Afrihost has been sanctioned by the Internet Service Providers\u2019 Association of South Africa (ISPA) following a complaint over the company\u2019s ability to offer the services it advertises.<\/p>\n
ISPA ruled that Afrihost was in contravention of Clause 8 of its Code of Conduct, stating\u00a0that the ISP advertises\u00a0services beyond its technical and practical abilities.<\/p>\n
The complaint argued that Afrihost cannot provide the \u201cUnshaped, Unmetered, Prioritised\u201d Business ADSL services it advertises on its website, as it could not provide a consistent connection.<\/p>\n
ISPA\u2019s ruling on the matter reported that Afrihost initially tried to resolve the issues directly with the complainant, and requested ISPA\u2019s advice on how to do so.<\/p>\n
When the matter could not be resolved, Afrihost responded as follows:<\/p>\n
The adjudicator for ISPA ordered that Afrihost make it clear on its websites it is experiencing technical difficulties, and that its products may not meet the offered service levels at this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis information should be communicated upfront on the website, and proactively to each existing and potential customer until such time as these issues are resolved,\u201d said ISPA.<\/p>\n
The adjudicator imposed a suspended fine\u00a0of R50,000 that will be enforced should Afrihost be found in breach of this clause in the next 24 months.<\/p>\n
Afrihost said it will appeal ISPA\u2019s ruling.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are obviously very sorry that we let this client down. This the first step in the process and as such we will be appealing the ruling,”\u00a0said Afrihost CEO Gian Visser.<\/p>\n
He said if an\u00a0ISP truly was in breach of Clause 8, it would render them unable to provide that service under the ISPA Code of Conduct.<\/p>\n
“This would support Afrihost’s position that service was provided within the provisions of the advertised service levels,\u00a0which take into account factors which are outside of Afrihost’s control as a best-effort service.”<\/p>\n
Visser said Afrihost also makes it clear on its website when there are problems.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe list the problems on our Network Notice page and this is accessible on every page of our website.”<\/p>\n
Visser said Afrihost\u2019s level of service will be excellent again once clients have been moved to its new ADSL network<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Major Afrihost ADSL outage<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Afrihost ADSL subscribers get a new network with \u201cinsanely-high performance levels\u201d<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Behind the scenes at Afrihost<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Afrihost business ADSL \u201cfixed IPs\u201d complaint<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\nMore on Afrihost\u2019s ADSL services<\/h3>\n