Armenia-Artsakh Unified Prices: Tariffs to Decrease, Says PSRC Chairman

Following a government session, the Chairman of the Public Services Regulatory Commission (PSRC), Garegin Baghramyan, commented on the reduction of roaming service tariffs in Artsakh during a press briefing. "The tariffs are high, and they will decrease. Starting from August 1, we have an actual reduction for Beeline and Ucom, aligning their prices with Viva Cell MTS: the outgoing and incoming fees have decreased to 45 drams," he said.

Baghramyan mentioned that they already have an agreement that tariffs will significantly drop starting January 1, 2020. "This will happen in a six-month period—the first reduction on January 1, followed by another on July 1, and then again on January 1, 2021," he explained.

He stated that their goal is to establish unified prices between Armenia and Artsakh. "This will be achieved after 2021." In response to journalists' questions about whether residents of Armenia and Artsakh had been paying more to the monopoly company 'Karabakh Telecom' for years, Baghramyan noted, "Karabakh Telecom has its own separate agreement with the Artsakh government. They are also now ready to negotiate. The prices are so high that they themselves acknowledge that these tariffs hinder further development."

When asked if it could be argued that the monopoly of 'Karabakh Telecom' was sponsored by the state, Baghramyan replied, "We cannot say such a thing. Significant developments have occurred in the telecommunications sector here."