Ringing the changes

Recently, I awoke to find my phone line had been cut off. The recording at the other end said I had not paid my bill, and the line would only be reconnected once I did.

Using my mobile, I rang China Railcom, my state-owned telecom provider, to discover that I had not paid 56 yuan (HK$52) for November. Other nations may wait two to three months before disconnecting a non-paying customer, but here in China, telecoms providers cut off consumers who are only a few days late.

'We called you last week, no one answered,' the woman clerk explained. 'That's why we cut off the phone.'

'I wasn't home when you called - why don't you issue a monthly bill?' I asked. 'This way, I know how much I need to pay and will pay on time.'

'We don't have the ability to issue paper invoices,' she snapped. 'You just have to come to our offices to pay the bill each month from the 10th to the 20th. Otherwise we cut off your line. It's as simple as that. That's the rule.'

Seething with anger, I felt like yelling at her. But I knew it would do little good. I smiled instead and muttered under my breath: 'Just watch. The market will wipe out China Railcom if services do not improve down the road.'

China is in the midst of a massive sell-off of state-owned enterprises, and it is great news - not only for domestic private entrepreneurs and foreign investors, but also for consumers. With privatisation will come competition, and with competition will come improved services and service attitudes. Poor performers will die.