Following
privatization in
the 1990s,
Argentina's
telecommunications
system was
carved in two:
Telecom
were the
exclusive
operators in the
north of the
country,
Telefónica
ran the south,
and the two
co-existed in
Buenos Aires. As
a consequence of
these
monopolies,
Argentina
suffered some of
the world's most
outrageous phone
charges,
especially for
non-local
domestic calls
(over $1 a
minute even for
calls within the
same province).
Deregulation of
the market in
2000 has seen
the situation
change, with the
arrival of
competition from
foreign
companies such
as American Bell
looking set to
bring rates
plummeting down.
One benefit
of privatization
is that it
provided
much-needed
investment to
improve the
quality and
extent of
service, which
is now generally
good, although
certain isolated
rural areas
still await
their first
phone line.
Where there are
no phones, the
local radio
station is your
best bet for
getting messages
through in a
hurry. Virtually
all phones have
international
access, and it
is rare that you
have a problem
getting through.
By far the
most common way
to make calls
and send
faxes is
from public call
centres (
centros de
llamadas ),
known as
locutorios (Telefónica)
or
telecentros
(Telecom).
You'll be
assigned a
cabin, and most
have meters with
which you can
monitor your
expenditure.
Make as many
calls as you
want and then
pay at the
counter. Check
all rates first
before
committing
yourself to a
chat, and ask
for details of
special
international
and domestic
rates: there is
usually a period
of an hour or so
in the day when
calls are
substantially
discounted
to prices well
below normal
off-peak rates
(these sometimes
differ to the
discounted time
on private
lines). Off-peak
rates generally
start about 10pm
for
international
calls and last
till about 7am
the next
morning, and
rates are
usually fifteen
to twenty
percent less
than peak rates
($1.50 per
minute to Europe
as opposed to
$1.80, slightly
less for the
US). When
dialling
locally, do not
dial the area
code, as there
are areas where
this confuses
the computer and
you can find
yourself charged
at provincial,
not local,
rates. Faxes are
charged per
sheet (normally
$5 or $6 to
Europe). Phone
boxes on the
street take
coins or
phonecards ,
which you can
buy at kiosks or
street vendors,
but be aware
that you usually
pay more than
the unit value
of the card, and
this surcharge
varies, so shop
around. In some
of the more
out-of-the-way
places,
public
telephones
take coins only
($0.10 coins
upwards). The
minimum local
call charge is
$0.25. For
emergencies,
some people
carry an
international
calling card
, billed to your
credit card or
home telephone
account.
However, rates
for these cards
are usually
higher than
direct-dial
calls from the
normal network.
Mobile or
cell phones
(celulares) are
becoming
increasingly
popular, and
call rates do
not tend to
differ much from
land lines - but
check first. One
peculiarity to
note about
calling mobile
numbers in
Argentina is
that you always
need to use the
area code
in addition to
the mobile
number - and
often you cannot
contact an
Argentine cell
phone from
outside of the
country. Note
also that rates
for
reverse-charge
calls can be
frighteningly
high.
