[16 March 2016]
We have acquired a copy of the final report from the Portfolio Committee on Telecommunications and Postal Services regarding the discussions on potential OTT regulation held on 26 January 2016.
20160308 PCTPS Final Report on OTTs
It’s important to note that the report primarily serves as a comprehensive record of the meeting and does not provide specific recommendations or indicate further steps. The excerpt below is taken from the concluding section – Vote of Thanks and Future Direction:
Ms Kubayi thanked all participants for their honest engagement during the meeting which would assist the Portfolio Committee in its future deliberations. She noted that this discussion was necessary, as the interactive session helped members to understand the critical issues within the sector on this topic. The committee would now be assisted by making an informed decision based on the information received. She highlighted that the committee would want to engage more, absorb and hear the voices coming from the sector. She committed that this will happen again in the near future.
She concluded by saying that she hoped it was a fruitful discussion for all participants and that the committee looks forward to continuous engagement in determining how to deal with the issues of OTT and other matters in future.
Attention now shifts to the forthcoming ICT Policy White Paper, expected to be released by the Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services in March 2016. This White Paper will likely outline policies on net neutrality and OTTs, laying the groundwork for any future legislative or regulatory measures.
[6 March 2016]
The Deputy Minister of Telecommunications and Postal Services shared noteworthy insights in her speech at the Sub-Saharan Africa Regional Summit on 24 February 2016. The Minister highlighted the role of ICTs in achieving three Strategic Development Goals (SDGs) in South Africa: fostering good jobs and economic growth, ensuring inclusive and quality education, and promoting gender equality.
Of particular interest is the set of principles for the Internet outlined by the Minister, which includes a strong commitment to net neutrality (emphasis added):
- The South African government acknowledges the Internet as a global asset that supports domestic socio-economic development.
- South Africa will adopt the most suitable governance and management frameworks at both local and international levels.
- The global management of the Internet should be inclusive, transparent, and democratic, involving governments, the private sector, civil society, and international organizations.
- All users should have legal access to share information and utilize applications and services of their choice.
- All Internet traffic must be treated equally, without discrimination or interference, regardless of the sender, receiver, content, device, service, or application.
- Internet governance should respect and enhance cultural and linguistic diversity.
- Any changes to Internet development and governance frameworks should not disrupt the Internet’s operational stability.
- The Internet must remain a unified global network that is stable, secure, resilient, reliable, interconnected, and accessible to all.
- The Internet should continue to be based on open standards to encourage innovation and equal participation in the global community.
[3 February 2016]
Below are links to the main presentations delivered at the meeting on 26 January, as well as the presentation by the Internet Service Providers’ Association:
- Department of Telecommunications and Postal Services
- ICASA
- South African Communications Forum
- Internet Service Providers’ Association
[16 January 2016]
Public interest in the upcoming hearings has surged, prompting the Portfolio Committee to issue a statement clarifying the reasons for focusing on this matter. The statement explains that the process was initiated at the request of mobile network operators, addressing the challenges OTT services pose to their revenue:
Parliament, Thursday 14 January 2016 – The Portfolio Committee on Telecommunications and Postal services is set to look into the complaint of mobile networks regarding “Over-The-Top” (OTT) services, and the challenge these services pose on revenue of cellphone giants.
Mobile operators are requesting that Parliament consider passing a policy or regulations of data services on mobile networks such that they generate revenue for carrying the data services on their bandwidth infrastructure.
The meeting where stakeholders will be given a hearing by the Committee will happen on Tuesday, the 26th of January in Parliament. The Chairperson of the Committee, Ms Mmamoloko Kubayi, said the Committee is always ready to listen and engage every member of the South African society.
Stakeholders that are expected to attend include network operators, relevant ICT bodies and the Internet Service Providers.
ISSUED BY PARLIAMENTARY COMMUNICATION SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON, MS MMAMOLOKO KUBAYI
[12 January 2016]
The Portfolio Committee on Telecommunications and Postal Services has planned a full-day hearing on the potential regulation of Over-The-Top (OTT) services on 26 January 2016 (location to be confirmed). The hearings aim to explore the following:
- Required policy measures for overseeing OTTs;
- Regulatory guidelines for managing OTTs;
- The impact of OTTs on market competition; and
- Whether OTTs should be categorized as telecom services (voice or data) or telecom infrastructure, and if they should adhere to licensing and regulatory requirements (such as legal intercept and emergency call access).
This follows requests from Vodacom and MTN to regulate OTT services in South Africa, alongside the recent blocking of Viber, Skype, and WhatsApp by mobile networks in Morocco (refer to Russell Southwood’s article in Balancing Act – The Battle over VoIP and Resisting the Future – Trend towards Skype, Viber, and WhatsApp begins to affect African operators’ premium revenues).