Long-distance phone rate to fall
Doug Ashbury
Northern News Services
Yellowknife (Dec 04/00) - NorthwesTel is unlikely to appeal last week's decision on how competition will be introduced to the North, suggests the company's president.
"We suspect we probably can live with this, (and are) not leaning toward appeal," Paul Flaherty said Friday.
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Under the CRTC decision, long distance costs for Northerners will drop but local rates will rise.
The decision stems from NorthwesTel's high cost service area submission which the regulator requested as competition approached.
Long distance will cost 10-cents a minute capped at $25 for the first 600 minutes. NorthwesTel had suggested a $20 cap.
The CRTC will allow NorthwesTel to increase monthly local residential rates by $3 and business rates by $5. NorthwesTel wanted a $5 increase on both fronts.
The changes are effective Jan. 1, 2001. Customers will have to sign up for the $25-a-month long distance plan. Local fee increases will be automatic.
NorthwesTel provides telephone services to the NWT, Nunavut, Yukon and part of northern B.C.
NorthwesTel will also get a $15.1 million subsidy in 2001 from southern telecommunications companies. NorthwesTel had sought $30 million. Future year amounts are yet to be determined.
Flaherty said the company has to study the implications of the lower subsidy.
As well, any competitor will have to pay a seven cents per minute tariff -- two cents higher than NorthwesTel suggested -- on all calls they originate or terminate in NorthwesTel territory.
Lowering long-distance rates was welcomed by Nunavut Finance and Administration Minister Kelvin Ng, who was disappointed that it comes with a cost.
"In addressing the CRTC hearing last June, we made it quite clear that many Nunavut families cannot take advantage of the long-distance savings and would have difficulty paying any increase in the local residential rate."
