WASHINGTON-The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is reviewing applications to award the first commercial trunked radio license there, said the International Mobile Telecommunications Association.
IMTA worked closely with the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission in Jordan, which initially planned to issue the licenses by March 1997, but delayed licensing because of uncertainty about whether or not to permit interconnection to the public switched telephone network.
The TRC later determined the total airtime used for interconnected traffic must constitute a maximum of 20 percent of the total airtime used by the new service, a provision with which IMTA said it disagrees.
The regulatory agency announced the call for tenders for two national licenses Oct. 18, 1997, and the application deadline was Jan. 25. The licenses on the 400 MHz, 800 MHz and 900 MHz bands will be awarded to the two highest bidders.
TRC had said the license winners must deploy a state-of-the-art technology, but the government initially was reluctant to specify that the systems must use digital technology. TRC subsequently announced it does mean that digital technology must be used, a rule with which IMTA also disagrees, the organization said. IMTA said it suggests allowing market demand to determine the mix of services available.
