There is a great disconnect between the way regulators are handling the issue of convergence, and what the industry and consumers actually need. This is according to Gary Alfonso, COO of Africa Business News.
Speaking during a panel discussion at the 2009 Southern African Telecommunications Networks and Applications Conference, in Swaziland, this week, Alfonso noted that regulation has failed to keep up with the changes brought on by convergence.
“The single biggest hurdle to economic development in the industry is content. There is a massive paralysis across the continent at the moment on what to do. The next massive decision is going to get us out of this empty white space and into the innovation space,” he said.
Alfonso said the growth of the Internet had changed people's consumption of information, but regulation had failed to recognise changing consumer patterns.
“There is an extinct mind frame currently and there needs to be some mechanism that gives people greater access,” he said.
Innovative regulations
Andrew Barendse, group executive of regulatory affairs at Telkom, noted that, while regulation would promote convergence, it would require a set of laws not yet seen in the industry.
“It looks like most African countries are not prepared for the 21st century. We need to ask how can regulators design regulation initiatives, incentivise investment in the development of fixed infrastructure to promote convergence,” he said.
Alfonso called for increased collaboration between various stakeholders. Only a consolidated effort from all players in the market would assist convergence and make the consumer experience more pleasant, he explained. Alfonso called on bodies such as the Competition Commission to get involved in discussions around convergence.
Government involvement
Both Alfonso and Barendse added that funding is still a major hurdle in the development of converged solutions. The reality is that the current infrastructure is inadequate and any new developments would be costly. But no government on its own could afford this and the burden often fell on private investors, they added.
“We need to ask how do we appropriately use public and private funds and limit the cost of regulation on operators and consumers,” Barendse said
According to Alfonso, as the private sector would find it hard to balance social, security and financial requirements of convergence, more government involvement was needed.
“It's not just funding that is needed. It's also a matter of political will,” said Alfonso.
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