| 01 Sep 2008 |
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Omantel ushers in new fixed phone tariff
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MUSCAT -- New fixed phone tariff reductions by Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel)Oman Telecommunications Company (Omantel)
takes effect today, doing away with the distance band, which ushers in reduced uniform call rates to anywhere in the country, and slashing up to 18 per cent the international call rates. While monthly rentals on three new packages have gone up ranging between RO 4.900 and RO 9.900, local calls will be charged at the rate of 15 baisa per minute during peak hours and 7.5 baisa per minute during off-peak hours. Calls made from fixed phones to mobile phones will have a uniform rate of 33 baisa per minute throughout day and night. Customers will also benefit from specified free usage facility ranging between 75 to 450 minutes. is expected to introduce the voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) service in November. OmantelOmantel has put in place the required infrastructure and also worked out the tariff for this service and is awaiting to clear some technical problems, Dr Mohammed bin Ali al Wohaibi, Chief Executive Officer of OmantelOmantel, said.The new tariff for fixed phone Package 1 includes a monthly a rental of RO 4.900, offering 75 free minutes. The Package 2 comes with a rental of RO 7.900 per month, offering 300 free minutes while Package 3 has a monthly rental of RO 9.900, bundled with 450 free minutes. Calls from all packages will be charged at the rate of 15 baisa per minute during peak hours and 7.5 baisa per minute during off-peak hours. Calls from fixed line to mobile phones will be charged at 33 baisa per minute throughout day and night.
Dr Al Wohaibi said the new tariff structure was a continuation of the company's endeavors to offer integrated services to customers in line with the efforts of authorities concerned to liberalise the telecom sector. Each of the three packages offers unique advantages in terms of prices and services. The highlight of the new tariff is the scrapping of the previous structure based on distances of the calls made, facilitating substantial savings for subscribers, Dr Al Wohaibi said.
The CEO of OmantelOmantel
pointed out that the main objective of the new tariff structure was to keep pace with the developments in the telecom sector all over the world. Most importantly, it ensures more transparency, enabling customers to assess the value and number of calls made by them. The new system of calculating calls in minutes rather than units guarantees security in dealings between the company and subscribers and facilitates promotional offers introduced from time to time, he added.The monthly rental for the prepaid Sahl service will be RO 4 with calls rated at 20 baisa per minute during peak hours and 10 baisa per minute during off peak hours, while calls to mobile phones will be rated at 40 baisa per minute throughout day and night. Subscribers will have two options to pay either on an annual or bi-annual basis.
Dr Al Wohaibi added that OmantelOmantel
is presently working to develop and upgrade Sahl service with new features, including saving contacts, transferring credit between accounts, forming groups like family and friends. The new upgraded Sahl service will replace the existing scheme soon, he added. The new tariff structure has also enabled OmantelOmantel to create a uniform contract for fixed line and hi-speed ADSL Internet services. Subscribers can combine the fixed line package with hi-speed (512 Kbps) ADSL package, which would enable them to obtain both services at a suitable price, Dr Al Wohaibi said.The new tariff structure comes with value added services, including subscriber is unavailable, three party calls, follow me, controlling outgoing calls, wake me up, another call on hold, hot line, caller ID, automatic call diversion, speed dials, and do not disturb. Presently, OmantelOmantel has 260,000 fixed phone subscribers spread across the Sultanate. The OmantelOmantel briefing was attended by Dr Amer al Rawas, Executive Director of Oman Mobile, Saleh bin Abdullah al Farsi, Division Head of Marketing and Customer Service, and other senior officials.
By Ebby Chacko George
© Oman Daily Observer 2008
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