The Telecommunications Authority has announced terms and conditions of interconnection for international call-forwarding services involving mobile network operators, fixed network operators and external telecoms service operators.

The international call forwarding platform benefits consumers by offering an alternative method of receiving international mobile calls outside Hong Kong, by using numbers that begin with 305 through 309 or 8, at lower prices than mobile roaming service.

Terms are fair, reasonable, efficient

The authority has set out terms and conditions of interconnection which are fair, reasonable and efficient and will help ensure the provision of this service at a satisfactory level the Office of the Telecommunications Authority said.

Fixed network operators and external telecom service operators that provide international call forwarding must pay an interconnection charge of 15.86 cents per minute to compensate the mobile network operators or mobile virtual network operators for forwarding mobile incoming calls through their networks to the call forwarding platform.

The authority had to determine the charges since mobile network operators and the international call forwarding providers failed to reach commercial agreements on the access charge level since they started negotiating in June 2002.

Resource costs, capital taken into account

It arrived at a level based on costs, taking into account additional resources the mobile network operators incur to support the call forwarding service and the cost of capital.

The international call forwarding service providers must pay the interconnection charge retrospectively to June 11, 2002. Whether they pass on the extra charges to their customers is a commercial decision.

It is not expected to have a large impact on Hong Kong consumers nor the industry, though, since international call fowarding traffic accounts for less than 1% of the total mobile traffic in Hong Kong, and less than 1% of the total outgoing traffic from Hong Kong.