News Title : Telcos lose 30pc of data traffic after social media blockade

News Date : 2015-11-30

-Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh).
The mobile phone operators have lost about 30 per cent of their data traffic as the government blocked some popular social networking websites and apps like Facebook and Viber two weeks ago on security ground. Robi chief executive officer Supun Weerasinghe at a press briefing in Dhaka on Sunday admitted the revenue loss because of the government restriction. ‘Social networking sites are popular and following the blockade we have lost 30 per cent of our data traffic and revenue from the segment. But national security is an issue you cannot compromise with. So, I hope the government will sort out the situation soon,’ he said while disclosing Robi’s third quarter results. Asked about the issue, a Grameenphone official said that their company had also lost around 30 per cent revenue from data sales because of the government restriction on the social networking sites. ‘The industry’s average daily data demand was 400 terabyte which came down to 300 terabyte over the last two weeks,’ a senior GP official said. Asked about the issue, GP, however, in an email statement said that the company was yet to analyse the impact of the government blockade on the social sites. A senior official of Banglalink also admitted that their data traffic and revenue from the segment slumped nearly 30 per cent over the last two weeks. ‘We will face the hit next month because the heavy users have already paid for their package in this month. If the blockade continues they will not buy heavy data packs in the coming month,’ he said. The government on November 18 blocked Facebook, WhatsApp, Viber, Tango, Line and Google Hangout along with a video streaming site Ustream TV on security reason. Earlier On January 18, the government blocked Viber and Tango. In September 2012, the BTRC blocked video sharing site YouTube in Bangladesh for 260 days following worldwide protests at a 14-minute trailer of a film titled ‘Innocence of Muslims’ which mocks Islam and its

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