunications law, TPSA has a legal monopoly on international voice calls until Jan. 1, 2003. Alternative operators offering VoIP service, however, argue they are not violating the law by providing international long-distance connections via Internet lines instead of traditional fixed-line telecom networks.
The report will include information about the number of companies in Poland providing VoIP service, the number of VoIP users, technical aspects of the service, the legal provision for Polish operators to provide VoIP service in other countries, and an analysis of the relevant provisions of the telecommunications law.
