ENGLISH DEYEA NEWS

By MIN LWIN | Since prepaid GSM single-use cards were made available in Yadanabon, 27 miles (43 kilometers) from Mandalay on Dec. 12, Rangoon residents say the cards are in greater demand.

Sources close to Central Marketing Company said about 20,000 prepaid GSM single-use cards have been sold in Yadanabon, known as “cyber city.” They are also being sold in mobile phone shops in Rangoon and Mandalay.

According to Rangoon residents, a Foreigner Exchanger Certificate (FEC) 20 single-use card in the black market now cost 40,000 kyat (US $ 32) with a four-week expiration. A FEC 10 card cost 20,000 kyat (US $16) for two weeks.

A mobile phone handset owner at Yuzana Plaza in Mingalar Taungnyunt Township said the new GSM cards are sold at more than the official price because demand is greater than the supply.

Central Marketing Company, a part of Htoo Trading Company, launched GSM mobile phone SIM cards in collaboration with the state-owned Myanmar Post and Telecommunication in a test market mainly focused on foreigners who reside in Burma and tourists who wish to make easier overseas calls.

The prepaid GSM single-use cards have 10-digit numbers. The FEC 10 cards must be used within 14 days before the credit expires. FEC 20 cards expire in 28 days.

A senior official with Myanmar Post and Telecommunication said prepaid GSM Sim cards are valid until March 2009.

Calls will be charged at FEC 0.30 per minute for local calls, FEC 1.5 for international calls and FEC 0.05 for short messaging system (SMS) data. A card owner will be charged FEC 0.05 per minute or per message for accepting calls and SMS messages.

Meanwhile, Chinese made mobile phone handsets and secondhand mobile phone handsets are increasingly in demand in the Burmese mobile phone market.

Rangoon-based Irrawaddy correspondent Aung Thet Wine contributed to this story.