Dhaka: The door is shut on the cyber cafes so far freewheeling on bandwidth for internet service without taking license as the government regulatory body Thursday wrapped up the licensing opportunity.

Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission or BTRC earlier had directed the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to provide bandwidth to the non-licensed cyber cafes from May 26.

As per the Telecommunications Act 2001, cyber cafe requires license for operating business in the knowledge economy.

AKM Shahiduzzaman, director of legal and license department of the BTRC, told banglanews24.com.bd, " We have already warned all the national and zonal internet service providers to share bandwidth with the licensed cyber cafes only.”

He also said the telecom watchdog would now monitor the issue strictly and conduct operation against illegal cyber cafes.

Welcoming the BTRC move, Zulfikar Hayder, general secretary of the Cyber Cafe Owners Association of Bangladesh, said, " We will cooperate with the commission in this regard. Firstly, we will force the rest of our members to get licenses immediately."
 
As per the law, the owner of a non-licensed cyber cafe has to pay Tk 10 lakh as fine, in default, to suffer two years in jail or to face both in special cases.

BDST: 1930, 27 May 2010
RS/SMS/MUA