NT nets Rs 8.25m revenue from SMS service during Dashain

KATHMANDU, OCT 31 -

Nepal Telecom ( NT ) has earned Rs 8.25 million in revenue from SMS service during Dashain. The state-owned telecom company witnessed a total of 16.5 million SMS during the five days, from Oct 20-24 over its GSM mobile service.

The number of SMS exchanged this year has increased by 28 percent on last year’s volume of 12.8 million over the same period. The trend of exchanging festival greetings has been increasing each year among subscribers due to easy, cheaper medium.

The NT has over 6 million subscribers under its GSM mobile service. The state-owned telecom operator has reduced SMS charge from Rs 1 to Rs 0.50 per message (excluding tax) until Nov 20 for Dashain, Tihar and Chhath festivals. “On an average 3.3 million SMS were sent by subscribers each day during those five days,” said Guna Kesari Pradhan, NT spokesperson. She added that reduced charge had encouraged customers to exchange greetings in a convenient way though SMS.

The normal flow of SMS over GSM network is estimated at around 1.2 million to 1.5 million every day, according to NT officials. Dashain, the biggest Hindu festival, witnesses the higher number of greetings through SMS than any other occasion in the county.

The NT had also provided 50 percent discount on SMS tariff last year. This year, apart from reduction in tariff for SMS service, the NT has also provided discount on international calls, subscription fee for GSM 3G prepaid SIM, 3G data card and CDMA EVDO RUIM services.

An official at the NT said that the SMS circulation would have been much higher if there were no social networking sites like facebook. “Many people who are on the social networking sites exchange greetings on those sites,” added the official.

Source: The Kathmandu Post