MTN said it had to compensate for the lack of spectrum in South Africa by spending more than R50bn in the past five years to build a world-class network, providing more than 95% of the population with 4G coverage
MTN made a comparison with Nigeria, often cited as an example of a developing country with lower data costs than South Africa.To counter the lack of available spectrum, MTN had to get innovative with what it had, resulting in significant “refarming” of spectrum so it could keep enhancing its 3G and 4G coverage.MTN believes the majority of spectrum should be allocated to existing operators that were in dire need of capacity.
The company said it made little sense to hand significant spectrum to operators that were yet to be established. It also argued that the economically efficient way to drive reductions in communication costs had to come from operators with existing large customer bases that could quickly respond with lower pricing for all.
“Industry, policy makers and regulators must collaborate to co-ordinate policy objectives as to how spectrum will be allocated,” said MTN SA chief executive Godfrey Motsa.“However, the risk is that by breaking the required spectrum into too small chunks or to create middlemen, operators will lose the ability to deliver networks that are economically viable and efficient. Telecoms is a scale business,” said Motsa.
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