Telkom told to charge customers old rate

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.