rnThis subsidy will be available across all 25 districts and will be available to all payphone operators, TRC quote s Director Economic, Palitha Gunawardene told Lanka Business Online.
rnThe subsidy, funded out of the licence fees levied on the telecom sector ensures that it is distributed geographically and is available for multiple operators, he said.
rnAt present, there are around 9,500 payphone booths scattered islandwide. The distribution of payphones closely mirrors the fixed telephone distribution, Gunawardene said.
rnAround 50 percent are based in Colombo: with at least 64 percent installed in the Western Province. Despite this concentration, it is common knowledge that some of the payphones in the rural areas give significantly higher revenue than others.
rnHigher installation and other in