South Africa’s telecom operators want the companies making money from their networks to contribute more to the infrastructure behind them.
WhatsApp, Netflix and YouTube could be forced to pay Vodacom and MTN. The proposal would make large digital platforms contribute toward network costs.
The argument is straightforward: streaming and messaging services drive huge amounts of traffic, while telecom operators carry the cost of building and maintaining the networks.
But the other side is just as important. If platforms are forced to pay, those costs could eventually find their way to users.
South Africa’s communications regulator Icasa is turning its attention to both traditional telecom operators and OTT services such as Netflix and WhatsApp.
The regulator plans to investigate the impact of OTT platforms on consumers while separately examining why data, voice and broadband prices remain high despite earlier interventions, including the release of additional spectrum.
South Africa’s long-running affordability debate is no longer about how much a gigabyte costs; the entire digital communications market is coming under scrutiny.
