SK Telecom to cut caller ID fees

SK Telecom Co., the leading company in the mobile phone industry, announced yesterday that it would cut fees for its caller identification service by as much as 50 percent this year. An SK Telecom official said that the company decided to lower the service fee to at most 1,000 won (85 cents) monthly, after the Ministry of Information and Communication and civic groups asked for a reduction. The firm planned to ask the information and communication ministry next month to allow the move. The law requires such a request because SK Telecom holds more than 50 percent of the mobile market. SK Telecom reported that it invested 50.2 billion won to establish the service. It is estimated that the firm earned 120 billion won from the service last year and will net about 200 billion won from it by the end of this year. The YMCA, which has been a vocal critic of the caller identification service fee, said in a press conference Tuesday that the code division multiple access technology provides mobile phones with basic information that includes caller identification. Thus, there should be no charge for the service, it said. “Telecommunication companies have deceived customers by asking them to pay extra for a basic service. They have earned more than 400 billion won since the service started in May 2001, but their investment was very slight.” The YMCA said it would continue its opposition to telecommunication companies’ policy until the service is provided free. Another official at SK Telecom said that caller identification is provided as a basic service on mobile phones. But he said that the initial investment and maintenance expenses were not nominal. SK Telecom had to develop technologies for other optional services, such as refusal of calls from certain numbers and allowing numbers to be unlisted, the official said. He also said that 20 out of the 50 optional services were free, and among the charged services, only two, including caller identification, made big profits. “If the service were provided free, it would damage the business severely,” he said. Meanwhile, the information and communication ministry said if SK Telecom cuts service fees too deeply, it could force other companies to lower their prices. The ministry said it would thoroughly analyze such an effect on competing companies and the industry on a whole after SK Telecom makes its request to reduce the monthly charge. by Choi Hyung-kyu