Mobile tariffs down

The lowering of mobile tariffs would increase talk time and would lead a higher rate of mobile penetration, said Director General Telecom Regulatory Commission, Kanchana Ratwatte.

He said that the move would also be a 'win win' situation for both the operators as well as customers. "Mobile usage volumes would increase thereby giving more profits to operators. As for the customers they can talk more for less," he said.

With an increased customer base the operators would also try to introduce more technology to gain an edge over the others which would augur well for the industry, he said.

Ratwatte said that the lowering of tariff would also attract new customers.

He said that President Mahinda Rajapaksa is very keen that the tele density in the country should increase and the best way to do this is to lower the tariff.

"Due to several initiatives taken in this regard we have noted a 40 per cent drop in tariff last year.

We expect a minimum of a further 20 per cent reduction by the end of this year," he said.

International calling rates too have come down drastically, with per minute charges to some countries being as low as Rs.7.