I received a very disturbing rumor by email on Wednesday, stating that the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (the people responsible for regulating the telecom market in Jordan) are instructing internet service providers (ISPs) to block Skype.
If this is true it is a DISASTER. One sign that the rumor is true: I can’t access the Skype.com site anymore through my Wanadoo connection!
I sent a message late Wednesday night to the TRC (to prtrc.gov.jo) asking them if the rumor is true or not. THe first thing I will do in the morning is to contact my ISP and check with users of other ISPs. I went on the TRC’s site (as well as Wanadoo’s) to check if there is any news but found nothing.
I just checked the Skype site through an anonymous proxy and it is indeed online. So the problem is with my ISP.
Blocking Skype (if the rumor is true, that is) would be a BIG MISTAKE, and a big blow to Jordan’s IT and telecom reputation.
It is worth mentioning that after almost 2 years of telecom deregulation, Jordan has very little to show for that. We still don’t have DSL connections that are faster than 1 Mbps and VoIP services have not caught on yet.
Skype is being used by citizens and businesses to communicate internationally. I can attest that Skype has helped my business a lot over the past 2 years to interact at length with US and European clients. Taking this service away from Jordanian citizens and businesses would by a huge step backward. It would be a blatant case of fighting technological progress too.
In any case..
Tomorrow things will be clearer. If the news is true, internet users should not stay silent. I will keep you updated.
Comments
15 responses to “ALARM! Is Skype being blocked in Jordan?”
It is blocked, and I guess in many other countries, in UAE it was blocked long time ago and for a period you were not even able to sign-in to Skype.
Telecom companies will do whatever needed to eliminate any good calling tool and no one will stop them, not the ICT ministry or the TRC.
Someone high up must have figured out exactly how much $$$ he can gain from international calls if skype is blocked
tried it yesterday on TEData it worked
مزبوط
انا هلا جربت ادخل عالسايت و ما نفع
انا مع بتلكو مش وانادو
مالهم علينا؟ مستكترين اي خدمة؟
نت تو فون كننا مبسوطين عليها كمان عملولها بلوك
و كلة عشان عيون الاتصالات الاردنية..اهلا بالمستقبل
بدهم يمشو سوق البطاقات المدفوعة مسبقا
ما سمعت خالد كيف حكى مع مرته يو م التلاتا؟ و هو متعود يحكي بس الجمعة؟
بدنا نعمل مظاهرة لانه بوكرا كمان بلغوا الم اس ان و ياهو مسنجر و منرجع لايام الحمام الزاجل
We are still able to Skype through Wanadoo…but it would be a difficult for us if Skype was banned. This is progress?
It is not a rumor, I have tried for more than three weeks and it is really blocked. You can not access it to do any thing, so credit addition is not feasible.
This a monopolistic practice by a private telecom company.
well i can’t access skype.com also, and i’m NEXT user! however i can login from my skype client. lets hope for the best.
Can’t access http://www.skype.com on tedata nor cyberia. But, the service is active. I haven’t tried to make calls yet though, the skype crowd is not on yet. But, I’ve noticed both Cyberia / Tedata DSL connections are limiting the upload speed to 64Kb as opposed to the 128Kb that should be active. I’m guessing they don’t mind us hearing the other side talking, but, they don’t want the other side to hear us.
I cant understand what they were thinking when they decided to block it …
Its really a shame…
Jordan the last country i expected to do such a thing … they are doing it now …
other countries outside are taking Jordan as an example for the freedom of internet … and now they are blocking the most successful internet service …
This is really a big big mistake …
I believe that Jordan telecom is the one behind this stupid thing …
I’m on Wanadoo and I can’t access the website, havn’t tried the software though.
http://isam.bayazidi.net/archives/2006/09/skype-blocked-in-jordan-a-big-step-backward/
The software is accessible is already downloaded, but it can’t be updated, you can’t buy credit, etc, if you can’t access the actual website.
tedata, blocked.
Yes, Skype.Com and related services are being blocked by ORDER of the TRC. Here’s the letter:
http://www.skypejournal.com/info/archives/images/fax1728×1153.png
This sets a serious precedence and any hope of true market liberalization will be shot to hell.
Here’s some relevant history from the TRC that highlights their blatant contradiction on the matter:
In a statement on VoIP http://www.trc.gov.jo/Static_English/New%20Stuff/Final%20VoIP%20Statement%20Final.doc, the Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (TRC) of Jordan determined that the exclusivity conditions contained in Jordan Telecom’s licence should not be allowed to stifle innovation or otherwise slow the advancement of technology in the country. On the other hand, TRC maintained that Jordan Telecom had an exclusive right to provide public switched voice service free of competition until its exclusivity period expired.
“ The use of VoIP technologies by commercial service providers other than Jordan Telecom to provide voice service to the public is prohibited prior to January 1, 2005. After that time, the provision of voice service using VoIP will be governed by future rules and/or guidelines to be issued by the TRC. The current prohibition includes services that utilize a normal telephone connected to the public switched telephone network, which then routes calls over the Internet via a gateway operated by a service provider, as well as the commercial offering of voice service to the public by the owner of a personal computer or other device connected to the Internet. “
“ Jordan Telecom’s exclusivity rights, however, pertain only to competing providers of voice service. Jordan Telecom’s exclusive right to provide voice service does not in any way constrain the activity of users making use of data communication networks for their own use. Thus, the Statement clarifies that a user is free to use a computer or other device attached to the Internet or another data communication network to make voice calls as long as there is no involvement with a service provider in Jordan. Under the TRC’s reading of Jordan Telecom’s license there is no restriction on the private use of so-called PC-to-PC VoIP or PC-to-phone VoIP, as long as there is no service provider in Jordan competing with Jordan Telecom in offering voice service. “
“ Jordan Telecom’s exclusive right to provide Public Switched Voice Service covers only the provision of a commercial service by one party to another separate party. Persons in Jordan are therefore free to utilize their legitimately subscribed data communication circuits to transmit and receive voice or other media format of their choosing without fear of infringing on Jordan Telecom’s License, as long as they are transmitting and receiving such information for their own private use and not on behalf of a third party. “
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