ICE With Cheaper Long
Distance Calling
Without any announcement
or fanfare, the
Instituto Costarricense
de Electricidad (ICE) -
the state telecom -
reduced international
calling rates last
month, making a call to
the Unites States,
Canada, Mexico and
Central America more
affordable.
On December 20, 2008,
ICE reduced
international rates an
average of 15%, dropping
the long distance call
rate to the United
States, Mexico and
Canada, the three
countries most called
from Costa Rica, from
us$0.27 to us$0.23 per
minute.
For calls to Central
America, the rate
dropped to a flat rate
of us$0.28 per minute.
Previously call rates
were us$0.40 on calls
made between 7am to 7pm,
us$0.35 for calls made
between 7pm and 10pm,
and us$0.28 for calls
made from 10pm to 7am.
Under the previous rate
structure calls to
Nicaragua did not have
the "super reduced"
rate.
Calls to other countries
like the Caribbean
(except Cuba), South
Korea, Japan and Taiwan
now cost us$0.39 (down
from us$0.43) a minute;
calls to Europe and
Australia now cost
us$0.48 (down from
us$0.52) a minute.
Cuba and other countries
is always slightly
cheaper, dropping to
us$0.90 per minute from
the old rate of us$1.
ICE says the reduced
rates are due to
technological
improvements and the
increased used of VOiP
(Voice Over Internet
Protocol) for its
international traffic.
In addition, ICE has
been getting stiff
competition from
companies like Skype
which charges half of
what ICE charges on
calls to the US, though
the quality of the call
depends on the internet
connection that the end
user is using.
|
