New public phone charges

New public phone charges

JAKARTA (JP): The government has set new rates for public telephone calls, effective since Jan. 1.

The state-owned domestic telecommunications company PT Telkom now applies different charges at different times of day to long distance calls made from public card phones.

Under the new arrangement, long distance calls from public card telephones will be charged at a rate of 100 percent between 6 a.m. and 9 a.m. and between 3 p.m. and 6 p.m., 125 percent between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., 50 percent between 6 p.m. and 9 a.m. and 25 percent between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Charges for calls from public coin telephones have also been changed. For calls made between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. one pulse now lasts for two minutes. For calls outside business hours one pulse lasts for three minutes. Charges are based on the number of pulses occurring during a call.

The new rates for calls from public telephones are part of the new charges introduced recently by the government, which include lower rates for long distance calls and the installation of new telephone lines.(icn)