-
Join the MyBroadband community
South Africa’s biggest forum. Discuss, discover, and connect with thousands of members.
-
Question of the Day: What's the most interesting small town you've visited in South Africa?
"In its response to Autopage Cellular's application, ICASA also appears to be of the view that it may ultimately reverse the VANS-related license conversion process and replace it with an "invitation-to-apply" (ITA) process whereby certain VANS licenses are invited to apply for an I-ECNS license, but there is no conversion from a pre-existing license."
Invitation-to-apply means, we will give licences to only those we want to!
Invitation-to-apply means, we will give licences to only those we want to!
ShaunSA
Derailment Squad
dominic
Legal Expert: Telecoms
BUT
it appears from internal ICASA documents that they received a legal opinion from a leading lawyer in January 2008 advising them that their VANS regulations were unlawful...raising the question as to why they now hold a different view?In fact the Minister in court papers issued another clarification
in which she said that ICASA had "misinterpreted" her policy direction and that they should have issued out an ITA in the first place and not followed the process which they did. [And to be fair ICASA's interpretation was reasonable - it is the "intention" which the Minister is now wanting to place on her policy direction which is unreasonable if not laughable].So the altech application has not delayed anything. IMO the Minister has and continues to delay everything...
saffakanera
Expert Member
- Joined
- Sep 25, 2006
- Messages
- 4,370
- Reaction score
- 145
Heres hoping for a poking.
ads
Senior Member
As has been said before, there really is a dilemma here (I was going to say moral dilemma, but morality and law don't really mix - so let's just say a legal dilemma).
If Autopage wins, then our whole legislative process is in doubt; parliament's right to make laws (that even ministers must obey) is undermined; and we're on a slippery slope to becoming Zimbabwe. If all VANS aren't VANS, but are really PSTS, then most of the EC Act is not worth the paper it's written on, since one of the underlying principles when drafting the Act was that there weren't already hundreds of infrastructure licences. We basically have a market with no rules, and a field day for lawyers (and road diggers).
If ICASA wins, then we don't have a completely open market - but then, I guess, we never did.
Personally, I think it's better to have an imperfect world with rules than a supposedly perfect one with no rules.
If Autopage wins, then our whole legislative process is in doubt; parliament's right to make laws (that even ministers must obey) is undermined; and we're on a slippery slope to becoming Zimbabwe. If all VANS aren't VANS, but are really PSTS, then most of the EC Act is not worth the paper it's written on, since one of the underlying principles when drafting the Act was that there weren't already hundreds of infrastructure licences. We basically have a market with no rules, and a field day for lawyers (and road diggers).
If ICASA wins, then we don't have a completely open market - but then, I guess, we never did.
Personally, I think it's better to have an imperfect world with rules than a supposedly perfect one with no rules.
bekdik
Honorary Master
BUT
Hell Dom, as a lawyer you should know that if youdon't like a legal opinion, you just get another that you do like
I'm sure it will come as no surprise that I completely disagree with you, and as dominic has previously been quoted as having pointed out [in a news article], there are only a handful of VANS that would be willing & able to invest in digging up roads etc to lay fibre optic etc cabling, IMO your fears of anarchy are unfounded & misplaced, however I respect that you have an opinion - I just totally disagree with your opinion.
*bump*
dominic
Legal Expert: Telecoms
to answer your question directly: no this case has nothing to do with why RPM ....etc
captainwifi
Senior Member
- Joined
- Mar 4, 2005
- Messages
- 834
- Reaction score
- 1
I missed the article but from your interpretation it is 100% what the ECA says on
p.28 and p.110:
Nobody no VANS, community road diggers, Wuggers, ampers or wapa's is allowed to send any data using any medium wireless, fiber or copper across any boundary until Icasa has made a formal ruling spelling out for example that Wi-Fi may cross a boundary but not fiber - which they probably will do as dominic has indicated. The ECA is very clear - Act.96 is still in full force from a purely technical legal perspective ! The ECA gives Icasa the ability to amend whatever Act.96 specified as Icasa sees fit. Icasa has not yet formally done so, made no rulings concerning Wi-fi, fiber and copper that I know about.
Only a PSTN license holder can legally send data across the road as per terms under Act.96, until such a time as Icasa rules that for example a VANS may send data across the road using fiber, Wi-Fi and copper.
Icasa will formally legalize Wi-Fi over boundaries for the public but not fiber.
It is this specific point that the VANS license holders wishes to obscure. The entire Wisp form around here for example have only made representations to Icasa to legalize Wi-Fi. Rodent, Mikrotik resellers and the regular Wi-Fi is wonderful , Wi-fi is everything, we only want to Wi-fi - posters were the only people who made appeals to Icasa for just Wi-fi. They have said nothing about legalizing copper and fiber crossing the road.
Why is there not a single person on this forum that is at least willing to make a formal presentation at Icasa's hearings on to legalize copper/fiber crossing boundaries ?
Last edited: