Batteries that don’t have time to recover fully and criminals taking advantage of power cuts are two of the factors making life difficult for South Africa’s mobile networks as rolling blackouts continue into a sixth day.
The Competition Commission says data must fall; Vodacom and MTN say they need more spectrum. Ten years after communications regulator Icasa tried to license new spectrum, it still hasn’t happened.
MTN Group on Wednesday issued a statement to investors in which it criticised the Competition Commission’s final report on the data services market in South Africa, saying it will “vigorously defend against over-broad and intrusive recommendations” by the commission.
After a massive selloff on Monday, shares of South Africa’s biggest listed telecommunications companies continued to trade lower into Tuesday.
Vodacom and MTN must drop mobile data prices significantly, failing which the Competition Commission will consider prosecuting the two companies.
The Competition Commission on Monday unveiled surprisingly broad-ranging, tough and radical interventions in the data services market, including a proposal that mobile operators be forced to give South Africans a free allocation of daily data.
Vodacom and MTN said in reaction to interventions by the Competition Commission that a failure by government to allocate spectrum timeously is one of the reasons data prices are higher than they would otherwise be.
Cell C’s creditors aren’t giving up on a takeover offer from rival Telkom, which South Africa’s third largest mobile network operator rejected last week.
Communications regulator Icasa has said there is insufficient competition in aspects of the delivery of mobile broadband in South Africa.
Ahead of publication of the Competition Commission’s final report flowing from its inquiry in the data services market, expected later on Monday, TechCentral republishes this column from editor Duncan McLeod.