Caretaker Telecommunications Minister Johnny Corm has stepped up, denouncing the lack of cooperation exhibited by illegal Internet distributors who were supposed to legalize their status.
On Thursday, the ministry released a statement urging Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to settle their outstanding debts to the State dating back to July 2017. The ministry also urged the General Directorate of Investment and Maintenance to disclose the total expenses incurred in collecting the State’s fees, starting from the publication date of the decree, which came into effect on July 1, 2017.
This is Beirut reached out to Corm, who pointed out that the plan to regularize the illegal Internet “was developed to encourage Internet distributors to willingly connect to the official national network.” Regrettably, he noted, “no one cooperated.” Therefore, the Ministry intends to “impose on each illegal distribution company the amount of 550,000 Lebanese pounds per subscriber.”
“If, meanwhile, these companies connect to the national network, this amount will be reduced to 220,000 Lebanese pounds per subscriber,” he explained.
This, the Minister said, aligns with a broader plan, similar to the increased [capacity of] the E1 line (an ultra-fast digital transmission line that uses time-division multiplexing to carry voice, video and data) for neighborhood distributors.
Corm went on to say that his decision to ask illegal Internet providers to remunerate the amounts they owe the State since 2017 seeks to avoid “the waste of public funds, as well as abolish the monopoly of lawbreakers over the Internet market.”
He emphasized that the decision to integrate these companies into the national network can help maintain all companies under the supervision of the State and put an end to illegal cases.
It should be mentioned that no less than 60% of ISPs in Lebanon are illegal and do not own a license.
Internet distribution was regulated through decree 9458, allowing these companies to work and acquire Internet services directly from the ministry via Ogero for a period of three years. The contract with the neighborhood distributors is a maintenance contract whereby the network belongs to the State and the responsibility for maintenance is placed on their shoulders.
