Telecom attacks rival ISPs with rebate offer

By RICHARD BRADDELL

WELLINGTON - Telecom has launched a counter-attack against Clear Communications with an offer aimed at luring customers away from Clear Net and other non 0867-access based internet providers.

In an advertisement in Thursday's Herald, Telecom offered to rebate any 2 cents-a-minute charges for local internet access paid by anyone willing to move by May 31 to one of 13 internet providers using 0867 access.

Noting that 100 out of the 120 internet providers in New Zealand now offered 0867 access, the advertisement said if people were customers of a provider using ordinary local dialups, they could pick up a 2c-a-minute charge on their Telecom bill after the first 10 hours of each month's usage.

Asked why the advertisement did not carry Telecom's name or branding, spokesman Glen Sowry said it had been placed at short notice to counter "misinformation" about 0867.

It used Telecom's standard typeface and mentioned Telecom in most paragraphs, making it likely people would realise it was from Telecom, he said.

The offer covered only 12 of the 100 0867 internet providers, and Telecom's Xtra, which is on Telecom's 0873 IPNet network.

But Mr Sowry said all 0867 internet providers, including i4free and freenet, would be eligible.

Telecom's move comes after the row over 0867 intensified last week when free internet provider i4free was granted an interim injunction requiring Telecom to continue readdressing 0867 calls to Clear's network as if they were ordinary local calls.

As a result, Telecom is required to make interconnection payments to Clear, which it then shares with i4free. Clear has refused to sign up to 0867, the network Telecom says is essential for management of burgeoning internet traffic, because it will lose interconnection revenue.

But Clear's offer to offset what it calls the 2c a minute "internet tax" imposed by Telecom has angered some customers, who say they are unable to use up the credits offered.

As one of New Zealand's largest internet providers, Clear Net accounts for most of non-0867 traffic. But with the launch of Zfree this week, Clear Net's focus has moved from residential to business users.

Clear spokesman Ross Inglis said Zfree had signed its 10,000th customer since launching on Tuesday.