New Zealand officials have begun to question why the country's cell phone users are paying some of the highest charges in the world.
New Zealand First leader Winston Peters used question time in Parliament to demand to know why New Zealand cell phone users are paying twice as much as those in Australia, the New Zealand Herald reported Sunday. He backed the claim with a draft report released this week by the Commerce Commission that recommended regulating the industry, saying some charges were "significantly above cost."
The report said New Zealand's cell phone prices rank second-highest out of 30 countries. New Zealand prices were 62 percent above average for medium and high users of cell phones.
"It's price gouging of the worst sort. It's a massive cost on the ordinary business and cell phone consumer and they've got away with it for years ... we are being ripped off," Peters said.
David Russell, chief executive of the Consumers' Institute has said cell phone users were suffering because New Zealand's mobile market was a duopoly.
© Copyright 2004 by United Press International
