Facing tough competition from IP telephony and cellular, the Instituto Costarricense de Electriciad (ICE) is offering free installation and no deposit, new and existing commercial and residential fixed line service.
Marketed under the Kölbi Hogar brand, ICE is waiving the usual ¢20.905 installation fee and ¢9.000 deposit for residential and ¢20.905 and ¢19.300 deposit for commercial, until September 13. The sale, according to the ICE website, stared on July 19, but appears to have been the best kept secret in the country.
For residential customers, the “basic” service cost is ¢2.090 monthly that includes up to 500 minutes a month of calls (up from 160). The commercial rate is ¢2.429 monthly and no minutes.
The per minute cost (over the 500 for residential) is ¢4.63 during prime time (Monday to Friday from 7am to 7pm) and ¢2.26 evenings, weekends and legal holidays.
All rates are in colones and includes sales tax (ivi).
As a condition of the promotion, customers have to be current with all their ICE services and if requesting 5 lines or more, an internal switch is required and to be installed by the customer. Requesting a special number costs a one time fee of ¢8.542.
To sign up for service it can be done by calling 1115, visiting any ICE telecom office or online through the Agencia Virtual.
Click here for the regulations of the promotion (in Spanish).
