Cellular Customers Have
To Wait Until Next Year
For New Lines
The promise by the
Instituto Costarricense
de Electricidad (ICE)
for additional GSM lines
by the end of this year
seems to have vanished.
Some 134.000 people are
currently on the waiting
list to get connected.
ICE says they will have
to wait until second
half of next year
before any new lines
will be available when
the state institution
will introduce to Costa
Rica the next generation
of cellular service, 3G.
Last month ICE had
announced that it would
be making available some
200.000 GSM lines to be
installed by Alcatel,
lines the
telecommunications firm
had offered to give ICE
in lieu of a cash
payment of a us$60
million dollars fine
imposed on it for not
complying with the
maintenance of the
400.000 line network
that continues with
coverage problems.
The 200.000 lines
installation would have
been an expansion of the
400.000 lines Alcatel
network and permitted
without ICE have to
tender a bid, the same
way it did with the
expansion of the
Ericsson cellular
network.
ICE is currently working
on the bid to purchase
and install 1.5 million
3G lines that is
expected to fill the
current demand, replace
the 450.000 TDMA lines
currently in use when
ICE recalls the lines
and satisfy future
demands.
For the time being those
on the waiting list are
being served with lines
lost by customers who
have not kept up
payments on their line.
According to Monserrat
Salas of the ICE press
office, TDMA customers
can switch to the 3G
lines or cancel the
service and obtain their
refund, including the
44.300 customers paid a
˘60.000 colones deposit
when the exchange rate
was ˘250 colones to a US
dollar.
The recall of the TDMA
lines is not an option
for many customers who
say the older
techonology works better
than the current GSM and
are reluctant to give it
up.
By the end of 2009, ICE
will only be offering
GSM and 3G cellular
service. |
