Bijoy keyboard not mandatory for Android users: Mustafa Jabbar
Posts and Telecommunications Minister Mustafa Jabbar has said the Bijoy keyboard software on Android phones is not mandatory for users.
"Let me explain by mentioning the BTRC used the word 'mandatory'. The term is misleading. You can keep, install, uninstall, reinstall any software on any Android phone. It is not mandatory per se," he said while speaking at the ongoing DC Conference at Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital on Wednesday (25 January).
"That said, the manufacturer or importer will provide software to facilitate Bengali writing. Whether the user avails it or not is entirely their prerogative," the minister added.
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Earlier, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) made it mandatory to use the Bijoy Android Package Kit (APK) on all imported and locally-manufactured Android mobile phones.
The telecommunication regulator said in a letter it will not give permission to market any smartphone without the Bijoy keyboard.
All imported and locally-manufactured smart handsets will have to install the BTRC-supplied Bijoy Android APK file and display it to the commission before marketing. Otherwise, marketing these smartphones will be objected.
The letter also stated that the Bijoy Android APK file will be provided free of charge from the spectrum department.
