30 August 2021

Pretoria – The Council of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA/the Authority) has resolved that the temporary radio frequency spectrum assigned to licensees will now have to be returned to the Authority by no later 30 November 2021.

The temporary radio frequency spectrum was first assigned by means of an expedited ITA during April 2020 on the initial declaration of the National State of Disaster, which in turn was occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Authority has since twice extended the duration of the temporary radio frequency spectrum assignment, the last expiry date being 31 August 2021.

The Authority has inter alia taken account of the current environment in relation to the number of infections, the gradual reopening of the economy and the steady progress in the vaccination program. More importantly, the Authority is mindful of the need to focus its efforts on the permanent licensing of spectrum. However, it is important that the industry be allowed adequate time to plan and adjust their operations.

According to the Chairperson of ICASA, Dr Keabetswe Modimoeng, ‘‘The Authority’s interventions with regards to the release of the temporary radio frequency spectrum have indeed contributed immensely to the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and to ensuring that South Africans were, and continue to be, able to communicate during these unprecedented times. However, the Authority cannot allow the temporary spectrum assignment to assume a state of permanence.”

The Chairperson further says that, having allowed operators to use the temporarily assigned spectrum for a period of seventeen (17) months, it is reasonable that they be allowed a further three months until 30 November 2021 as a sufficient winding down period.

In order to allow the licensees to wind down their operations on the temporary spectrum, and to notify consumers about the impact thereof (if any) on their service offerings, the Authority has resolved to amend the COVID-19 National Disaster Regulations to provide for continued use of the temporary radio frequency spectrum licences for the period ending 30 November 2021.

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Source https://www.icasa.org.za/news/2021/icasa-publishes-a-call-for-comments-on-the-ict-covid-19-national-disaster-regulations

22 April 2021

Pretoria – The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA/the Authority) is seeking written submissions from interested stakeholders in respect of the review of the Information and Communications Technology ICT COVID-19 National Disaster Regulations (the “Regulations”), as amended.

The issues of consultation with regards to this process include but are not limited to: the temporary assignment of International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) radio frequency spectrum to address challenges posed by COVID-19; current radio frequency spectrum sharing arrangements; obligations relating to temporarily assigned IMT radio frequency spectrum (in respect of school connectivity and/or virtual classrooms obligations); type-approval relaxation measures; broadcasting services and related matters (e.g. suspension of obligations for convening of annual general meetings for community broadcasters and the requirements for local content programming).

ICASA Chairperson Dr Keabetswe Modimoeng previously indicated that mobile network operators must continue to provide services to the public during the National State of Disaster, and may derive commercial value from this high value spectrum resource assigned to them on a temporary basis. Therefore, the Authority needs to apply itself with care and circumspection on the provisions of these Regulations (in particular, the temporary spectrum extensions), and in a manner that is justifiable and primarily beneficial to the consumers of electronic communications, broadcasting and postal services.

“The approach we have undertaken is quite comprehensive because we have learnt a lot since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic about regulating in a time of crisis. This is an opportunity for all of us to sift through and identify what is really pressing and compelling for the benefit of the South African public. We also need to measure the impact of our regulatory interventions in the broader industry and the regulated sector as a whole, including consumer protection and benefits,” says Dr Modimoeng.

The temporary release of high demand spectrum to licensees was aimed at mitigating the impact of the National State of Disaster, following the outbreak of COVID-19 in 2020, mainly by easing network congestion, maintaining good quality of broadband services, and enabling licensees to lower the cost of access to consumers.

Written representations on the review of the Regulations must be submitted to the Authority by no later than 16h00 on 7 May 2021. No late representations will be considered, nor any extension granted.

The Authority encourages civil society organisations, consumer groups, independent production companies and all interested stakeholders to participate in this process so that ICASA can have a holistic overview of issues that must be addressed by these Regulations.

A copy of the notice inviting written presentations on the review of the Regulations will be published in the Government Gazette and also made available on the Authority’s website at www.icasa.org.za.

https://www.icasa.org.za/legislation-and-regulations/draft-ict-covid-19-national-disaster-regulations

Ends

For all media enquiries, please contact:
Paseka Maleka
Tel: 012 568 3455
Cell: 079 509 0702
E-mail: pmaleka@icasa.org.za

Also see: Bad news for South African mobile data prices https://mybroadband.co.za/news/cellular/394519-bad-news-for-south-african-mobile-data-prices.html

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