| (1) |
Any person can apply for a trial, experimental or demonstration system licence, which licence may be granted on a temporary basis and provided for a limited time period under certain criteria. |
| (2) |
All applications shall be accompanied by a covering letter and relevant supporting documents including: |
| (c) |
equipment technical specifications; |
| (d) |
network configuration; |
| (e) |
coverage map (not applicable for demo and experimental); |
| (f) |
trial schedule and time line; |
| (g) |
sampling size and category (for commercial trial); and |
| (h) |
data collection method (for commercial trial). |
Criteria for a Licence for a Trial for an Experimental or Demonstration System
| (3) |
A licence for a trial for the testing of an experimental system or the demonstration of a system could be considered for each of the following purposes: |
| (a) |
For the benefit of "public interest" as stated in the Act (Section 2); |
| (b) |
For the benefit of users or the public; |
| (c) |
For strategic business decisions and implementation; |
| (d) |
For consumer education, orientation and feedback; |
| (e) |
For research and development into the use of new technologies or new ways that existing technology might be used; and/or |
| (f) |
For research and development into new or different ways of using the radio frequency spectrum. |
| (4) |
A similar task or activity shall not be implemented within the same geographic area that has an existing system of the same nature, unless there are critical and strategic reasons to support the subsequent application[s] Each application of a trial will need to specify the criteria as listed above and its justifications |
Nature of trials
| (3) |
A trial can typically be of the following nature, although not exclusively so: |
| (a) |
A field or technical trial that includes aspects such as compatibility, interoperability, safety, compliance to standards and engineering and network operational practices, as well as other related activities and should concentrate largely on the areas of technical operation and performance of a system or product as well as the technical assessment of the technology: |
| (b) |
A pilot study that may encompass evaluating all-round aspects of a system or product and is normally conducted with an offering for trial to a select group of users who will evaluate services offered by the trial within the specified time period; |
| (c) |
A commercial trial will involve commercial issues and may incur all or any of the commercial levies or charges, as mutually agreed for the trial, usage or recurring charges and billing, installation and commissioning costs and rental of equipment over the period where the trial is being conducted; |
| (d) |
Trials and experimental systems may be conducted for the purpose of research and development (R&D) either by individuals or organisations, like government, universities, research establishments, companies, trade associations or learned societies on condition that sufficient justification is provided; and |
| (e) |
Trials may be conducted for showcasing new applications and contents on an existing system or product. |
Duration of the Trial
| (6) |
The short term trial shall be limited to three (3) months and may be extended for good reasons given for a period which does not exceed three (3) months. |
| (7) |
The long term trial shall be eight (8) months and may be extended for good reasons given for a period which does not exceed six (6) months. |
| (8) |
Applications with duration of less than three (3) months may be extended for good reasons given for a period which does not exceed one (1) month. |
| (9) |
For experimental purpose the duration may be based on an applicant's requirement. |
| (10) |
For demonstration purposes, the assignments period may coincide and be based on the exhibition or conference period. |
Other conditions of a trial licence
| (11) |
For the purposes of effective evaluation of a trial in progress, the trial shall be subjected to regular reporting on the status or progress to the Authority throughout the trial period. This must be in the form of a periodic report, submitted every three (months). |
| (12) |
The final report must be submitted at the end of the trial period. This report must detail, inter alia, the findings, the issues and problems and their resolutions, the benefits obtained and the proposals for the next steps. |
| (13) |
The report must consist of additional trial results and trial outcomes or findings. |
| (14) |
All trials will allow for the participation of the Authority's personnel according to mutually-agreed upon principles. |
Gas Regulator Levies Act, 2002
