The success of local loop unbundling would depend on the needs of the incumbent's customers, namely the new telecommunication market entrants, says a Department of Communications official.
Senior department members, including director general Lyndall Shope-Mafole, deputy director for policy Harold Wesso and senior manager for telecommunications policy Mashila Matlala, appeared yesterday before the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Communications. They briefed politicians on the local loop unbundling report and communications minister Ivy Matsepe-Casaburri's ministerial directives of 25 May.
Matlala said the new market entrants should be allowed to say where they want line-sharing.
"The flexibility should be left with them. The regulator [the Independent Communications Authority of SA, ICASA] should develop various guidelines on various topologies for the various parts of the country," she said.
Matlala said this in answer to a question by committee member Reuben Mohlaloga (ANC) about the hybrid unbundling model as recommended in the local loop unbundling report.
During the briefing on the report, Wesso stated that, while the deadline for unbundling the local loop had been set for 1 November 2001, the benefits could be seen within a year.
"Local loop unbundling is a process and not an event. It is a very technical process, but we have the benefit of the experiences of other countries and so we can set an ambitious target," he said.
Dene Smuts (DA) stated local loop unbundling had been covered in the Electronic Communications (EC) Act, which was promulgated last year.
"The EC Act lists what should be declared essential facilities and this includes the local loop. Chapter 10 [of the Act] then kicks in and ICASA must do what it has to do," she said.
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