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Econet
Wireless hikes tariffs by 150pc
Perry Kaande, The Herald (Zimbabwe)
April 26, 2007
http://www.herald.co.zw/inside.aspx?sectid=18028&cat=8
MOBILE phone
service provider Econet Wireless has hiked its tariffs by over 150
percent with effect from May 1 2007, barely two months after the
last tariff increases.
In the latest
round of increases, Econet’s Buddie customers will now have to fork
out $485 per minute when calling fellow Econet Wireless subscribers.
Calls by Buddie subscribers to other networks, namely NetOne, Telecel
and TelOne, will be pegged at $581, $585 and $411 respectively.
The short message
service (sms) has now been set at $150 for local and $500 for international,
with costs reduced to $140 and $480 during off-peak periods.
International
calls to fixed receivers in Group 1 will range from $851 to $889
for the different Econet packages. For making international calls
to mobile phones, subscribers will be charged a rate of $1 123 (Buddie),
$1 148 (Business Partna) and $1 128 (Libertie).
International
Group 6 Satellite calls have gone up from between $9 330 and $9
550 to a range of $14 283 and $14 308.
The cost of
accessing a Simpack has gone up from $8 000 to $12 000 with Buddie
subscribers paying an extra $17 775 for 30 minutes worth of airtime.
Mobile service
providers previously complained that they were having to subsidise
their customers especially for regional and international calls,
incurring losses in the process.
Econet Wireless
recently announced that it was suspending international calls for
its pre-paid customers pointing out that such calls were draing
the company’s meagre foreign currency resources.
Econet said
for every international outgoing call made, it incurred a foreign-denominated
charge, but was working to overcome these challenges.
The Posts and
Telecommunications Regulatory Authority has in the recent past thrown
its weight behind the tariff increases saying the adjustments were
in line with those charged by other network operators in the region.
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