The Sydney Morning Herald from Sydney, New South Wales, Australia • Page 5

THE SYDNEY MORNING HERALD TUESDAY, JULY 1, 1997 Cheaper calls arrive bunt witli warming: bells a1 By JULIE ROBOTHAM Technology Writer Residential phone users will be offered a wide range of cheaper long-distance and mobile phone call packages as a result of today's deregulation of the telecommunications market. But consumer groups warn that there could be pitfalls if people do not read the fine print, and that phone users outside the major population centres could miss out on open market benefits. AAP Telecommunications, the largest alternative phone company for businesses, yesterday announced its first residential services. They shave up to 60 per cent off Telstra's standard peak rate tariffs for STD longdistance calls and offer three flat fees 25c a minute anywhere in the country during the business day, 15c a minute between 6 pm and 9 pm and 9c a minute at weekends. Off-peak international rates start at 40c a minute.

And WorldXchange, another competing company which is already active in the residential market, promised further price cuts: "Our cost structures drop as of midnight last night because we can use our own cables offshore," said the managing director, Mr Richard Vincent. Until now, WorldXchange has had to pay to use Telstra's cables. With its own infrastructure, the company could pass its savings on to customers, Mr Vincent claimed. New mobile services, especially low-cost short-range services targeting inner-city pedestrians, are expected later this year when new radio frequencies are to be released to mobile phone companies. However, other than Optus, which has been hit by technical problems, no company has announced local phone calls to compete with Telstra's.

The policy and public affairs manager of the Australian Consumers' Association, Ms Mara Bun, warned of "a range of misleading and deceptive practices" that have arisen in deregulated phone markets overseas. These included hidden charges and special discount packages where "you sign up for something on the basis that you'll behave a certain way, when in fact you behave quite The biggest savings could target "affluent neighbourhoods, or people who make a lot of overseas Ms Bun said. This would be unfair, because "we've all paid over the years for the development of telecommunications technology, so why shouldn't the benefits be shared among everyone?" Telstra is expected to be subject to price caps for some residential services, which could help share the competition windfall equitably, she said. The balance of liability would shift towards consumers for equipment attached to the' phone network under the new regime, said Ms Helen Campbell, the co-ordinator of the lobby group the Consumers' Telecommunications Network. Most telephones and fax machines would still carry a sticker indicating whether they were approved for the network, she said, but "I'm worried about things like intercoms and remote controls for fire These devices plug into the phone network but may not always be approved for connection, leaving users open to large fines.

Ms Campbell suggested people demand a written contract from phone companies: contentious issues include the time increments at which calls are charged, whether there is a "flag fall" fee, and how any billing disputes are resolved. She questioned whether consumers would be prepared to spend time scrutinising new phone deals. "There's an enormous level of consumer inertia. It's more work for consumers people have got lives." PAGE 27: New-look Optus for D-day. Anne Leculier with one of the Lapita pots which are on their way back to their traditional owners in New Caledonia.

Photograph by PALANI MOHAN Potted history of ancients pieced together By ADAM HARVEY Almost 3,000 years after the shards of giant clay pots were carefully buried in a sandy New Caledonian pit, Australian Museum staff will today return the newly repaired pots to their traditional owners. This collection of Lapita pots, found in 1995, is one of the most significant archaeological discoveries in the Pacific region. They were moulded from clay and fired inside white-hot bonfires built by the Austronesian-speakers the canoe-borne colonists of the South Pacific. Identical Lapita pots have been found over an area of 4,500 square kilometres, encompassing Papua New Guinea, the Bismarck Archipelago, Western Polynesia, Samoa and Tonga. The pots were of deep significance to their makers, says Dr Christophe Sand, archaeologist at the Territorial Museum of New Caledonia.

Too porous to hold water, and with no scorch marks on their base from cooking fires, they must have had ceremonial significance, Dr Sand said. The pots mark the boundaries of the Austronesian-speakers' travels. Identical intricate markings on pots found on islands hundreds of kilometres apart indicate some were taken on epic the finest examples of Lapita pottery in existence. They say the work has been a highlight of their careers. New Caledonian north province officials Mr Aymar Bouan-aoue and Mr Waiaride Kateko have flown to Sydney to take the pots back to New Caledonia.

"In the oral traditions of the Kanak peoples of New Caledonia, our people were always moving from one area to another," Mr Kateko said. "These pots are the first pages of an open book of the history of the island. Now it is up to the archaeologists to write down what this book savs." canoe journeys and were used as templates for a new generation of pots. Archaeologists are try ing to decipher the geometric designs on the side of the pots, some of which are up to half a metre tall. A New Caledonian archaeologist found these latest Lapita shards protruding from a sandy beach on the west coast of the New Caledonian mainland.

Dr Sand knew that once out of the earth, the salt-laden shards would crumble into dust within a few years. He also knew that the Australian Museum was the only place with the facilities and expertise to repair and conserve the pots. So archaeologists and conservators from the museum were sent to New Caledonia to bring the pots to Sydney. European museums have preserved ancient pottery for centuries, but the Lapita pots require special skills. They are fragile because they were fired in bonfires at a relatively low heat.

Australian Museum conservators Anne Leculier and Karen Coote spent 10 months washing the salt from the 300 pot shards, emptying the airpockets inside the pottery in a vacuum, and filling the pockets with a preserving substance. They then pieced the pots together, and built 13 of RINGING THE CHANGES Bl" Helstral 1 tCHtrms .1 nmi mt'' yTTf' si Ct CtwrgM Summary 1 SSj- 1 1177.38 Tafavftm I MM!) a 12 ID IS Am 2Ma mWMmt 07 j. "1 La ioJu aa mHJama, 1 I is ana Maom bwjui ion vfca ii 1 1 in JTli fj-icMs IT -T-tfiS iryTi ra I K4 0011 Mamafcnl loWJM ak I II S3aJBE2HCMKjipCsJi Gun buyback centre primed for amnesty deadline 1 1 11 i mmmmmm Lwiiium iattj mm mm i if win nwi 'iiiiiiiujM i 1 guns, to comply with new laws that come into force at the end of September. The Penrith centre follows the success of the mobile gun buyback centres which started travelling to 56 towns across NSW last week. The mobile centres collected more than 800 firearms in their first week.

The NSW Police Service receive a compensation cheque on the spot. The only exceptions will be where the firearm is not listed on the published price list, or if the firearm is worth more than $2,500." The amnesty for prohibited firearms would cease after September 30, as would compensation. Anyone possessing a prohibited firearm without a licence By MINH BUI Sydney's first gun buyback centre was opened at Penrith yesterday morning, with 88 prohibited firearms handed in and $39,000 in compensation paid by the end of the day. The makeshift centre was opened in response to public demand for somewhere other than police stations to hand in project manager for firearm reform, Mr Mick Roelandts, said this was the last opportunity for gun owners to get compensation for prohibited firearms. "We are trying to spread the message in the last three months that is, time is running out," he said.

"Gun owners can hand in their, prohibited firearms and would face a $5,000 fine andor two years' jail. They also would be banned from holding any firearm licence for 10 years. Mr, John Usher, 58, of Mt Druitt, reluctantly surrendered his three guns yesterday morning. "We have no choice in the matter. Rest assured, the cheque will go to buy a better and legal gun," he said.

Mcm crtk mk Mr H-S i payment the Viu'vc just n'-'i(-l the intorination viu leen waiting lor. But it lias arrived too late. Vu needed it das ago. Ilovv do vou "et vour inlormation when vou need It easy when vou put the Internet to work lor vou. It saves time by giv ing even one aeeess to information from any computer, from any location.

Lotus Domino can have vour company communicating over the Net. So your people can share ideas. Have open debates. Approve requests. Even store information for others to access.

With its ability to scale upwards. Domino can grow as it helps vou to grow. Let your IBM or Lotus reseller show you how the power ol Domino can work for you, within vour industry. While others wait for their information. IBM's resellers can design, implement and integrate a solution for your company vith a mix of advanced technology, professional services and business know how.

"why do I get my information a week after everybody else?" solution tin Turner Q2E (23 132 426 ask for 'DominoInfo' (02) 9354 4035 www.il tm.enni.au Solutions lor a small planet Ess rsf: IBM is a registered trademark and Solutions for a small planet are trademarks ot International Business Machines Corporation. All other companies andor products are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies. 1 997 IBM Australia Ltd. ACN 000 024 733. All rights reserved.

Ogilvy BRD1 75 XX71 202A.