The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) has published an amended information memorandum (IM) for the licensing of the International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT) spectrum for the second round of public consultation.
According to ICASA, the release of the IM is another critical consultative activity the regulator is undertaking as part of the continuous implementation of the authority’s condensed timeframe and roadmap for the expedited licensing of the high-demand spectrum.
According to the statement, the issuance of the initial roadmap was followed by the successful hosting of an IM workshop to clarify all matters and obtain stakeholder feedback on the initial IM. As a result, the IMT spectrum, also known as the high-demand spectrum, and the wholesale open-access network were given a March 2022 deadline by ICASA.
ICASA informed stakeholders of the shortened timeline and strategy for the much-needed spectrum’s expedited licensing, which had been delayed for years.
According to the regulator, this roadmap is based on a consent order issued by the North Gauteng High Court, which concluded Telkom and Etv’s legal action against the authority.
“The consultative process in the form of the publication of the second IM aims to ensure transparency in the licensing process and is in compliance with the requirements for procedural fairness and administrative justice,” says ICASA chairperson Dr Keabetswe Modimoeng.
“It is consequently crucial that all stakeholders fully participate in this process, which will culminate in the issuance of an invitation to apply for high-demand spectrum licensing. We remain committed to licensing spectrum through an auction by March 2022.”
Stakeholders have until Tuesday, November 30 at 16h00 to make their formal submissions to ICASA.
