R1-million fine for bad network service: Icasa
The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) recently published in the Government Gazette an amended version of its Service Charter for network operators and service providers, asking for public comment.
In its new draft End-User and Subscriber Service Charter, Icasa lays out a number of targets for network and service providers, including network and services uptime, fault clearance rates, and call centre response times.
Icasa also stipulated refunds that apply when a fault has been reported but remains unresolved for more than 3 days.
The document outlines the methodology Icasa plans to use to measure service levels, and also prescribes penalties if a network or service provider is in contravention of the service charter.
Icasa’s targets as given in the draft End-User and Subscriber Service Charter are shown in the tables below:
Availability of Electronic Communications Network Services (ECNS)
| Availability of Electronic Communications Network Services (ECNS) | ||
| Parameter | Target | Reporting period |
| Fixed wireless / fixed wireline services | 99% | Quarterly |
| Mobile services | 99% | Quarterly |
Availability of Electronic Communications Services (ECS)
| Availability of Electronic Communications Services (ECS) | ||
| Parameter | Target | Reporting period |
| Fixed wireless / fixed wireline services | 95% | Quarterly |
| Mobile services | 95% | Quarterly |
Average time to install and activate services
| Average time to install and activate services | ||
| Parameter | Target | Reporting period |
| Installation | ||
| Fixed wireless / fixed wireline services | 95% within 20 days | Quarterly |
| Mobile services | 99% within 24 hours | Quarterly |
| Activation | ||
| Fixed wireless / fixed wireline services | 95% within 5 days | Quarterly |
| Mobile services | 99% within 24 hours | Quarterly |
Average time to clear faults
| Average time to clear faults | ||
| Parameter | Target | Reporting period |
| Fixed wireless / fixed wireline services | 90% within 3 days | Quarterly |
| Mobile services | 95% within 24 hours | Quarterly |
Connectivity failure rate for fixed wireless, fixed wireline, mobile, Internet and broadband services
| Connectivity failure rate for fixed wireless, fixed wireline, mobile, Internet and broadband services | ||
| Parameter | Target | Reporting period |
| Intra-network call connection loss | ≤6% of all calls may be lost per month | Quarterly |
| Inter-network call connection loss | ≤6% of all calls may be lost per month | Quarterly |
| Average call setup success ratio | >98% of all calls attempted | Quarterly |
| Average call setup time | <20 seconds for the mean | Quarterly |
| Average call drop rate | <3% of calls | Quarterly |
| Average call retention ratio | >96% of successfully set up calls | Quarterly |
| Average SMS message transmission success ratio | >96% if attempted transmissions | Quarterly |
| Speech quality | >3.0 on the Mean Opinion Score scale | Quarterly |
| Average call block rate | <20% of attempted calls | Quarterly |
| Call handover success rate | >95% for the mean | Quarterly |
| Service coverage | ≥ -80dBm on-street signal level at receiver for each defined test route; ≥ -92dBm in-building signal levels | Quarterly |
| Internet session login success ratio | Dial-up users must be able to connect at least 95% of the time | Quarterly |
| Packet loss ratio | Loss ratio should be less than 0.1% | Quarterly |
| Delay ratio | One-way international transmission time should be ≤150ms | Quarterly |
| Latency | 150 milliseconds to 200ms, available 95% of the time during peak hour | Quarterly |
| Successful data transmission ratio | >95% download attempts, >80% upload attempts | Quarterly |
| Broadband speed | As determined by Minister from time to time | Quarterly |
For the table above, Icasa defined a “blocked call rate” as the percentage of calls originated by a mobile station that fail to reach the conversation state after call set up, caused specifically by the operator’s network.
Icasa’s target for service coverage is also as follows:
The on-street level service coverage shall have RxLev ≥ –80dBm for each defined test route. Test routes will include all major and small roads, highways and all car parks. The in-building service coverage shall have RxLev ≥ –92 dBm per building that includes all public areas of buildings within CBDs and outside of CBDs, including all basement levels.
Operator-assisted call response time
| Operator-assisted call response time | ||
| Parameter | Target | Reporting period |
| Operator-assisted call response time (non-automated) | Within 3 minutes | Quarterly |
| Call centre answer success ratio | 98% | Quarterly |
Billing performance
| Billing performance | ||
| Parameter | Target | Reporting period |
| Billing performance | 90% complaints resolved within 14 calendar days | Quarterly |
| Metering and billing credibility | ≥1% bills disputed in billing cycle | Quarterly |
Provide critical information, protect confidential data
The new draft End-User and Subscriber Service Charter also specifies that ECNS and ECS licensees must provide their end-users and subscribers with critical information, as well as protect the confidentiality of their clients.
Critical information includes all the relevant details of tariff plans, and international roaming charges upon arrival in a foreign country.
Subscribers should be given the opportunity to opt into international roaming, Icasa said.
Fault clearance, service activation, dropped call rebates
Should a user have a fault pending with a fixed wireless or wireline service provider for more than 3 days, Icasa has specified the following rebates:
- > 3 days: rental rebate for 7 days;
- > 7 days: rental rebate for 15 days;
- > 15 days: rental rebate for 1 month;
Mobile users with pending faults should be reconnected at no cost.
Both fixed and mobile users should be given a pro-rata rebate on service activation for the time the services were not activated.
Dropped calls on mobile services should be reconnected at no cost, according to the draft regulations, and providers may not charge for the first minute after reconnection.
If users continue to experience dropped calls and service interruption which severely impedes the end-user’s quality of experience, the service provider must cancel the contract upon request with no early cancellation penalty. The end-user must maintain a history of poor quality service reported to the service provider.
Contraventions and penalties
According to the draft regulations, ECNS and ECS licencees will have contravened its provisions if they fail to:
- Perform and submit quality of service measurements reports as prescribed by the regulations;
- Achieve the targets as set out in the service parameters in these regulations;
- Submit information requested by Icasa in terms of the regulations in the prescribed format; and
- Provide accurate information to Icasa about their quality of service.
Licensees that are held to be non-compliant with the regulations are liable to a fine of up to R1,000,000.
Repeat offenders will be handed the fine and are subject to publication of the non-compliance on Icasa’s website, as well as their own website.
The draft regulations were published in the Government Gazette on 22 January 2014 and gave the public 30 days to comment.
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