STATEMENT: R2K welcomes airtime cost cut from ICASA
Yesterday, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) released the final regulations on mobile termination rates, the fee that cellphone companies pay for accessing each others networks. ICASA dropped the rates from 40c/minute to 20c/minute effectiveMarch 1st. This is bold and welcome step to reduce the cost of communication in South Africa.
ICASA has also introduced new asymmetrical termination rates that will see the two dominant corporations (Vodacom and MTN) pay smaller operators an additional 24c/minute (44c in total) to carry calls on their networks while operators having less than 20% of the market share (such as Cell C and Telkom) would only pay the new rate of 20c/minute to access the bigger networks. The termination rates will decline gradually over the next three years. Next year, the rate will reduce to 15c/minute and in 2016 to 10c/minute. The asymmetric rate will be 42c/minute next year, 40c/minute in 2016 and 20c/minute in 2017.
The Right2Know campaign applauds ICASA for taking a strong regulatory stance against the profiteering of Vodacom and MTN. The duopoly of Vodacom and MTN has perpetuated a communications landscape in which their shareholders benefit while the South Africa people are charged an exorbitant amount to exercise their right to communicate. Asymmetrical rates are essential in ensuring smaller companies gain a foothold in the industry. The proposed asymmetrical rate system could disrupt the duopoly of Vodacom and MTN by removing barriers to competition ultimately expanding communications infrastructure and lowering the cost of communications.
We congratulate Minister Carim and the Parliament’s Communications Portfolio committee for everything they have done to secure an environment enabling of ICASA’s bold intervention.
There is still much work to be done to end the profiteering of big telecoms, but the Right2Know campaign believes ICASA is moving in the right direction. For too long the regulator has remained toothless in changing the trajectory of consumer exploitation in the communications sector and this recent decision is a promising sign that ICASA wishes to change the robber baron culture of the telecommunications industry and start prioritising affordability and accessibility to South Africa’s communications systems for every citizen.
Vodacom and MTN are already crying foul – claiming that the asymmetrical rate system would compromise network quality and limit their ability to expand infrastructure. Right2Know sees such complaints as merely an attempt by MTN and Vodacom to justify their unfair profit schemes and limit their accountability to the public. While there can be little basis for these complaints given past profiteering, they do raise critical concerns about our current system of privatised service delivery where corporations put short-term profits before investment in networks and decide which communities (based on their consumer power) will receive network advantages like 4G coverage.
The Right2Know will intensify our Vula ‘ma Connexion campaign. We will campaign to ensure ICASA’s new call termination rates are implemented and we will continue to engage the Ministry of Communications to ensure that the ICT White Paper being developed embodies a broadcasting and telecommunications policy framework that can make the right to free expression and access to information a reality for everyone living in South Africa.
