Nezavisne novine: In BiH will soon be created conditions for arrival of mobile operators on virtual networks, which will fix the quality of services, while the prices will significantly fall down, has been said by Željko Knežević, assistant of minister of communications and transport of BiH.
Mobile operators on virtual networks are mobile operators which do not have their own frequency, nor they have their own telecommunication infrastructure and they use the infrastructure of the existing dominant mobile operators through the payment. In the decision on policy of the telecommunication sector of BiH for the period from 2008. to 2012., which inures tomorrow, it has been stipulated that the Regulatory agency for communications (RAC) of BiH by the end of 2010. defines the licenses for those operators, which would get in commercial engagements with the existing dominant operators.
This means that the dominant operators, or "M:tel", "BH Mobile" and "HT-Eronet", will be obligated under the certain commercial conditions to enable the virtual operators to use their infrastructure.
"The similar way that 10 to 12 operators without their own infrastructure have show up in the land telephone network, which also use the existing infrastructure, an access to those operators will also be enabled under the certain conditions to the market, which will be regulated by the Regulatory agency for communications", Knežević has said.
Nadžida Sarić, chief of the sector for interconnection and market regulation in the RAC and an expert for that area, says that the operators on virtual networks will bring some positive innovations in BH telecommunications. She estimates that the mobile operators on virtual networks could in beginning take around 5% of the BH market, while the further development will depend on trade and offer. According to her, these operators in the countries of West Europe already function for awhile and have a successful business, especially in the Nordic countries.
Sarić estimates that a part of them could overtake the segments of market which are not being covered by dominant operators, as are for example religion communities, persons who do the sport and similar specific groups.
"For example, there can be an operator for the football fans, where the users will by the SMS receive the time of games, over the MMS they will be able to watch the goals, communicate cheaper among themselves, reserve the tickets for the games and similar", Sarić has explained.
Electro-companies – telecom operators
Željko Knežević, assistant of the minister of communications and transport of BiH, has said that there have been developed the technologies that the electro-companies through the energetic cables can offer telecommunication services.
"With an outlet you have the electricity, telephone, Internet and everything else. Technologies of separating the frequent volume have already been developed", Knežević has said. He has also explained that the railways of BiH could soon be able to provide the telecommunication services, because the infrastructure which they use for signalization and communication with the trains can be used for commercial offer of telecommunication appliances.
Dominant mobile operators claim that they are ready for the introduction of operators on virtual networks.
Nađa Lutvikadić, spokesperson of "BH Telecom", says that "BH Mobile" will implement everything prescribed by the RAC, introduction of mobile operators on virtual networks as well.
"We will keep the users in a way that we will offer the best service and respond by the best offer to any kind of concurrence", Lutvikadić has said.
Preserving the number while changing the operator
The operators of mobile and land telephone network will by the end of this year the latest have to enable the users to change the operator while keeping their old number. This means, for example, an user of "BH Mobile" will be able to transfer to "M:tel" network and keep the old 061 number, and opposite. The same has been related to "HT-Eronet".
In the decision on policy of the telecommunication sector of BiH for the period from 2008. to 2012. it has been stated that the transferability of number is one of the pillars of final liberalization of telecommunication services.
First commercial virtual mobile operator in the world is "Virgin Mobile" which has started in Great Britain in 1999. It has achieved a great success and has more than four million of users. There are more than 50 mobile operators on virtual networks in Europe. Norway has 15, Italy 12, Great Britain 11, Sweden nine, and Switzerland seven. In the region the most of them has Slovenia, which has three: "Debitel", "Izimobil", "Mmobil". Macedonia has "Frog Mobile” and Croatia "Tomato" by master "Vipnet" network.
On Kosovo there is a virtual operator "D3 Mobile". Its master network is Slovenian "IPKO Mobile", which has also been active in that area.