The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) has rubbished claims from MTN that there will be “digital load-shedding” when the regulator takes back temporary radio frequency spectrum on 30 November.<\/p>\n
“This concept of a ‘digital load-shedding’ is unsubstantiated,” Icasa chair Keabetswe Modimoeng said during a recent interview with Newzroom Afrika.<\/p>\n
“I’m actually battling to comprehend what informs that concept when no one is intending to take away spectrum that has already been permanently assigned to operators.”<\/p>\n
Icasa temporarily assigned spectrum at the start of South Africa’s national state of disaster to help network operators cope with the surge in demand for data during the Covid\u201319 lockdown.<\/p>\n
It surprised the telecommunications industry last month when Icasa announced plans to take back the spectrum<\/strong><\/a> at the end of November.<\/p>\n While the spectrum assignments were always temporary, the industry was confounded that Icasa would take it back when experts forecast that South Africa would experience a fourth wave of Covid\u201319<\/strong><\/a> from the start of December.<\/p>\n In the wake of Icasa’s announcement, MTN warned that South Africa faces a form of “digital load-shedding” if the regulator were to go through with its plans.<\/p>\n MTN said that demand for bandwidth on its network remains high, even though South Africa is at a lower level of lockdown.<\/p>\n