Once approved, this will prohibit call-back service companies from providing either method of call-back services. Should a call-back company continue to use either method, KDD will suspend international telephone service to that call-back company.

The amendment is in line with the resolution adopted by WTSC(*3) last October. KDD decided to amend these Business Terms and Conditions because the two methods of call-back services use KDD's international telephone network without paying KDD a fee and they make it difficult for other KDD users to have their international calls connected. These call-back methods would also consequently increase the financial burden on KDD customers.

ITU (International Telecommunication Union) is continuing to study problems with other methods of call-back services. KDD believes that the so-called code calling method (*4) is also inappropriate as it freerides KDD's international telephone circuits at the cost of higher telephone bills for KDD international telephone users. Therefore, KDD is considering also prohibiting this type of call-back service in addition to the two mentioned above.

Fifty-eight countries and regions such as People's Republic of China and Republic of Korea have announced to the ITU of their decision to prohibit outgoing and incoming traffic of call-back services. Therefore call-back services, regardless of a particular method, placed to these countries would be in violation of their national regulations and should be avoided.

(*1) Polling method
Method in which a switch in another country continuously rings a telephone number in Japan (may either be the telephone number of an ordinary subscriber or that of a call-back company in Japan) at a fixed interval. When the user wishes to place a call, they pick up the handset, access the node of the call-back company in Japan, then dials the telephone number of the called party.

(*2) Answer suppression method
Generic term for methods where a call-back company illicitly controls answer signals to prevent being charged, despite actually using a carrier's telephone line. Answer signals are used by carriers to determine when to start charging for a call. (Answer suppression method is sometimes used in combination with the code calling method.)

(*3) WTSC (World Telecommunication Standardization Conference) The supreme decision-making organ for the telecommunication standardization sector of ITU. WTSC adopted the following resolution on call-back last October:

<1> (After citing examples of the two methods, polling and answer suppression) Telecommunications authorities and telecommunications carriers "should take all reasonable measures, within the constraints of their national law, to suspend the methods and practices of call-back which seriously degrade the quality and the performance" of the public switched telephone network.
<2> Telecommunications authorities and telecommunications carriers "should take a cooperative and reasonable approach to respecting the national sovereignty of others" that have suspended call-back.

(*4) Code calling method
To receive call-back calls from a telephone circuit reseller in another country, a user in Japan immediately hangs up the telephone after hearing the ringing tone. Then, after receiving call-back calls from the switch of the reseller, the caller dials the called party. Because of this procedure, the caller is freeriding the international telephone network of international carriers when requesting a call-back from the reseller in another country.

Draft Amendments to Business Terms and Conditions

(Restrictions on Use )
An international telephone service subscriber or contractor shall not place calls under these Business Terms and Conditions in the following manner.

To use, or permit a third party to use, call-back services (defined as telecommunications services that enable calls by providing means to shift the call-connection steps for calls originating in Japan to those for calls being originated from abroad: the same shall apply hereinafter) of the following methods that seriously degrade the quality and the performance of KDD's telecommunications circuit facilities.

Method	Description
Polling	Call-back method in which a foreign side continuously attempts a call to Japan and a user in Japan answers the call only when the user wishes to use the call-back service.
Answer suppression	Call-back method that, to offer the call-back service, illicitly suppresses the answer signals that KDD uses to measure the call duration of international telephone services, etc.