INTERNET access at less than the price of a local call will soon be possible under new pricing arrangements announced by Oftel.

From January 2000 Internet service providers can choose what the pence-per-minute call rate for their customers should be, rather than simply charging the current standard local rate.

Oftel has also set out proposals for a new way of charging for calls to the internet separate from the way normal voice telephone calls are currently charged.

Announcing the new arrangements for the pricing of internet access, David Edmonds, Director General Telecommunications, said: "Most prices for Internet access are based on current telephone charges, with customers usually paying the price of a normal call.

"Oftel's new arrangements will break the link between Internet prices and telephone charges, and open the door for cheaper prices.

"From January 2000 Internet service providers will have complete freedom to decide what the pence-per-minute call rate for their customers should be.

"Additional revenue generated from e-commerce and advertising should mean Internet service providers could reduce the pence-per-minute charge for their customers to less than the rate of a local call for Internet access.

"Oftel has also put forward a new way of calculating the costs of internet calls, which are usually much longer than ordinary voice telephony calls. Splitting Internet call charges into two parts - a set-up charge and separate call duration charge - will more accurately reflect costs and result in cheaper Internet calls."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.