Cape Town - According to the Communications Minister, General Siphiwe Nyanda, Telkom's discussions about how it can be involved in mobile telephony are at a sensitive stage.
As a result the company is declining to provide any information about its mobile strategy.
The minister, giving a written answer to ANC MP Sikhumbuzo Kholwane on Wednesday, said: "Telkom, as a listed company, operates under regulations that require that any price sensitive information, which would include its mobile strategy, should be released to shareholders in an equitable basis."
He added: "Any public statements at this stage can compromise the company's competitive and negotiating positions."
Nyanda explained that the rationale of the transaction to sell part of its Vodacom stake was in the restricted nature of the shareholders' agreement between Telkom and Vodafone.
This agreement prevented Telkom from providing mobile telephony, not only in South Africa, but also providing a competing business south of the Equator.
Vodacom, in terms of the agreement, was however free to enter the fixed telecommunications market.
"If one also takes into consideration the ongoing erosion from fixed line telephony to mobile telephony, the damaging consequences of staying invested in Vodacom becomes clear," Nyanda said.
"The freedom from the restrictive shareholders agreement gave Telkom the ability to now deliver its own mobile capability in South Africa. Telkom has also made it clear that it regards the acquiring of a mobile capability as integral to its growth strategy."
- I-Net Bridge
