It said yesterday it would sell its 24,9% stake in internet service provider iBurst to enable it to apply for a similar licence from the regulator. Former CEO Alan Knott-Craig was accused of a conflict of interest as his son was the MD of iBurst.
Vodacom bought into iBurst’s parent company WBS four years ago to get access to lucrative and scarce spectrum. It spent about R100m to build base stations for iBurst.
Now Vodacom wants to apply for a spectrum allocation of its own, and its investment in iBurst could prevent it from doing so.
Vodacom CEO Pieter Uys said yesterday it was in discussion with potential buyers. “Our strategy (to sell iBurst shares) is purely driven by spectrum. But we will continue to have a relationship with iBurst,” he said.
