ICE Objects To Telecom
Competition
The state telecom, the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE)
and former holder of the monopoly in telecommunications in Costa
Rica does not like competition any bit, especially when that
competition sells international calls at lower rates.
Intertel Worldwide has set up a series of public telephone booths in
18 areas in the provinces of San José, Cartago, Alajuela and
Heredia, offering calls to the United States for only ¢37 colones,
in direct competition with ICE's rate of ¢130 colones for calls to
the US.
However, in just a few days before the Intertel phones were to
supposed to be working, ICE has filed a charge with the
Superintendencia de Telecomunicaciones (SUTEL), the new
telecommunications regulator.
ICE considers that it is being forced to observed regulations and in
cases prohibited in operating its business freely while competitors
like Intertel are not.
Elbert Durán, a spokesperson for ICE, said that the SUTEL is not
playing fair, favouring competition and punishing ICE.
According to the SUTEL, ICE has applied on two occasions for
authorization to provide telecom services, which are in the process
of investigation, as well as a complaint by ICE that is also under
investigation. carolina Mora, spokesperson for SUTEL, did not give
details of the ICE services and complaint.
In the meantime Intertel Worldwide is getting ready to start
operating international calls service unless it is prohibited from
doing so by the SUTEL, whose decision is expected in the coming
days.
The Intertel calls are by way of the internet with per minute rates
up to five times cheaper that ICE's current rates.
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