Egypt's communication minister is embroiled in a fight with an online activist group and TE Data over the country's new proposed Internet prices that were unveiled Thursday.
The Internet Revolution group, which has more than 1 million followers on Facebook, rejected a new price proposal, saying that Internet packages are overpriced in Egypt.
However, TE Data's pricing board also rejected the the proposal, saying it was an act of squandering public money, refusing the price reduction.
Communication Minister Khaled Negm has sent the Internet Revolution members a study created for TE Data, which was completed by the investment bank Pharos. The proposal seeks reduced infrastructural costs, reported Egypt Independent .
The Internet Revolution said in a statement that only 78 percent of Internet speed was actually obtained, while quoting Negm as stating it was in fact 90 percent, still less than promised.
According to Egypt Independent, a high ranked official at the Communications Ministry said that TE Data never received official approval to launch new packages. He added that the package that received backlash on social media platforms was different than the one submitted by TE Data.
Nonetheless, the minister and the president of the National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority said at a press conference Thursday that TE Data never received "written consent" to alter prices.