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Icasa spectrum auction has Telkom considering legal action

Back in July Icasa issued an invitation to apply for a spectrum auction it would hold in 2017.

That invitation has already stoked the ire of DTPS minister Siyabonga Cwele and, following news today, Telkom as well.

The telecommunications firm has said that it is considering legal action against Icasa following its invitation to applicants to apply for licenses in the 700MHz, 800 MHz and 2600MHz spectrum.

“We have some fundamentally different views about the approach Icasa has adopted on the matter of spectrum and the resultant actions that have been taken,” Telkom group executive for communication, Jacqui O’Sullivan told Fin24.

The exec goes on to explain that Telkom is currently considering the legal merits of Icasa’s process and considering legal action in regards to this process. The firm has said that it will only, if at all, launch legal action against Icasa after 24th August.

“The ITA [invitation to apply] did invite queries and those closed on August 4 2016. Icasa indicated it would come back to those that submitted queries by August 24,” said O’Sullivan.

O’Sullivan goes on to say that should Icasa press on with the process after the 24th of August, “we would then need to consider the initiation of our own legal process.”

Three’s a crowd

Telkom joins Cell C and department of telecommunications and postal services (DTPS) minister, Siyabonga Cwele in opposing the ITA issued by Icasa.

The DTPS last month said that it would also be pursuing legal action against Icasa after it failed to consult the government on its plans to auction off spectrum.

“The Minister is concerned that Icasa’s invitation to apply for the auctioning of the spectrum was issued without consultation and prior notification to Government as the policy maker,” the DTPS said in a statement last month.

Meanwhile Icasa said that it wouldn’t be drawn into a public spat with the minister.

“[Icasa] has no intention to enter into a media debate with the Minister or any of the stakeholders about the correctness of its decision, suffice to say that the Authority believes that it has, in making this decision, adhered to all the requirements as prescribed in terms of the current applicable laws,” it said after Cwele announced he would pursue legal action.

[Via – Fin24] [Image – SA BY 2.0 wp paarz]

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