NorthwesTel changing rates
Weekend specials expanded

Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services

NNSL (Feb 01/99) - NorthwesTel has doubled the number of weekends its subscribers can get lower long-distance rates, the company announced.

In fact, the spot specials cover every weekend for the rest of the year.

The Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission approved the move Wednesday.

It means NorthwesTel customers will be paying 15 cents a minute for long- distance calls to anywhere in Canada between 3 p.m. Saturday and 8 a.m. Sunday.

In the south, some phone customers are enjoying a $20 a month flat rate.

NorthwesTel is still some distance from that kind of deal, but about two years ago a long-distance call from the North to Edmonton on a Saturday afternoon cost about 90 cents a minute.

"We received many requests from our customers to make the long-distance specials available every weekend (so) we changed our proposal," NorthwesTel marketing director Carla Vandenberg said.

The CRTC also approved NorthwesTel's application to charge $20.33 a month for local service and $38.70 a month for business service. These rates are equal to or better than most provinces.

"Now NorthwesTel customers will be charged the same fee for local service, regardless of which community they live in. This helps us bring rates closer the actual costs of providing service," Vandenberg said.

Previously, NorthwesTel had four residential and four business rates.

The local and business rates are unchanged for Yellowknife.

Previously, Fort Smith, Hay River, Inuvik, Iqaluit and Rankin paid $19.38 for residential service and $37.25 for business service (Cambridge Bay, Fort Simpson and Norman Wells paid $18.48 and $34.25). All other communities paid $17.70 and $31.70 for residential and business respectively.