With the Regulation of Interception of Communications and Provision of Communication-Related Information Act (RICA) deadlines looming, operators have kicked off advertising campaigns to gain more traction in the process.
Last month, ITWeb conducted an investigation, which revealed several retail outlets in the greater Johannesburg area had little or no idea what the new regulations entail. Many also had no access to registration technologies promised by the mobile operators.
A follow-up investigation last week showed the operators have stepped up the campaign and retailers are now educating customers on the right processes.
Despite the early hiccups in the process, the mobile operators seem to have hit stride and say the number of customers who now comply with RICA is on the rise.
Getting there
“MTN is showing growth in the number of new and existing customers that have been RICA-ed and we would like to see this number increase exponentially. MTN is also increasing the number of registration points in order for our customers to register at a point that is closest to them,” says MTN SA's GM for legal and regulatory affairs, Graham de Vries.
He says the company has also sent out its MTN Yello Bus into the more rural areas to ensure that locals are fully compliant.
Vodacom SA MD Shameel Joosub says the process is an ongoing task to educate and enable the informal sector and retailers. “The informal sector represents a large segment of our distribution channel to prepaid customers. We've been rolling out an activate RICA programme to informal traders to register them as RICA agents. This includes providing training and enabling them to register SIM cards with an easy-to-use application on their cellphones.”
Deterring sign-ups
Cell C spokesman Sean van der Westhuizen says: “We are pleased to confirm that the initial challenges experienced with the implementation of the Act have all been resolved and Cell C is hard at work to ensure its customer base registers.”
However, the company says the process has had an impact on sales. “To some customers, the registration process has been a deterrent. In order to simplify the process, especially for customers residing in rural areas and informal settlements, Cell C has introduced additional measures to simplify the registration process and increase awareness,” adds Van der Westhuizen.
Cell C's campaign includes flyers printed in four African languages. “This is to assist with educating our customers on RICA, focusing particularly on the informal markets.”
While the prepaid market is moving swiftly, all the operators remind contract customers that they will also need to register before January 2011.
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