Network operators raise telecom charges on higher number repository fees Telecom groups have warned that clients would have to pay more for telecom services as the Ministry of Finance has set up higher fees for using the telecom number repository.   The new decision by the Ministry of Finance would force each telecom group to pay hundreds of billions of dong more for using the telecom number repository, which would certainly affect the production costs. With the number repository fee up from VND1,000 to VND3,000-4,000 on February 6, the total fees network operators have to pay every year would be triple than the current level. A senior executive of VinaPhone said it has to pay VND56 billion every year to the Telecom Agency for its 56 million used telecom numbers. This does not include the fees for network codes and service codes – the important factors that make up the telecom service production costs. “The change made by the Ministry of Finance may affect the service fee and the simcard prices as well,” he said. At present, post-paid users have to pay VND35,000 to connect the networks each time, while pre-paid pay VND25,000. MobiFone, one of the three biggest telcos in Vietnam, also said the fee for number repository use is an important item to be considered when calculating the production costs of the services. A senior executive said that MobiFone has to pay the number repository use fee for 55 million subscribers every year, and that MobiFone would make a final decision on whether to raise the service fee after reconsidering the production cost in 2014. Viettel, the third big guy, remains quiet about this. Experts said consumers still have not been affected by the latest decision by the Ministry of Finance. However, in the long term, telecom groups may consider raising the service fees to offset the loss in revenue. If so, it would be the consumers who suffer most. The senior executive of a telco commented that the Ministry of Finance should have given enterprises more time to implement the plan to increase fees. The sharp increase of the number repository fee by four fold would seriously affect telcos’ profits. He has also suggested that the Ministry of Information and Communication accepts to get back the unused subscription numbers, which would help telcos save money on number leasing. This means that the ministry would only charge fee on the numbers operational in reality. Meanwhile, the representative from another telco has suggested collecting the number repository fees according to a new mechanism. The networks with more subscriptions would be able to enjoy lower fees. Under the mechanism, the watchdog agency would be able to encourage the enterprises’ production and business. As such, just within a short time, network operators have continuously made claims for service fee increases. In October 2013, the three biggest network operators raised the 3G service fee by 40 percent. In early 2014, they proposed to raise the international incoming call fees from UScent6.1 to UScent8.1. And now they attempt to the raise the telecom service fees, reasoning the higher number repository fees. VNE