| 1. |
Introduction
The advancements in communications technology have enabled telephone calls to
be made and received through the Internet. Voice service via Internet Protocol (IP)
is an application service of IP telephony. Thus, the provision of Voice over Internet
Protocol (VoIP) is one of the services that come under the purview of IP telephony.
There are currently two ways of how VoIP service can be provided:
| a. |
PC to PC - based or what is known as internet
telephony; and |
| b. |
Phone to phone based through Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN), which involves multistage access dialing known as VoIP. |
The Ministry of Energy Communications and Multimedia had issued a policy position
that the provision of PC to PC base internet telephony is not subject to licensing.
However, in the case of VoIP, provision of the service requires an Applications Service
Provider (ASP) Individual licence as stipulated in the Communications and Multimedia
(Licensing) Regulations 2000.
This guideline is intended to facilitate parties interested to understand the mechanics
of the provisioning of VoIP services in Malaysia. |
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| 2. |
This guideline covers
the following subjects:
- Technical attributes of VoIP services
- Licensing requirement
- Technical compliance requirements
- Customer access arrangement
- Quality of service
- Complaints procedure
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| 3. |
Technical Attributes of
VoIP
| 3.1 |
The VoIP Service is classified as a service
in which the caller dials a special service number, which is not being charged, for
example, Freephone service number, to access the service. |
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| 3.2 |
The Freephone service number can be obtained
from the Network Provider. The Freephone Service Provider Codes assigned to the Network
Provider are shown in Table A. |
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| 3.3 |
All call charges are borne by the VoIP service
provider that subscribes to the Freephone service. |
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| 3.4 |
A caller from a cellular network calling Freephone
number may be charged as a call within the same mobile charging area whereby this
mobile charging area is that approved by the Commission. |
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| 3.5 |
Figure 1 illustrates the components of the
VoIP and the linkages relating to the users and the Network Provider. |
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| 4. |
Licensing Requirements
| 4.1 |
A VoIP service provider will require an Applications
Service Provider (ASP) Individual licence under the Communications and Multimedia
Act 1998 for the provision of the VoIP service. |
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| 4.2 |
The existing telecommunications operators
are allowed to provide the services under the licence issued under the repealed Telecommunications
Act 1950. |
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| 5. |
Technical Compliance Requirements
| 5.1 |
Any equipment/interface that is to be connected
to the Network Provider for the purpose of accessing the VoIP service must be type
approved by SIRIM or a certifying agency authorized by the Commission. |
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| 6. |
Customer Access Arrangement
| 6.1 |
Access to the VoIP service is through a special
dialed code (1-800 Freephone service numbers). The call is routed by a licensed Network
Provider to the VoIP server provided by the VoIP service provider for the purpose
of setting up a call. Figure 2 illustrates the components of the VoIP linkage for
the access. |
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| 6.2 |
VoIP service provider will negotiate on commercial
basis with the Network Provider to connect their server to the remote access server
(RAS), which resides with the Network Provider as illustrated in Figure 2. |
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| 6.3 |
The Freephone service will enable VoIP customers
to dial-in to the service from any network. The dial-in process is the first stage
of the multistage call set-up that involves a circuit switched to a packet switched
interface. |
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| 6.4 |
Billing of call charges shall be deducted
from the accounts payable to which the caller subscribes to the respective VoIP service
provider. However, for the Freephone service, the VoIP service provider will absorb
the call charges based on national and international calls (if applicable) that are
payable to the Network Provider. |
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| 7. |
Quality of Service
| 7.1 |
A VoIP service provider is responsible for
ensuring that voice passes through its network with minimal voice loss and unauthorized
access in accordance with the performance indicators as benchmark by the VoIP service
provider. |
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| 7.2 |
The routing shall be done so as to facilitate
the most efficient way of getting packets to their desired destination |
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| 7.3 |
The VoIP infrastructure and service shall
be built on the principles of scalability, availability and performance. |
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| 7.4 |
Necessary measures shall be taken by the VoIP
service provider and the Network Provider to minimize any congestion that may be
faced in accessing the VoIP service. This shall be done by the provision of sufficient
circuits and Point of Presence in the local access network. These circuits may be
leased from any licensed Network Provider. |
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