Investments in high-speed 3G and long-term evolution (LTE) by SA's mobile operators are starting to pay off. However, South Africans' dependence on mobile broadband for Internet access spells trouble for operators, if the protracted issue of spectrum allocation is not urgently addressed.
This is according to industry observers and comes in the wake of Research ICT Africa's (RIA's) latest broadband policy brief, which again lists SA as one of the most expensive African countries in terms of mobile broadband. RIA puts SA at 14 out 17 countries compared in its prepaid 1GB costing basket, with 1GB valued at R149 ($14.10) - $12 more than the cheapest of the countries observed, Cameroon.
However, price in relation to quality considered, RIA says SA's operators are in some instances performing better, for now. The key issue, says the research house, is one that dates back some eight years - high-demand spectrum allocation.
"With the dependence of South Africans on mobile broadband to access the Internet, the long-awaited policy directive that has delayed the assignment of LTE spectrum must urgently be issued."
Latent priority
The issue of spectrum allocation has been the bane of operators for years due to dithering by the department that oversees telecoms and broadcasting space - up until recently, the Department of Communications - and the regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA).
Independent telecoms researcher Samantha Perry notes the allocation of high-demand spectrum is urgently required for the rollout of next-generation networks. Demand for LTE is driving spectrum issues now more than ever, says Perry, "because, until ICASA allocates spectrum, Vodacom and MTN cannot continue to roll out LTE".
Allocating more spectrum in the 2.6GHz and 3.5GHz ranges has been on the cards since 2006, but invitations to apply for frequency in the bands were withdrawn in June 2010. Since then, there has been little movement towards auctioning the spectrum.
At the end of 2011, ICASA decided to allocate space in the coveted 2.6GHz and 800MHz ranges, but the way the regulator wanted to go about the allocations irked operators and the whole idea was abandoned again the next year.
Although then communications minister Dina Pule said she would provide ICASA with policy direction for the assignment of high-demand spectrum in May 2012, this did not come to pass, and has not featured on any of government's urgent agendas since.
Double-barrel delay
Spectrum allocation is, however, just one side of the coin, say analysts. SA's migration to digital TV - another stalled process - is the other.
ICT veteran Adrian Schofield says South Africans have access to LTE in spite of government - not because of it. "That SA has LTE at all is a triumph of commercial pragmatism and ingenuity over the poor performance of the regulator in not yet allocating the best spectrum for the purpose. [This], combined with the disastrous delays in making the transition to digital terrestrial TV (DTT), which would free up the lower spectrum that is also desperately needed to improve the overall quality of service of our networks."
Ovum analyst Richard Hurst says, while investments operators have made in 3G and LTE are starting to deliver some relief, the real issue around unlocking SA's mobile broadband market revolves around the allocation of the spectrum and DTT migration.
"The challenge is that the operators have to refarm their existing spectrum to cater for the demand in mobile broadband. However, they find themselves having to provide services with a finite capacity.
"Once spectrum has been allocated, I am sure the country will see a surge in the uptake of mobile broadband services, with a corresponding decline in the cost of connection, which should also serve to spur other downstream activities such as content and application development."
Schofield says, all things considered, SA is not too badly off compared to many other countries. "Of course, there is plenty of room for improvement - and SA should be more competitive in relation to the rest of Africa. I hope the ministers of communications and of telecoms and postal services take [the RIA] briefing to heart and motivate a quick response - not in policy promises, but in regulatory action."
Share