Telkom told to charge customers old rate

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Directorate General of Telecommunications and Post issued a directive on Friday instructing the country's four fixed-line telephone operators to charge their customers at the old rate.

The move follows a government decision to postpone the recently announce rate increase.

The four telephone operators are PT Telkom, PT Indosat, PT Ratelindo and PT BBT.

The government earlier this month raised phone charges by an average of 15 percent in a bid to help increase investment in the domestic telecommunications sector to allow more people to enjoy fixed-line services.

The new rate increase was to be effective from Jan. 1, meaning phone bills for January were set to be based on the new higher rate.

But the phone charges hike, which coincided with increases in fuel prices and electricity rates, had been strongly protested by many people. The government is also considering revising the fuel price and electricity rate hikes, initially aimed at reducing expensive subsidies and help state electricity company PLN avoid bankruptcy.

The delay in the phone charges hike will be for an indefinite period of time.

Minister of Transportation Agum Gumelar, whose ministry the Directorate General of Telecommunications and Post is under, said the government was considering input from the public to decide on a more opportune time to increase phone rates.