6 Telecom companies to lose operating licences In February - NCC

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) says it will impose the maximum possible penalties on any of its licencees implicated in masking of international telephone calls. The regulatory body announced this on Monday in Lagos, in a statement by its Director of Public Affairs, Mr Tony Ojobo. The statement said it was likely that the operating licences of some of the interconnect exchange and other licencees involved in the practice would either be revoked or suspended in the coming week. Twillio, an online Communications glossary, says masked calling is a technique used in e-commerce to protect buyers’ and sellers’ personal phone numbers private. It uses a short-lived phone number for each party, allowing them to communicate seamlessly during a specified time period. The suspected licencees include Medallion Communications Ltd, Interconnect Cleaning House Nig. Ltd, Niconnx Communication Ltd, Breeze Micro Ltd, Solid Interconnectivity and Exchange Telecommunications Ltd. It said that the commission and senior operatives from the nation’s security services met with representatives of the licencees at the commission’s Abuja office on January 24. The statement said that the companies were confronted with some of the evidence at the disposal of the commission and were given another opportunity to defend themselves. ”In accordance with the provisions of the Nigerian Communications Act and its subsidiary regulations, the implicated licencees have been given till the January 31 to show cause why the commission should not either revoke or suspend their operating licences.