--- Barrack Otieno <otieno.barrack@gmail.com> wrote:

its in order to give CCK and the rest of the Mobile Sector players a pat on the back the tariffs have reduced considerably in the last months. there is increased competition due to Introduction of new Value added Services, so far i guess CCK is doing fine

[not quite so and beware of telcos' reinvigorated PR campaigns and advertisement assault. Only comparative, data based (NOT perception oriented) regulatory intervention can ensure "fair play". Remember the absence of war does not mean "prevailing peace and harmony". Thank though the democratic space lending consumer complaints an ear. The more consumers complain the less hilly and more flat the world gets.] [EASTANDARD] "Mobile telephone charges likely to fall again, PS says" By Tom Mogusu [snip] The Government has commissioned a study on mobile telephone industry’s tariff and taxation levels in what is hoped would trigger a decline in the cost of calling. Permanent Secretary for Information and Communication, Dr Bitang’e Ndemo said this was response to public demand that taxes on use of mobile telephones be lowered. He said Treasury is under pressure to lower tariff levels for mobile calls. "We are expecting more changes in this sector over the coming year because Government will launch a taskforce to investigate the costs of mobile calls." "There is an expectation that the tariff levels will drop further," he said. http://eastandard.net/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143970580&catid=14 [snip] ------------ [DAILY NATION] Cutting edge Story by Watchman Publication Date: 6/27/2007 One report says Kenyans are becoming poorer. Another says the economy is booming, and companies are announcing profits in billions of shillings, notes Morrison Muleri. But ironically, he says, the banks, oil companies, Safaricom and others “serve a wide spectrum of Kenyans, millions of whom survive on less than Sh100 a day”. His biggest grouse is that Kenyan firms charge more than what is paid for similar services in wealthy America. He poses: “Is it morally right to make huge profits from the poor who have no choice?” <http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/nmgcontententry.asp?premiumid=0&category_id=22&newsid=101145> --------- LETTERS Safaricom can do more for the poor Publication Date: 6/27/2007 Safaricom’s huge Sh17 billion profit for last year is good news to the owners but ordinary subscribers have nothing to smile about. The profit should have been ploughed back into the economy for citizens to benefit. CEO Michael Joseph should not boast of hefty profits when the firm is not doing enough to uplift the lives of Kenyans. Safaricom must come up with initiatives to help the Government eradicate poverty and boost health and education projects. It should launch programmes to spur development. Small reductions in call and SMS rates are not enough. DENNIS ODHIAMBO, Kisumu. <http://www.nationmedia.com/dailynation/nmgcontententry.asp?premiumid=0&category_id=23&newsid=101148> ____________________________________________________________________________________Ready for the edge of your seat? Check out tonight's top picks on Yahoo! TV. http://tv.yahoo.com/