Minister of Science, ICT and Future Planning Choi Mun-kee on Wednesday called for lower communication costs for Korean households, saying that monthly prices of 120,000 won to 130,000 won are ideal.

“With the introduction of smartphones, phones have virtually become computers. Because the price of these handsets are going up due to the sophisticated features that are being added, it’s difficult to keep the prices down. We hope there will be a way to maintain prices at 120,000 won to 130,000 won while sustaining handset quality,” Choi told reporters at a luncheon press conference at the government complex in Gwacheon.

One way to do this would be to eliminate the subscription fee, which is already a part of the ministry’s major policy initiatives. 

Local mobile carriers have agreed and are working toward phasing the fees out over the next three years.

As one of the world’s most wired countries with a top spot in the global IT industry, Koreans complain of high communication costs. Last year, the average monthly cost was tallied at around 153,000 won.

Spiraling handset prices ― an inevitable trend accompanying the introduction of smartphones ― are adding to the growing costs, despite that carriers have sought to reduce prices, such as by slashing the costs for a number of supplementary services.

Part of the problem is the handset manufacturers, Choi said: “Many people fail to use less than one-third of their smartphone features. Despite this, smartphone makers continue to roll out fancier and more expensive handsets.”

At the same time, he called for the mobile carriers to adjust their data plans by raising the prices, and at the same time slashing voice communication fees. Currently, data fees are free of charge.

The users, Choi said, should be given the freedom to choose call plans on whether they prefer to use more voice communication, or the opposite.

He forecast that communication fees will soon become completely free.

Regarding frequency allotment issues, Choi said the government hopes to allot the frequencies to the three carriers in a manner that can “spur fair competition.”

The nation’s three carriers ― KT, SKT and LG Uplus ― are jockeying for a more favorable position, with KT calling for an auction, while the two other rivals believe it would give the former state-owned carrier an advantage.

“We hope to lay down principles that will spur fair competition while at the same time enhancing efficiency and help with the industry’s growth,” Choi said.

He also said the media was egging on unnecessary competition between the three rival carriers.

By Kim Ji-hyun (jemmie@heraldcorp.com)