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ICASA fails to make the grade

Bonnie Tubbs
By Bonnie Tubbs, ITWeb telecoms editor.
Johannesburg, 10 Jun 2014
While industry observers deem ICASA's MTR efforts - one piece of the cost to communicate puzzle ? commendable, other tabled issues remain unfinished.
While industry observers deem ICASA's MTR efforts - one piece of the cost to communicate puzzle ? commendable, other tabled issues remain unfinished.

While the Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) failed to complete the majority of the tasks it set itself this time last year, the regulator's Cost to Communicate programme has raised awareness of the high cost of communication in SA among consumers and business alike.

Now, with the elections out of the way, industry observers hope the authority will be able to muscle-up and start to make tangible changes within the economically and socially critical sector.

This weekend marked a year since ICASA launched the Cost to Communicate programme - with the promise of a more sound regulation backbone for SA, coupled with concrete deadlines for key issues like local loop unbundling (LLU), termination rates, the broadband value chain and price transparency.

Marginal impact

Independent telecoms researcher Samantha Perry says, unless there have been behind-the-scenes developments, the Cost to Communicate programme has not had much of an impact on the industry to date, "but, as many of the components within the programme have not been finalised, it's premature to make an assessment". Once finalised, says Perry, the various components may well make a big difference.

Ovum analyst Richard Hurst says every little bit helps when faced with "these huge costs to communicate". In terms of mobile tariffs, at the time the regulator launched the programme, SA's was ranked 117th out of 140 countries worldwide by the World Economic Forum. On the continent, SA was ranked 30th most expensive, out of 34 African countries.

About a month later, a report by Research ICT Africa revealed SA had the 23rd highest prices in Africa (out of 46 countries), with the dominant operator (Vodacom) being almost four times more expensive than the cheapest dominant operator in Africa (MTN Ghana).

Hurst notes the operators have since made some strides in reducing costs, but this has been on the mobile and fixed voice side. "It should be noted in the face of growing competition, a key element of the cost of communication will be broadband and the quality of the broadband services in SA."

MTR tussle

At a media briefing on 7 June last year, ICASA vowed to:

* Reassess termination rates by 25 October 2013.
* Publish final digital terrestrial television regulations by 8 May 2014.
* Publish final LLU regulations by 4 March 2014.
* Address the issue of transparency - both in terms of local and roaming pricing - by the end of the year.
* Assess and define all the markets along the broadband value chain.

Taking a look back at the year, Perry notes mobile termination rates (MTR) - the fees operators pay to carry calls on each other's networks - were reassessed, revised and implemented. However, in what has been one of the biggest fights in SA's mobile history, industry objection has seen them go back to the drawing board as a court declared the rates invalid and unlawful. Perry says ICASA is reviewing the rates and has been requesting information from licensees as part of this process. The deadline for responses is this week Friday.

Hurst calls the MTR saga up until now a "hollow victory", with both the mobile operators and the regulator winning some high ground. "It's fair to say that the legal actions highlight the fact that the regulator needs to be more than well prepared in terms of its regulations as well as being resourced to meet these challenges."

He says SA can expect the MTR issue to come to the forefront for consumers and business again towards the end of the year. ICASA has until October to carry out a costing study, revise its latest termination rate regulations, produce a new proposal, and get mobile operators' buy-in.

Partial puzzle

Political interference?

Ovum analyst Richard Hurst says the key in ICASA's Cost to Communicate struggle is that it set itself some massive goals. "At the same time the entity was dealing with a shifting political landscape as ministers changed, the budgets came under scrutiny and there was the election year.

"One hopes the regulator will be able to put all of these issues behind them once and for all and begin focusing on the task at hand: regulating the market, creating an open and competitive environment which will benefit both consumers and businesses, and ultimately the economic well-being of the country as a whole."

In addition, final LLU regulations have yet to be published. Perry notes draft regulations were published in August last year - with an explanatory note following in December ? but nothing has been finalised as yet.

Hurst says LLU remains "a bit of a non-starter" with some overtures being made towards the issue of reduction of the wholesale or IP Connect pricing, which has brought some relief for Internet service providers. "The key challenge here is that the longer the delay, the greater the lack of relevance, as platforms such as wireless and fibre-to-the-home gain traction and at the same competition in the fixed or rather copper line broadband services remains stifled."

He says the digital TV migration matter remains bogged down in red tape. "One can clearly sense the frustration on the part of content providers as well as equipment manufacturers. We are still no clearer in terms of this matter and what its impact will be on the re-allocation of the much needed spectrum, which will further unlock the wireless broadband potential of the market."

As far as the broadband value chain goes, Hurst says the matter appears to have stalled. "Perhaps there is some development at the regulator, but clearly we are not privy to these developments."

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