Broadband: MTN, Telkom set for legal battle over spectrum auction in South Africa

*The South African Government regards the proposed spectrum auction as a critical structural economic reform needed to revive the country’s Coronavirus-battered economy by unlocking investments in Broadband while lowering data costs for telecoms consumers

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

The MTN Group, Africa’s biggest wireless carrier, has mounted a legal challenge against Telkom in a bid to prevent further delays in South Africa’s long-awaited release of additional Broadband spectrum.

ConsumerConnect reports the leading telecoms operator on the continent in a statement issued Friday, January 7, 2022,  said MTN filed court papers seeking to oppose Telkom’s attempt to halt the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) from auctioning spectrum March this year.

ICASA is an independent regulatory body of the South African Government, established in 2000, by the ICASA Act mandated to regulate both the telecommunications and broadcasting sectors in the public interest in the Southern African country.

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The government apparently regards the proposed spectrum auction as a critical structural economic reform needed to revive the country’s Coronavirus-battered economy by unlocking investments in Broadband and lowering data costs for consumers.

MTN also noted that the South African telecoms industry has offered no additional spectrum to the industry in the country for 14 years.

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In respect of the ‘immediate impact’ of the logjam between MTN and Telkom, the former said in the statement that “a successful spectrum auction has the capacity to not only release much-needed funds into the national fiscus, but it will have an immediate impact on consumers.”

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MTN and South African market leader Vodacom have long called for more spectrum to expand their data services and boost revenue, agency report also stated.

Though the plan was approved October 2021, Telkom last week filed an urgent court application to prevent the auction process.

The company opposes the industry regulator’s decision to include Sub 1 Gigahertz spectrum in the auction as that frequency is currently subject to a separate legal tussle.