Regulator sees 25 lakh broadband users in 3 years

The number of internet broadband users with 1 Megabits per second speed will reach the 25 lakh mark in the next three years, up from around 1 lakh now, BTRC Chairman Sunil Kanti Bose said yesterday.
The country's mobile operators can help the regulator reach the target, where multiple and single users may also be included, said the head of Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission.
Ten percent of every Tk 100 earned by the government comes from the telecom sector, and around 95 percent of the country's three crore internet users use mobile phones for browsing with low speed connections, Bose said.
Bose spoke at the launch of the website and a bi-lingual (English and Bangla) monthly newsletter -- CONNEXION -- of the Association of Mobile Telecom Operators of Bangladesh (AMTOB) at Sonargaon Hotel in Dhaka yesterday.
Broadband plays a key role in socio-economic development, so the telecoms sector should be developed for the sake of the country, he said.
The regulator has recently defined 1 Mbps as broadband connections, which was 128 Kbps earlier.
At the event, Information Minister Hasanul Haq Inu called for reviewing the telecom law and regulatory guidelines to help the sector grow faster. Telecoms Minister Shahara Khatun launched the newsletter.
The newsletter will be distributed to all the sector stakeholders, while its PDF and e-newsletter versions will be availawble on the website of the association, said AMTOB Secretary General TIM Nurul Kabir.
AMTOB Chairman Michael Kuehner and Vice Chairman Chris Tobit were also present.