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29
Oct 2010 |
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The Advertising Standards Authority has overturned a previous decision that Vodacom may no longer use the term "broadband" in advertising for its third-generation mobile network. Earlier this year, the authority told Vodacom to remove all references to broadband in its advertising, after it failed to provide enough proof that it could provide broadband speeds across its entire network. The ruling against Vodacom was conditional on the group proving it could provide the required speeds across the majority ... |
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29
Oct 2010 |
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Mobile telecommunications group Vodacom said that it was supportive of the announcement on mobile termination rates by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa and of the goal of providing better value to customers. Icasa announced further reductions on mobile termination rates to 73 cents per minute at peak and 65 cents at off-peak times, from current rates of 89 cents and 77 cents respectively. The new pricing regime will be enforced from March 1, 2011. Shameel Joosub, MD of Vodacom SA ... |
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28
Oct 2010 |
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Telkom's new mobile division, 8ta, has not thought through that its "one minute free for every three minutes of calls received" prepaid offering is potentially open to abuse. About three weeks after its inception, the mobile newcomer may be forced to go back to the drawing board with its most compelling incentive, having admitted it has not considered the abuse scenario. Yesterday, 8ta's managing executive Amith Maharaj announced on mini-blogging site Twitter that the above promotion is for life for 8ta's... |
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28
Oct 2010 |
MWEB threw down the gauntlet to local internet providers when the company announced that it would no longer peer with MTN, Vodacom and Telkom.
These severed routes mean that MWEB will have no local links to or from big players like Vodacom and MTN, necessitating international routing to share traffic.
Peering is the arrangement of traffic exchange between internet server providers (ISPs). Larger service providers with their own backbone networks agree to allow traffic from other large ISPs, in... |
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27
Oct 2010 |
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Broadband pundits are predicting internet connection rates in South Africa to drop by between 20 and 25 percent in the next 12 months. Most of the executives who spoke at the My Broadband conference in Midrand, north of Johannesburg, on 20 October forecast that prices will drop significantly in the next year, citing new infrastructure developments and escalating competition in the industry. Broadband wholesaler and network operator Neotel forecast price cuts of about 20 percent. Underwater cable operator... |
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26
Oct 2010 |
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Cell C, which has upped its ante in the face of increasing competition and in the process notched up a series of blemishes with trademark and advertising authorities, was in the process of removing "misleading" advertising that portrayed it as the first provider of fourth generation (4G) technology in the southern hemisphere, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) confirmed on Friday. Cell C last week filed its appeal against the ASA ruling on its advertising campaign. It also has a pending appeal again... |
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26
Oct 2010 |
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VODACOM has thrown down the gauntlet to competitors with the launch of a R1,40 all-day voice call tariff to all mobile operators. This is an aggressive response to Telkom's mobile unit 8ta, which launched more than a week ago with an all-day prepaid rate of R1,50 to all mobile networks similar to Cell C's offer. But unlike the competitors, 8ta gives customers free minutes for every three-minute call that its users receive. Analysts expected the response from mobile network operators to protect their market... |
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26
Oct 2010 |
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Vodacom yesterday outlined a new talk-time tariff for prepaid customers; a rate it says is the lowest in the country. The new rate - R1.40 per-minute, with 30-second billing intervals after the first minute - comes just after 8ta launched with its R1.50 per-minute tariff. Cell C says it has had the R1.50 per-minute tariff since last year, with its EasyChat Allday prepaid package. Vodacom, 8ta and Cell C offer these prepaid tariffs as a flat rate for calls across all networks. Customers will also pay the... |
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25
Oct 2010 |
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While Telkom's mobile service, 8ta, is cheaper for landline rates, its prepaid offering is billed per-minute and not per-second, making its more expensive. This is according to independent telecommunications expense management company DataRoom. DataRoom, which helps clients manage their telecommunications expenses by examining their itemised billing, used random samples of typical call detail records (CDRs), or itemised bills. The rates used were as published on the various mobile operators' Web sites... |
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22
Oct 2010 |
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Cellphone giant Vodacom has aligned its corporate social responsibilities to a worldwide Vodafone initiative World of Difference ֖ by introducing a programme called 'Change the World'. This initiative will give 10 people the opportunity to work at one of 10 SA-based charitable organisations for six months, while getting paid for it. The company invites SA citizens over the age of 18 to submit online applications detailing why they will be suitable to offer their expertise to charitable organisation by... |
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22
Oct 2010 |
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An argument over whether SA's telecommunications regulator has jurisdiction to rule in a dispute between Telkom and Vodacom, MTN and Cell C over interconnection fees, could spell bad news for the traditionally fixed-line operator. Telkom wants the mobile operators to pay it 93c/minute for calls it carries from them onto its new mobile network, 8ta. In turn, it wants to pay them the lower "termination rate" of 89c/minute (in peak times) and 77c/minute (off-peak) for calls in the other direction. In other... |
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21
Oct 2010 |
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Telkom spared no expense in launching SA's fourth mobile operator, 8ta. At a glitzy launch event at Lanseria airport last Thursday, a who's who of SA's telecommunications industry was treated to an extravaganza of music and special effects. The traditionally fixed-line operator was making one thing abundantly clear above all: it was going to grab the mobile industry by the proverbial horns and give (now direct) rivals MTN, Vodacom and Cell C a run for their money. And it's set a target on the table: it... |
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21
Oct 2010 |
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Mobile telecommunication group MTN said on Thursday that response to its MTN Zakhele BEE public offer had significantly exceeded expectations. An invitation was made to the black public to subscribe for approximately R1.6-billion worth of shares in MTN Zakhele. The offer, which closed on October 14, was more than 1.7 times subscribed and raised about R2.8-billion from more than 124,000 applicants from across South Africa, MTN said.MTN noted that it sought to achieve a broad-based transaction that benefits ... |
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21
Oct 2010 |
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Enormous demand for shares in MTN's Zakhele black economic empowerment deal has resulted in the offer being oversubscribed. The offer, which closed on 14 October, involves the sale of about R1,6bn worth of shares in the scheme. According to MTN, the offer is more than 1,7 times subscribed and raised R2,8bn from more than 124 000 applicants. "The majority of the applications were received in the last few days [of the offer]," MTN says in a statement. More than 95 percent of the applications were from... |
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21
Oct 2010 |
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State-owned Broadband Infraco will unveil its new network during the third week of November, which is estimated to have cost approximately R1 billion. Infraco is a long-distance open-access carrier that will sell high-capacity long-distance transmission services to licensed fixed and mobile network operators, Internet service providers and other value-added network service providers on a cost-plus basis. This is expected to trim the costs of communication in SA, as well as expand the reach of broadband,... |
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