The Internet Service Providers’ Association (Ispa) is pressing communications minister Dina Pule to finalise her policy directions on high-demand radio frequency spectrum, including the “digital dividend” band that will be freed up when SA’s broadcasters move from analogue to digital terrestrial television.
Ispa says in a statement that it’s “vital” Pule moves quickly to make the spectrum available to “jumpstart competition at all levels in the telecommunications market in SA”.
The association’s regulatory adviser, Dominic Cull, says licensing the high-demand spectrum is the “best possible way” of increasing competition and extending broadband to more South Africans.
“Competition in the provision of wireless wholesale and retail services will undoubtedly help address the existing ‘affordability gap’,” Cull says “It is this gap which is currently preventing many South Africans from taking up broadband services.”
The spectrum bands in question are around 800MHz — spectrum currently used by broadcasters — and in the 2,6GHz band, which is lying fallow.
“Ispa is of the opinion that we are possibly witnessing the last realistic chance for new entrants to get into the market and compete at an infrastructure level,” Cull says.
He applauds Pule’s focus on reducing mobile data pricing — he says she emphasised the need for intervention in this area at the recent ICT Indaba in Cape Town — and will help to “empower small and large ISPs to compete with the incumbent providers”.
“In so doing, it would make a significant short-term contribution to bringing affordable wireless broadband to all parts of the nation,” he says. “Ispa’s members already have a track record of service innovation and pricing decreases, we need look no further than uncapped broadband as an example, in the fixed line broadband market.”
Cull says there is a need to “prioritise competition at the retail level”.
“The mobile network operators do not offer any resale opportunities and, Cell C aside, do not appear to be interested in competing with each other, except on a marketing level. Ispa therefore believes that introducing genuine competition into the retail market will have a dramatic impact. This will be felt both in terms of service innovation and the affordability of mobile data services.” — (c) 2012 NewsCentral Media
