Iran's Communications Minister: If Internet Tariffs Don't Increase, We Won't Have the Current "Quality" This Year

The Minister of Communications and Information Technology of the Islamic Republic of Iran, who had previously said that no one has the right to increase internet tariffs under the pretext of "increasing operators' contributions to the government in the budget," is now saying that increasing tariffs is inevitable, otherwise "we will not have the quality of the network we have now" in 1401.

According to news agencies in Iran, Issa Zarepour stated on Tuesday, April 2, that the goal is to "reform" internet tariffs in a way that does not put financial and economic pressure on the people, because "we know that people are involved in all kinds of inflation."

Stating that "the wheel of the communications industry turns on revenue from voice and data," he added that part of the slow internet speed is due to the need for resources that are not being provided, and these resources must either be injected through the government or provided "through the people."

Zarepour had previously said that proper development has not taken place in the past 10 years for various reasons, one of which is the failure to change landline tariffs, which has caused costs to multiply and the necessary development not to be carried out. Part of the disruptions we had were due to this network, and the problem goes back to "the communication links of the Iranian telecommunications company, which were saturated in some cities."

On March 13 and 14, several cities around Tehran faced a two-day internet outage for fixed and mobile operators, which was caused by a fire in the "telecom fiber pool."

Earlier, on March 4, some citizens in Tehran and Karaj had their internet services cut off for hours. Officials attributed the disruption to a fire in an internet data center.

On the other hand, a plan to restrict and control the Internet, known as the "Protection" plan, is being drafted in the Islamic Consultative Assembly. A plan that will lead to the IRGC and the armed forces gaining control over the country's Internet.

Source: Voice of America