In January 2019, Rostelecom abolished fees for calls from street payphones within one constituent entity of the Russian Federation. This was the second step to increase the availability of communication services: the first was taken a year earlier, when local calls became free. And now the third stage of the program has been announced, within the framework of which, from June, PJSC Rostelecom will make all calls from universal payphones made in the Russian Federation to any fixed telephones free of charge. At the same time, calls to mobile phones are charged under the same conditions.
At the moment, there are 148 payphones in Russia, the sole operator of which is Rostelecom. The zeroing of tariffs for their use is aimed primarily at residents of rural areas, where, according to the President of Rostelecom PJSC Mikhail Oseevsky, cellular communications are still not available everywhere. That is why payphones will exist for a long time, the head of the operator is convinced.
This is not the first time that communication services that previously required payment have become free. For example, under the project to eliminate the digital divide, in the summer of 2017, fees for connecting to the Internet through Wi-Fi access points created in rural areas were abolished. The project executor is Rostelecom, and funds for the program are allocated from the Universal Communication Services Fund. The latter is formed through annual contributions from telecom operators in the amount of 1,2% of revenue.
Source: 3dnews.ru