OWN CORRESPONDENT, Pretoria | Thursday 9.00pm
TELKOM announced a change in its tariff structure on Thursday that will see the costs of calls to 24 international destinations dropped. Telkom spokeswoman Amanda Singleton said the cost cuts when into effect on Thursday.
Singleton said Telkom has targeted the top 30 destinations for outgoing calls from South Africa, reducing their rates by between 5% and 35%. The cost of calls to the United Kingdom, the most popular international call destination for South Africans, was reduced by 26%.
Other European countries to which rates have been cut by at least 20% during standard time include France, Germany, Greece, Spain and Italy.
In the case of five of South Africa’s neighbouring countries, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, Swaziland and Lesotho, callers will save 35% of the cost of a call in standard time.
Singleton said that calls to these countries currently account for almost 30% of all international calls from South Africa. Calls are cheaper at off-peak times — 8pm to 8am on weekdays and from 8pm on Fridays to 8am on Mondays.