The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) is kicking off October with public hearings on the state of competition in the ICT sector.
The regulator gazetted the notice of the public hearings this week, after initially publishing the notice of public inquiry into the state of the competition in the country's ICT sector about six months ago.
At the time, ICASA invited interested parties, stakeholders, and the public to respond to the issues raised in the inquiry.
The closing date for the receipt of written representations was 23 June 2014. ICASA says it received 14 submissions, 12 of which have indicated their wish to make oral presentations next month.
The following companies and entities will present at the hearings, set to take place from 1 to 3 October at ICASA's offices in Sandton: eTV, SABC, MultiChoice and SA Communications Forum (1 October); Internet Service Providers' Association, Telkom, Neotel and Broadband Infraco (2 October); and MTN, Cell C, Vodacom and Internet Solutions (day three).
The hearings kick off at 8:45am with ICASA councillor William Currie's opening address on 1 October, and at 9am with oral presentations on both 2 and 3 October.
ICASA says it is the authority's view that the ICT sector has been undergoing, and continues to undergo, rapid technological changes with far-reaching implications for local and international industries.
"One of the areas in which these changes are more pronounced is in the competitiveness of the electronic communications, broadcasting and postal sectors, and the assumption that greater competition will lead to reduction in the cost to communicate."
Share