Cellphone users in Liberia have been alerted by the two leading GSM companies, Orange Liberia and Lonestar Cell MTN announcing new price adjustment on voice on-net call and data.
The country’s two leading GSM telecommunication operators, Lonestar Cell MTN and Orange (formerly Cellcom GSM) have been running the three-day ‘free ‘call promotion for over five years now.
In a press statement posted on face book page on Friday August 30, the GSM companies said the new adjustment on voice on-net call and data is in line with the Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA) regulation LTA Order: 0016-02-25-19 adopted early this year.
A text message from orange Liberia to our reporter who is also a subscriber reads:” Orange informs its customers that by the directive of Liberia Telecommunication Authority mobile voice call & data will be adjusted on September 1”.
A new regulation will further increase call per minute and data to US$0.0156 and US$0.0218 per megabyte respectively.
Similarly, the price per data is expected to rise more that 50% from US$1.00 per Gigibite to US$ 2.20 when the new price floor comes into force.
It remains unclear whether the long running three day “free call” will continue when the new pricing takes effect on September 1. Many cellphone subscribers in Liberia depend on the three day “free call” to communicate daily.
Economists say the latest decision when enforced will be a 100% increment in the existing charge on on-net voice call which gives subscribers a 72-hour open line for just US$1.00.
The Liberian government has been finding sources of revenue to pay salaries for civil servants that are not being paid in time. Liberia current wage bill stands at a little over US$308,000,000.00 annually.
Rational behind new price floors
According to the Liberia Telecommunication Authority (LTA), telecommunications service users in Liberia enjoy among the lowest prices in West Africa but these low prices come with a high cost for the sustained growth and development of the telecommunications sector and the country.
LTA also pointed out a long running price war between the two GSM mobile operators orange and Lonestar Cell MTN who control nearly one hundred percent of mobile telephone and the data market in Liberia continues to have negative impact on the population in quality service delivery.
It furthered that the implementation of the new tariff will promote efficient and sustainable competition for the benefit of end-users to monitor and prevent abuses of a service provider’s dominant position and to monitor and prevent practices that would limit competition.
The telecommunications regulatory body also opposed that effective competition may be weakened due to “predatory pricing as competitors compete to price each other out of the market”.
Liberians react
Reacting to the news that the three days ‘free ‘call will be abolished, several Liberians have been commenting on the action by government to cancel the three days ‘free ‘. Some said the action by LTA ‘undermines’ freedom of speech.
The House of Representative in April 2019 placed a hold on the new price floor by LTA however, LTA further said amendments will be done before the regulation takes effect.
