SA's telecommunications costs are still more than double that of its international call centre competitors, such as the Philippines.
This is despite telecoms prices having fallen by two-thirds since 2003, says Luke Mills, executive director of CallingtheCape, the public-private organisation charged with promoting the Western Cape's call centre industry.
Mills says research compiled by CallingtheCape shows that, on average, in a country such as the Philippines, telecoms costs for call centres amount to 3% of total organisational costs, while in SA it is about 6%.
"A lot of work still needs to be done to reduce our costs. No local call centre has been able to reduce its telecoms costs to below 6%, even with using VOIP technology," he says.
According to CallingtheCape's estimates, says Mills, the cost of international leased lines decreased from about $27 000 (R188 000) a month to $9 000 (R81 000) a month since 2003, largely due to increased competition brought about by deregulation in 2004. But, he says, domestic leased line costs remain high and the overall costs to contact centre operations are still a burden.
A 2005 study by the SA Foundation found international leased line prices in SA were 31 times more expensive than the cheapest country, and three times as expensive as the next most expensive country. On average, companies based in SA paid 399% of the average price for international leased lines.
South Africans also paid higher call charges than residents of 15 other countries surveyed. Peak local calls in SA were 11 times as expensive as the cheapest product elsewhere and 199% more expensive than the cheapest price.
"What the call centre industry is doing will have wider implications for the rest of the country as it has shown that costs can be brought down using technologies such as VOIP. However, increased competition in the telecoms sector is essential," Mills says.
CallingtheCape will host a conference in Cape Town on 31 January when the costs of telecoms and other operational factors will be discussed. A debate scheduled for the end of the conference will include representatives from Telkom and other operators such as Neotel, VoxTelecom and Storm.
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