TELEPHONE- CHARGES

Dominion, Volume 16, Issue 169, 5 April 1923, Page 7

TELEPHONE- CHARGES

HOW THE NEW SCALE -IS VIEWED

FAVOURED BY MAJORITY OF SUBSCRIBERS REPORT OF OFFICIALS’ DOMINION TOUR .

The new scale of telephone charges announced by the Postmaster-General is viewed with favour by the majority of subscribers in New Zealand, according to the view expressed by » departmental expert, following a comprehensive tour in the Dominion, dur- • mg which the case for and against the proposed charges was exhaustively discussed.

Mr. A. T. Markman, First Assistant Secretary, Postal and Telegraph Department, has just returned ficm e, tour of the North and South Islands, undertaken in co-operation vith Mr. E. A. Shrimptorf, Chief Telegraph Engineer, with a view to discussing the proposed telephone charges, and meeting any possible objections .o the proposals. At the request of a Dominion representative yesterday, Mr. Markman made an interesting statement, regarding matters that had come under his notice during the tour, associated with the new scale of charges.

“The reasons, and the necessity for the increased telephone charges have already been fully gone into,” said Mr. Markman, “and I am able to report that, as a result of the tour, the increased charges outlined by the Postmaster-General have been well received. It is generally recognised by the different local bodies that I met that the increases are warranted. Certain objections were raised in some quarters as to the amount or the scale of charges. After having heard the views of subscribers in various localities, we are reconsidering tho charges, and proposals in that direction will be placed before tho Minister shortly for his consideration“Perhaps it has been mentioned, before, but the fact must not be lost sight of, that telephone rates or charges have been increased in all countries of the world in the last few years. This is largely brought about by the cost of installation having gone up considerably higher than the prewar level; it is recognised that those costs are not likely to come back to the pre-war rate, in the near future or ot any distant date.”

Higher Installation Costs. Supporting his contention about higher installation prices, Mr. Markman produced official statistics, which showed that tho average cost of installing each telephone was now £5O 18s. 2d., as compared with £3llos. LOa., before the war. Dealing with individual items in the sum of the cost, ho said that the cost of the machines had doubled, cable and aerial wire had increased by- a third.,and labour had gone up from £6 to £lO per installation. “When I was addressing ’ the Napier Chamber of Commerce, a prominent business man asked for particulars of installation costs, and when I produced the figures, his opposition to the proposals was turned into unqualified support, and he seconded the motion, affirming the necessity for the new charges,” added Mr. Markham, on this point. “Tho Minister and the Department want the telephone to become a selfsupporting institution.” he continued. “If, at some future date, tho revenue is .more thaft sufficient to meet our outgoings, we will nob _ hestitate. to bring about reduced charges, in a similar way. Postal, and telegraph charges were brought down two or three months ago; all wo want is to havd the whole Department self-supporting. Sydney's Toll System. “Some reference has been made’ to the measured rate, or , what is known in Svdney as tho toll system. The opinion of the majority of business 'and private subscribers I have met on my tour is against it. The Department is also against it . To install the necessary apparatus, to record each call made by a subscriber, would cost at least £lOO,OOO. with probably a further sum of £25,000, in tho way of a clerical staff, in connection with the preparation and rendering of ths accounts. If the measured rate were enforced in New Zealand, at pay l]d. per call, as in together with the ground rental for the telephone of £5 to £7 per annum, the cost of four calls per day would be £7 12s. per annum—a total of from £l2 12s. to £l4 12s. The rate would increase, according to the greater number of calls, until, for 10 calls per day, tho cost would be £l9—a total of £24 to £26 per annum . Old and New' Rates. “So far as the subscribers of Wellington ifre concerned, the following table will show the proposed rate, as announced by the Minister, and the rate already paid by subscribers up to 3J miles radius:—

"In ndd'tion to the above, provision is mi>le for two-party business’ lines ill tho same block for £l2, probably loss; for two-party residences in the nnnio cnble-box area for £7 10s. or loss; and for four-party residences in tho same cable-box area for £6 15s. or legs, Therefore, a small business man, who door, not feol able to pay tho £lB for an exclusive line, can come on with some other business man, not in tho fame lino of business, for £l2, probably less, per annum. As a comparison with Australia, the following will wive flomo indication' of the cost of telephones hr New Zealand under th~ proposed charges, against the charges at, for instance, Sydney or Adelaide,

where the toll or measured'rate is enforced at IJd. per call: —

*Plus lid. a call for each outward call in excess of 1000 per annum (eaual to less than three a day). “On the whole,. I found a fair amount of opposition to the proposal to collect tho telephone exchange subscriptions monthly; after hearing these objections, the Department is seriously considering tho question of reverting to tho collection of subscriptions art months iir advance-” Growth of tho Telephone. Mr. Markman furnished an interesting comparison of the growth of the telephono in New . Zealand. It was established in 1882, with 116 subscribers in tho Dominion, Wellington s total subscribers being about 30; the subscription was then £l7 10s. per annum. In 1890, there were 2402 telephone subscribers, about 600 being m Wellington; tho rate was £lO for the first vear and £8 thereafter. In those days 'it was not possible to communicate with a subscriber outside tho. exchange area. At the present time, there’arc 94,000 subscribers in the Dominion, about 9000 of them being in Wellington; there are approximately three telephones to every 40 people in New Zealand. -Wellington is able to communicate by trunk or toll telephone Io practically every other city or town in the North Island. “It is an article of belief with us that tho larger the number of subscribers the more useful is tho telephone to al! concerned,” said Mr. Markman, in conclusion. “It is the practice of the foremost telephone countries in tho world to encourage the development of residential connections in tho suburbs and country districts, and so enhance the value of the telephone to business men. No retailer can deny the fact that tho value of his telephono connection depends on the number of subscribers who can cal] him up, while no business man or firm connected with the telephone can deny the wisdom of increasing the scope of such a valuable public utility. As one business man remarked at. ono of my meetings, while he would like to have lii« telephone at ns cheap a rate as possible he recognised the necessity.for making an increase; at tho same time he stored that the telephone was one of tho essentials of office equipment.

Business. Private Residence. x*reProposed Present Proposed sent rate. rate. rate. rate. £ £ s. <1. £ £ 8. < 1. vj-mile 18 9 10 0 9 6 0 0 5-mile 18 9 10 0 9 6 0 0 1 mile 18 . 9 10 0 9 6 0 .0 11-milo 18 10 o G 9 G 12 6 ll-mile 18. 10 15 0 9 7 5 0 Ij-milo 18 11 7 6 9 7 17 6 2 miles 18 12 0 0 9 8 10 0 2| miles 18 . 12 12 6 9 9 2 6 2j miles 18 13 5 0 9 9 15 0 2*2 miles 18 13 17 6 9 / 10 7 6 3 miles 18 14 10 0 9 11 • 0 0 3J miles 18 15 7 G 9 11 17 6 3} miles 18 16 ,5 0 9 12 15 0

BUSINESS CONNECTIONS. 1 mile. £ s. d. 2 miles. £ s. d. 3 miles. £ s. d. •Sydney and. Adelaide ... 20 12 6 20 12 6 Zu 13 6 Wellington (proposed) Wellington 18 0 0 18 0 0 18 0 0 (nresont) 9 10 0 12 0 0 14 1U 0 •Plus lid. a call for each outward call in excess of 3000 per annum (eaual to lu a day). RESIDENTIAL CONNECTIONS. •Sydney and Adelaide ... 10 4 2 10 4 2 10 4 2 Wellington (proposed) Wellington 9 0 0 9 0 0 9 0 0 (present) ... 6 0 0 8 10 0 11 0 0