According to Black Media’s information, Minister of Communications Charles Hajj submitted to pressure from Alfa and Touch, which are moving to take an official decision preventing subscribers from transferring dollars between lines, starting next October.
The decision does not only mean canceling the balance transfer service, but will put the citizen in the face of forced charging, after he was able to manage his balance according to his needs and capabilities. The subscriber will no longer be able to recharge his line for the amount he wants, or buy specific days, or even transfer dollars from one line to another. Rather, he will practically be forced to buy an entire recharging card at its high value.
In clearer terms, instead of the citizen paying only for what he needs in terms of days or dollars, he will be forced to buy a full card, even if he does not need its full value, which means a direct additional cost to his pocket.
Black Media information reveals that this plan was born about six months ago through tripartite consultations between the minister on the one hand and the cellular companies Alpha and Touch on the other, and that its primary goal is to raise the profits of the companies “Alfa” and “Touch” at the expense of the subscriber, by pushing him to buy full recharge cards instead of being satisfied with the amounts he actually needs.
While the Lebanese are already facing stifling living and economic crises, this step adds a new burden to them, making even the phone line subject to a rule: either you buy the full card, or you do not recharge.
