SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Lim Chong Kin, Drew & Napier LLC
6. Telecommunications 6.1 Scope of Regulation and Pre- Marketing Requirements
and Media Services 2022 came into operation. It was issued by the IMDA to promote the effi - ciency and competitiveness of the media and telecommunications industry. Licensing for the Operation and Provision of Telecommunication Systems and Services Generally, licences for the operation and pro - vision of telecommunication systems and ser - vices in Singapore would fall into one of two categories: facilities-based operations (FBOs) or services-based operations (SBOs). Where RF spectrum is required for the provision of wireless services, additional licensing is required under the Telecommunications (Radio-communication) Regulations. Taking the provision of VoIP services as an example, it is noted in the IMDA’s Guidelines on Licensing and Regulatory Framework for IP Telephony Services in Singapore that applicants need to first obtain either an FBO or SBO licence from the IMDA in order to provide IP telephony services. IP telephony services are defined as any VoIP services offered using an E.164 tel - ephone number allocated to customers in Sin - gapore, which allow customers to make and receive voice, data and/or video calls using the same IP telephone number from any domestic or overseas location where broadband internet access is available. An FBO licence is required if applicants intend to deploy and/or operate any form of telecommu - nication networks, systems and/or facilities for the purpose of providing telecommunication (eg, IP telephony services) and/or broadcasting ser - vices outside of their own property boundaries to third parties (which may include other licensed telecommunication operators, business custom - ers or the general public).
As noted in the definition of “telecommunica - tions” (see 4.1 Machine-to Machine Commu- nications, Communications Secrecy and Data Protection ), the licensing and regulatory frame - work for telecommunication systems and ser - vices under the TA is sufficiently broad to cover almost every technological application, even if there are no specific references to individual applications such as RFID tags, Voice over Inter - net Protocol (VoIP) or instant messaging. That said, service-specific issues may be covered in various regulations, codes of practice, standards of performance, directions, advisory guidelines and licences issued by the IMDA pursuant to its powers under the TA. For instance, issues pertaining to the licensing and use of the radio frequency (RF) spectrum and the operation of radio stations and networks are regulated under the Telecommunications (Radio-communication) Regulations, while the Telecommunications (Dealers) Regulations set out the framework in relation to the manufactur - ing, importation and sale (amongst other things) of telecommunication equipment. The IMDA was formally established on 1 Octo - ber 2016 as a converged regulator for both the info-communications and media sectors but, in general, the telecommunications and media sec - tors continue to be governed by separate regula - tory frameworks. For instance, the TA does not currently apply to the licensing of broadcasting services or any broadcasting apparatus, which instead falls under the BA. On 2 May 2022, the Code of Practice for Com - petition in the Provision of Telecommunication
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