GIO report on high SMS tariff reviewed by ACJ

reviewed by the Administrative Court of Justice.
The source, who did not wish to be named, referred to the Cabinet of Ministers’ ruling on Feb 16, 2008 that Latin SMS tariff would go up while Persian SMS tariff would go down, saying that although GIO welcomes Persian SMS tariff going down, the process of raising Latin SMS tariff, however, has not been in accordance with legal procedures, as the Act stipulates that any rise in telecom tariffs should have Parliament’s approval.
At the Feb 16 Cabinet session it was ruled that Latin SMS tariff was to go up from 142 Rial to 222 Rial from June 21, while Persian SMS tariff was to go down to 89 Rial.
However, Ministry of Information and Communication Technology stresses that the reason behind lowering Persian SMS tariff at the expense of Latin SMS tariff has not been economic but cultural, which is to encourage the use of Persian language.

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