RIYADH, 2 September — Saudi Telecom Company (STC) slashed rates for international phone calls by up to 63 percent to most countries from yesterday.
The cuts range from 8.3 percent to Germany and the Netherlands, to 63 percent to some other countries, STC President Khaled Al-Mulhem said.
He said the new cuts were part of the company’s efforts to revise charges in tune with regional and international telephone rates.
According to an advertisement published by the company, the new cuts would cover both Alhatif (ordinary phones) and Aljawal (mobile phones).
Charges for calls to Gulf Arab states are reduced by 15 percent from SR2.6 to SR2.2 a minute during peak hours and as little as SR1.5 at off-peak.
The cost of calls to other Arab countries as well as to Britain and France, is cut by 15.5 percent from SR4.5 a minute to SR3.8 at peak hours and SR2.7 during off-peak hours.
Call rates to Indonesia has been cut from SR5.5 to SR4 a minute during peak hours and to SR2.7 at off-peak. Calls to Turkey can be made for SR4 per minute instead of SR4.5 during peak hours. At off-peak it has been further reduced to SR2.7 a minute.
Callers to India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka will also receive substantial discounts as the rates have been slashed from SR5.5 to SR4.5 at peak hours and to SR3.3 at off-peak.
The rates to the Philippines have been reduced from SR5.5 a minute to SR4 at peak hours and to SR3.3 at off-peak.
Rates to the United States and Canada are down 25 percent from SR4 to SR3 a minute at peak hours and as low as SR2.4 at off-peak.
Calls to Japan, Italy, Hungary and a number of European countries are reduced from SR6 to SR3.8 a minute, a cut of 37 percent. The cost is further reduced to SR2.7 during off-peak hours. Calls to Iran are down 8.3 percent from SR6 to SR5.5 a minute.
Rates to most Latin American countries are reduced from SR7 to SR5.5 a minute, a 21.5 percent drop. The rate to Chile is cut from SR10 to SR4.5 a minute.
The statement said rates to Nigeria, China, Thailand and Hong Kong have been cut from SR7 to SR5.5 a minute at peak hours and to SR4.2 at off-peak.
The new cuts came after reports that STC would slash charges of international telephone calls made through cabins by up to 18 percent from Sept. 1.
Reports said the move was aimed at supporting Saudis who have invested in telephone call cabins.
Since its establishment four years ago to operate on a commercial basis, Saudi Telecom has regularly cut the cost of international phone calls as well as the cost of landlines and mobile phones in the Kingdom.
With a SR12 billion ($3.2 billion) capital, STC is preparing to sell up to 30 percent of its shares in a major public offering within the next few weeks.
Cabin owners were hit hard after the launch of SAWA pre-paid mobile chips as most expatriates switched to mobile phones instead of using call cabins.
There are more than 3,000 telephone cabins in the Kingdom, mainly in Riyadh, Jeddah, Dammam, Makkah and Madinah. Saudis started investing large amounts in telephone cabins since 1996.
