Mobile interconnect rate cuts

Doesn't matter to me. Even after the drop FNBConnect will still be the cheapest at 99c. Been taking advantage of this now for 2 months already. Can't see anybody beating that!
 
ICASA will (hopefully) tell them to take their cosmetic BS changes and stick them
 
Since this debacle started, the only parties that made gobs of cash are, Nyanda, MTN, Vodacom, Cell C, Telkom, .......

I haven't benefited a cent.
 
telkomreallysux said:
Since this debacle started, the only parties that made gobs of cash are, Nyanda, MTN, Vodacom, Cell C, Telkom, .......

I haven't benefited a cent.
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Not quite correct. Telkom and CellC are currently the MTR losers but the tables will be turned come 1 March.
 
While I agree that ICASA should not be hamstrung by an agreement to investigate MTRs, I have a more pragmatic approach to the matter: Do we have any reason to believe that ICASA has the capacity and guts to force bigger interconnect rate cuts on the mobile operators? And if so, in what time frame?

They have shown in the past that they are incompetent and unable to reign to big players in, so I think this offer may well be as good as it gets for consumers. If they could regulate the market effectively we surely would have seen lower MTRs by now? After years of the ICASA ADSL regulations they still simply put their head in the sand when you ask them about it – will it be different with MTRs?
 
rpm said:
While I agree that ICASA should not be hamstrung by an agreement to investigate MTRs, I have a more pragmatic approach to the matter: Do we have any reason to believe that ICASA has the capacity and guts to force bigger interconnect rate cuts on the mobile operators? And if so, in what time frame?

They have shown in the past that they are incompetent and unable to reign to big players in, so I think this offer may well be as good as it gets for consumers. If they could regulate the market effectively we surely would have seen lower MTRs by now? After years of the ICASA ADSL regulations they still simply put their head in the sand when you ask them about it – will it be different with MTRs?
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Hi Rudolph

Your point regarding ICASA's track record is well made and a matter of public record, but i cannot agree that with the pragmatic approach which you propose. To be blunt: the MNOs are on being completely dishonest about what is essentially a matter of revenue protection and anti-competitive conduct and what they are proposing is an insult to this country and its people. Should ICASA sanction this? All parties are aware that cost + a reasonable return lies around 40 cents excl so should we really accept the proposal which locks out the possibility of any reduction for three years? That is exactly how we got into this mess in the first place... .

I am assured by people in ICASA that this will be done properly after which we will be in the courts when the MNOs take it on. If not it seems reasonably clear that the 4 councillor positions falling open in the next months (starting with the current chairperson in June) will not be filled / ICASA's council will be dissolved. If ICASA were to complicit in this nonsense now it may as well be dissolved now.

dominic
 
It's the 3 year clause that gets my goat. ICASA should accept the initial reduction but without any clauses regarding timeframes. In this way they can apply the cut on 1 March 2010 and then do their homework and reduce it further at ANY stage in the future.

But as you correctly say, this will end up in the courts!
 
moggie said:
It's the 3 year clause that gets my goat. ICASA should accept the initial reduction but without any clauses regarding timeframes. In this way they can apply the cut on 1 March 2010 and then do their homework and reduce it further at ANY stage in the future.

But as you correctly say, this will end up in the courts!
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No they shouldn't just accept it. They're the regulator - they should not be dictated the terms and prices. They should set the price and let the operators drag it to court if they wish.

Remember that the nastier this gets, the more likely we will have more people joining in to stone them and the more likely they will give in. They don't want the bad press since they'll need to justify to the public why their prices are almost exactly the same (down to the cent) and why it is so much more expensive than comparable countries.

Read the De Lille article :) Politicians getting involved to criticise the operators is a start, and will eventually serve to highlight the shortcomings of ICASA having a lack of power to regulate. Perhaps that might finally lead to a root cause analysis (ask "why" 5 times) and addressing the root of the problem rather than the effect.
 
Smooth Criminal said:
No they shouldn't just accept it. They're the regulator - they should not be dictated the terms and prices. They should set the price and let the operators drag it to court if they wish.
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I agree with you. If you read carefully what I wrote, you'll see that I say that ICASA must say thanks for the volunteered cut and then complete their current investigation and reduce it further AT ANY STAGE. That could be in June 2010 or whenever they are ready!
 
moggie said:
I agree with you. If you read carefully what I wrote, you'll see that I say that ICASA must say thanks for the volunteered cut and then complete their current investigation and reduce it further AT ANY STAGE. That could be in June 2010 or whenever they are ready!
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Unfortunately this is ICASA we're talking about, so they're unlikely to do it out of their own free will.

They need a minister and the PCC to crap on them to get any movement going.
 
dominic said:
Your point regarding ICASA's track record is well made and a matter of public record, but i cannot agree that with the pragmatic approach which you propose. To be blunt: the MNOs are on being completely dishonest about what is essentially a matter of revenue protection and anti-competitive conduct and what they are proposing is an insult to this country and its people. Should ICASA sanction this? All parties are aware that cost + a reasonable return lies around 40 cents excl so should we really accept the proposal which locks out the possibility of any reduction for three years? That is exactly how we got into this mess in the first place... .

I am assured by people in ICASA that this will be done properly after which we will be in the courts when the MNOs take it on. If not it seems reasonably clear that the 4 councillor positions falling open in the next months (starting with the current chairperson in June) will not be filled / ICASA's council will be dissolved. If ICASA were to complicit in this nonsense now it may as well be dissolved now.
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Thanks for the reply Dominic.

My main concern is that we will still discuss potential interconnect rate cuts this time in 2011 while ICASA and the mobile providers battle it out on a regulatory/legal level – possibly in court. ICASA has already shown that it is very scared of legal threats from the larger telecoms operators, and one can accept that Vodacom and MTN will battle any suggested MTR rate changes which they are not happy with.

So I fully agree that it is unacceptable that a leash is put on ICASA by the mobile operators when it comes to their ability to regulate MTRs, but will they do better without a leash than what is currently on the table? And will it happen before March 2013? I hope your info is accurate and that ICASA does well in this case.
 
rpm said:
My main concern is that we will still discuss potential interconnect rate cuts this time in 2011 while ICASA and the mobile providers battle it out on a regulatory/legal level – possibly in court.
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yip - this is entirely possible and we were talking about it 4 years ago....i probably have one of the more chronic cases of regulatory fatigue and cynicism in SA but i would still rather have it this way than send a message that any telecoms operator has carte blanche to bypass the law
 
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