ATTENTION citizens: will internet become more expensive in Azerbaijan?

The State Service for Antimonopoly Control and Consumer Market Supervision approved new tariffs of the state operator Aztelekom for internet providers but put forward a number of conditions. The regulator's decision is intended to protect the interests of all market participants and maintain healthy competition.

As the newspaper "Kaspi" writes, the state operator is now obligated to provide all companies with equal access to its infrastructure on absolutely transparent and open terms, without infringing on the rights of private businesses. At the same time, the state monopoly's new application attracted attention in light of its recent attempt to raise the minimum internet tariff for the population.

At that time, the regulatory body did not approve the increase in subscription fees and the forced increase in minimum speed. This time, the agency is examining a different market segment. The initiative concerns services for localizing internet traffic and its delivery through the country's internal telecommunications infrastructure.

Access without privileges

The tariff issue is significant for the industry, notes expert Osman Gündüz. Network modernization and increased internet speeds should be affordable for ordinary citizens. After all, following the tariff reform the year before last, even the cheapest internet traffic immediately rose from 18 manats for 40 Mbps to 25 manats for 100 Mbps. As a result, the minimum bill for the population jumped by nearly 40%. And before the latest price increase, about 90% of subscribers chose the basic tariff, the specialist says.

"Network modernization is undoubtedly a positive step, and the efforts of the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport together with Aztelekom to develop regional infrastructure deserve high praise," he noted. "However, the process itself must be combined with affordable prices so that quality internet is accessible to every family. Moreover, the increase in the minimum tariff in August of the year before last already raised expenses for the lion's share of users, since the majority of the population used the starter service package.

Developing high-speed packages is certainly necessary, but there should always be a choice that matches our real needs and financial capabilities. This time, the focus was not on subscriber packages but on the wholesale segment. This refers to services that Aztelekom provides to other telecommunications market participants.

The State Antimonopoly Service approved the tariffs for traffic localization but with a preemptive condition. Henceforth, the