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19
Oct 2011 |
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Details began to emerge this week of how Telkom allegedly used its dominant position in the broadband market to prevent its rivals from competing with it. This was during the Competition Tribunal's hearing into Telkom, where the fixed-line operator stands accused of abusing its dominance by charging excessive prices, refusing access to an essential facility, and engaging in price discrimination thereby making its downstream rivals less competitive in the telecommunications market. If Telkom is found guilty... |
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19
Oct 2011 |
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The Independent Communications Authority of SA (ICASA) has received another qualified audit opinion from the Auditor-General, after incurring R5 million in irregular expenditure. ICASA's financials were also qualified because the AG could not verify the correctness of the amounts due for licence fees, or what was payable to Treasury. The authority yesterday presented to Parliament its annual report for the year to March. ICASA, which is the regulatory authority over a sector worth about R50 billion, also ... |
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19
Oct 2011 |
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Following the introduction of Telkom Business Mobile last month, the company has now announced a Business Broadband product set, as part of its broader move towards convergence. The TBiz Capped offerings include a choice of five product bundles ranging from 8GB shaped Internet usage with ADSL access of up to 384kbps to a 40GB shaped account with ADSL access of up to 4/10Mbps. The TBiz Uncapped packages include a range of four different product bundles, also ranging from 384kbps to 4/10Mbps. Customers are... |
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18
Oct 2011 |
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It may have taken seven years and numerous legal challenges, but the Competition Commission's case against Telkom finally made it to the Competition Tribunal on Monday. SA's fixed-line operator stands accused of abusing its dominance by charging excessive prices; refusing access to an essential facility; and engaging in price discrimination thereby making its downstream rivals less competitive in the telecommunications market. This alleged behaviour dates back to before 2002, when the initial complaint... |
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18
Oct 2011 |
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The late great Miriam Makeba pauses mid-song for a slight second. She looks to her right, charisma oozing straight towards the lens. I am ready, finger on the trigger and as the shutter clicks I know that an award-winning shot has been missed. The Kodak DCS in my hands is the latest and greatest professional digital camera but it is slow to respond, heavy and bulky. But, I had booked it more than three months ago I was going to use it come hell or high water. This tragedy took place ten years ago. Despite... |
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18
Oct 2011 |
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Telkom Business has unveiled its first uncapped fixed-line broadband products targeted at small and medium enterprises, with data-only options starting at R595/month for 384kbit/s lines, up to R4 224/month for 10Mbit/s service. A 1Mbit/s uncapped offering costs R1 275/month and a 4Mbit/s option goes for R2 359. The company is also offering discounts if companies subscribe to a combination of services through what it calls a "broadband package builder". On a recent roadshow, Telkom informed its business... |
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17
Oct 2011 |
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Stiff opposition awaits the proposed entry of South Korean telecom giant KT Corporation into Telkom with the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) saying it is "in principle opposed" to further privatisation of the local telecom company. Speaking to The New Age on Sunday, Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said: "Even though this is water under the bridge, we are in principle opposed to this proposal. "Telkom stands out as an example of what can go wrong in privatisation. They have reverse... |
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17
Oct 2011 |
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The National Consumer Commission is still keen to take action against South African cellular service providers and retailers who sell BlackBerry devices despite a move by the cellular network operators to offer free SMSes and airtime to users affected by the BlackBerry outage last week. However, the cellular operators, who have absolved themselves of blame, claim their actions are not an admission of guilt and are merely a gesture of goodwill. "Twenty free smses is a good token but it doesn't mean that... |
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14
Oct 2011 |
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Litigation, compensation and reimbursement are the words on many irate BlackBerry users' lips this week after the company suffered a crippling technical glitch that left millions of users around the world disconnected. Prudence Moilwa, head of enforcement and investigation at the National Consumer Commission, said users could seek recourse in terms of the Consumer Protection Act for loss or harm suffered. But two of the country's top cellphone service providers - Vodacom and MTN - have refused to comment ... |
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14
Oct 2011 |
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THE Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) yesterday finished three days of hearings into local-loop unbundling, amid speculation that Telkom may litigate to stall the process, following a heated exchange with the regulator. Local-loop unbundling refers to a process that gives companies access to Telkoms telephone exchanges, which link homes and offices. Those in favour of the process, such as Neotel, have said local-loop unbundling would create more competition in the fixed-line market,... |
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14
Oct 2011 |
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Mobile operator, Vodacom Group said on Friday that it would "reimburse" BlackBerry customers affected by the service disruption earlier in the week. The crash of the BlackBerry email and BlackBerry messenger services began on Monday affecting users in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, India, Brazil, Chile and Argentina, and spreading to North America on Tuesday. Research In Motion (RIM), the company behind BlackBerry smartphones said that the problem had been resolved on Thursday. "As a token of goodwill,... |
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14
Oct 2011 |
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Telkom confirmed on Friday that it was in discussions to sell a 20 percent stake to Korea Telecom, the Asian fixed-line carrier, in a deal that could be worth as much as R4,6bn. If talks are successful, the company may sell new shares to Korea Telecom at R36,06 a share, it said in a cautionary statement. "Shareholders are advised that while the discussions between Telkom and KT Corporation are progressing well, there is no certainty at this stage that these discussions will lead to a formal transaction ... |
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14
Oct 2011 |
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Beginning next Monday, the Competition Tribunal will hear a wide-ranging case against Telkom for alleged anticompetitive behavior that could see it fined as much as R3,5bn if found guilty. The case stems from an investigation conducted by the Competition Commission in 2004 that found Telkom abused its dominance, charging excessive prices, refusing to allow other operators access to its "last-mile" infrastructure and engaging in price discrimination. Telkom denies the allegations. The tribunals hearings... |
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14
Oct 2011 |
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Telkom's possible investment with Korea Telecoms could be a game changer for it in the long term. Several analysts Moneyweb spoke to believe that Telkom will be able to provide better services, cheaper prices and potentially increase broadband penetration in the country, should its talks with Korea Telecom (KT Corporation) prove to be fruitful, resulting in the consumer being the biggest winner in the end. Telkom revealed on Friday morning that it has "entered into discussions regarding a potential... |
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13
Oct 2011 |
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THERE was a tense standoff between Telkom and the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) yesterday when the fixed-line operator said that proper procedure was not followed in the local-loop unbundling process. Icasa is holding hearings into local-loop unbundling regulations. Local-loop unbundling is a process that gives companies access to Telkom's telephone exchanges, which link homes and offices. This is expected to create more competition in the fixed-line market. Telkom regulatory executive... |
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