Decision No. 148/2003/QĐ-BBCVT Issuing temporarily interconnection tariffs between telecommunications service providers

Pursuant to …;

Issuing temporarily the interconnection rates between telecommunications service providers

_______________________

THE MINISTER OF POSTS AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS

Pursuant to Decree No. 90/2002/NĐ-CP dated 11/11/2002 The Government's Decree stipulates the functions, tasks, powers, and organizational structure of the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry;

Pursuant to Decision No. 99/1998/QĐ-TTg dated 26/5/1998 of the Prime Minister on price and tariff management for postal and telecommunications services;

Pursuant to Circular No. 03/1999/TT-TCBĐ dated May 11, 1999 of the General Post Office guiding the implementation of the Government's Decree No. 109/1997/NĐ-CP dated November 12, 1997 on postal services and telecommunications and Decision No. 99/1998/QĐ-TTg dated May 26, 1998 of the Prime Minister on price and rate management for postal and telecommunications services;

At the proposal of the Director of the Planning and Finance Department,

DECISION:

Article 1. 

1. The interconnection rates prescribed in this decision shall apply to all telecommunications service providers operating within the territory of Vietnam providing the following services:

Local telephone calls;

Domestic long-distance calls;

International calls;

Land-based mobile phone calls.

2. The interconnection rates prescribed in this decision shall not depend on the rates charged from users or the method of call execution chosen by the user (from public payphones, from subscriber phones, etc.) or payment method (prepaid, postpaid, etc.);

3. Interconnection rates for basic telecommunications services, value-added telecommunications services, and other services shall be separately prescribed by the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry.

Article 2.  Time for calculating interconnection rates

1. The time for calculating interconnection rates shall be counted from the moment the originating switch receives the answer signal from the terminating switch until the moment either the terminating switch or the originating switch sends the end-of-call signal, which is the hang-up signal (whichever comes first).

2.  For two-stage dialing calls, the time for calculating interconnection rates for the originating network shall be calculated according to separate regulations of the Posts and Telecommunications Ministry.

Article 3.  Interconnection rates for local telephone calls

Telecommunications service providers offering local telephone services shall not charge interconnection fees from each other.

Article 4.  Interconnection rates for PSTN or VoIP long-distance inter-provincial calls:

1. The provider of PSTN or VoIP long-distance inter-provincial calling services shall charge the customer for the call and pay the inter-provincial network interconnection fee as follows:

a) Originating inter-provincial network:

Inter-provincial network of the enterprise holding a dominant market share (SMP): 270 VND/minute;

Inter-provincial networks of enterprises not holding a dominant market share: 290 VND/minute.

b) Terminating inter-provincial network: 

Inter-provincial network of the enterprise holding a dominant market share (SMP): 270 VND/minute;

Inter-provincial networks of enterprises not holding a dominant market share: 290 VND/minute.

2. In the case where a provider of long-distance calling services transfers a call through another provider of long-distance calling services, the transferring provider must pay the interconnection fee to the provider that performs the call transfer.  The interconnection fee for performing the call transfer shall be determined by the provider of the call transfer service based on the principle of non-discrimination among enterprises.

Article 5.  Interconnection rates for calls between mobile networks and fixed-line networks

1. Calls from fixed-line networks to mobile networks:

a) In the case where the inter-provincial network directly connects with the mobile network, the inter-provincial network charges the customer and pays the mobile network interconnection fee as follows:

For calls ending in the mobile network of an enterprise holding a dominant market share (SMP), the interconnection fee paid to the mobile network is:  820 VND/minute;

For calls ending in the mobile network of an enterprise not holding a dominant market share, the interconnection fee paid to the mobile network is:  900 VND/minute.

b) In the case where the inter-provincial network connects with the mobile network via a PSTN or VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network, the inter-provincial network charges the customer and pays the interconnection fee as follows:

Paying the mobile network for the terminating call:

For calls ending in the mobile network of an enterprise holding a dominant market share (SMP), the interconnection fee paid to the mobile network is:  820 VND/minute.

For calls ending in the mobile network of an enterprise not holding a dominant market share, the interconnection fee paid to the mobile network is:  900 VND/minute.

In the case of using a PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network to transfer the call  to the mobile network, the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network pays the interconnection fee as follows:

If the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network connects to one MSC gateway of the region, the interconnection fee is 300 VND/minute;

If the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network connects to two MSC gateways of the region, the interconnection fee is 250 VND/minute;

If the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network connects to three MSC gateways of the region, the interconnection fee is 200 VND/minute;

In the case of using a VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network to transfer the call  to the mobile network, the interconnection fee paid to the VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network shall be agreed upon by the enterprises but shall not exceed the interconnection fee when connecting to the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network and shall not discriminate among enterprises.

2.  Calls from mobile networks to fixed-line networks:

a) In the case where the mobile network directly connects with the inter-provincial network, the mobile network charges the customer and pays the inter-provincial network interconnection fee as follows:

For calls ending in the local telephone network of an enterprise holding a dominant market share (SMP), the interconnection fee paid to the inter-provincial network is:  270 VND/minute;

For calls ending in the local telephone network of an enterprise not holding a dominant market share, the interconnection fee paid to the inter-provincial network is:  290 VND/minute.

b) In the case where the mobile network connects with the inter-provincial network via a PSTN or VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network, the mobile network charges the customer and pays the interconnection fee as follows:

Paying the inter-provincial network for the terminating call:

Inter-provincial network of the enterprise holding a dominant market share (SMP): 270 VND/minute;

Inter-provincial network of the enterprise not holding a dominant market share: 290 VND/minute.

In the case of using a PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network to transfer the call  to the inter-provincial network, the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network pays the interconnection fee as follows:

If the mobile network connects to one long-distance inter-provincial network of the region (one Toll), the interconnection fee is 300 VND/minute;

If the mobile network connects to two long-distance inter-provincial networks of the region (two Tolls), the interconnection fee is 250 VND/minute;

If the mobile network connects to three long-distance inter-provincial networks of the region (three Tolls), the interconnection fee is 200 VND/minute;

In the case of using a VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network to transfer the call  to the inter-provincial network, the interconnection fee paid to the VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network shall be agreed upon by the enterprises but shall not exceed the interconnection fee when connecting to the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network and shall not discriminate among enterprises.

Article 6.  Interconnection rates for calls between two mobile networks

1.  In the case where two mobile networks connect directly with each other, the originating mobile network pays the terminating mobile network the interconnection fee as follows:

For final calls to mobile telephone networks of enterprises holding a dominant market share (SMP):  820 VND/minute.

For final calls to mobile telephone networks of enterprises not holding a dominant market share:  900 VND/minute.

2.  In the case where two mobile networks connect through the PSTN network or long-distance VoIP network, the originating mobile network charges the customer for the call and pays the connection fee as follows:

Paying the mobile network for the terminating call:

For final calls to mobile telephone networks of enterprises holding a dominant market share (SMP):  820 VND/minute.

For final calls to mobile telephone networks of enterprises not holding a dominant market share:  900 VND/minute.

In the case of using a PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network to transfer the call  to the inter-provincial network, the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network pays the interconnection fee as follows:

If the mobile network connects to one long-distance inter-provincial network of the region (one Toll), the interconnection fee is 300 VND/minute;

If the mobile network connects to two long-distance inter-provincial networks of the region (two Tolls), the interconnection fee is 250 VND/minute;

If the mobile network connects to three long-distance inter-provincial networks of the region (three Tolls), the interconnection fee is 200 VND/minute;

In the case of using a VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network to transfer the call  to the inter-provincial network, the interconnection fee paid to the VoIP long-distance inter-provincial network shall be agreed upon by the enterprises but shall not exceed the interconnection fee when connecting to the PSTN long-distance inter-provincial network and shall not discriminate among enterprises.

Article 7. Connection fee for calls from Vietnam to international destinations

1.  For calls originating from fixed networks:

a)  For direct connections between fixed networks within provinces and international networks, the international network pays the connection fee as follows:

Paying the originating provincial fixed network:  0.10 USD per minute;

b)  For calls originating from fixed networks within provinces connecting to international networks through long-distance inter-provincial networks, the international network pays the connection fee as follows:

Paying the originating provincial fixed network:  0.10 USD per minute;

Paying the long-distance inter-provincial network: 

PSTN Network: 0.10 USD per minute;

VoIP Network: As agreed by the enterprises but not exceeding 0.05 USD per minute.

2.  For calls originating from mobile networks:

a)  For direct connections between mobile networks and international networks, the international network pays the connection fee as follows:

Paying the originating mobile network:  0.10 USD per minute;

b)  For calls originating from mobile networks connecting to international networks through long-distance inter-provincial networks, the international network pays the connection fee as follows:

Paying the originating mobile network:  0.10 USD per minute;

Paying the long-distance inter-provincial network: 

PSTN Network: 0.10 USD per minute;

VoIP Network: As agreed by the enterprises but not exceeding 0.05 USD per minute.

Article 8.  Connection fee for incoming calls from international destinations to Vietnam

1.  For final calls from international telephones to fixed networks

a) For direct final calls from international telephones to fixed networks within provinces, the international telephone network pays the connection fee:

Paying the provincial fixed network: 0.10 USD per minute;

b) For final calls from international telephones to fixed networks within provinces through inter-provincial long-distance networks, the international network pays the connection fee as follows:

Paying the provincial fixed network: 0.10 USD per minute;

Paying the inter-provincial network:

PSTN Network:  0.10 USD per minute;

VoIP Network:  As agreed by the enterprises but not exceeding 0.05 USD per minute.

2.  For final calls from international telephones to mobile networks

a)  For direct final calls from international telephones to mobile networks, the international network pays the connection fee:

Paying the mobile network for the terminating call:  0.10 USD per minute;

b) For final calls from international telephones to mobile networks through inter-provincial long-distance networks, the international network pays the connection fee:

Paying the mobile network for the terminating call:  0.10 USD per minute;

Paying the inter-provincial network: 

PSTN Network: 0.10 USD per minute;

VoIP Network: As agreed by the enterprises but not exceeding 0.05 USD per minute.

3.  In addition to the connection fees specified in Clauses 1 and 2 of this Article, international telecommunications service providers must comply with traffic volume limits for incoming international calls to Vietnam and pay additional connection fees for volumes exceeding the limit as prescribed by the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications.

Article 9.  Connection fee for off-peak hours

The connection fees for domestic long-distance calls and mobile calls stipulated in Articles 4, 5, 6, and 7 of this Decision shall be reduced by 30% during the following off-peak hours:

From 11 PM the previous night to 7 AM the next morning on weekdays from Monday to Friday;

All day Saturday and Sunday and public holidays (including compensatory days off).

Article 10.  Issuing invoices and collecting charges

Enterprises with direct subscribers (intra-provincial networks, mobile networks) shall issue invoices, collect charges, and receive a commission rate on collected charges as agreed between the enterprises.

Article 11.  Costs for establishing and maintaining connection lines

Costs for establishing and maintaining connection lines between two networks with subscribers connected to each other shall be borne equally by each network at 50%.  Other cases shall be implemented according to current regulations.

Article 12. 

1. This Decision takes effect from July 1, 2003. 

2. The connection fees specified in this Decision do not include value-added tax.

3. This Decision replaces the following Decisions:

Decision No. 48/1999/QĐ-TCBĐ dated January 19, 1999 of the General Director of the General Post Office on temporarily issuing the tariff table for connection fees between telecommunications service providers;

Decision No. 505/2001/QĐ-TCBĐ dated June 22, 2001 of the General Director of the General Post Office on temporarily issuing the connection tariffs between IP inter-provincial networks and public telephone networks (PSTN);

Decision No. 67/2003/QĐ-TCBĐ dated March 28, 2003 of the Minister of Posts and Telecommunications on temporarily regulating connection tariffs for international IP telephone services from Vietnam to international destinations.

4. Any decisions or regulations contrary to this Decision shall be abolished.

Article 13. The Chief of the Office, Heads of the Planning and Finance Department, Heads of units under the Ministry of Posts and Telecommunications, General Directors, Directors of intra-provincial, long-distance, international, and mobile telecommunications service providers, and related units are responsible for implementing this Decision./.