BabuK
JF-Expert Member
- Jul 30, 2008
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The Tanzania Communication Regulatory Authority has said it will undertake constant monitoring of the new interconnection rates telecommunication networks are supposed to charge with effect from today to ensure full compliance.
TCRA Acting Head of Corporate Communications Semu Mwakyanjala said in a telephone interview yesterday that customers will start enjoying the new interconnection rates of 34/92 per minute as earlier announced by the regulator, noting that there has been no resistance from mobile telecom operators so far.
He said telecom companies were given 30 days to appeal if they were not satisfied with the new rates but not a single appeal has been submitted to us as we speak.
This means that all the operators will implement the new interconnection rates to the letter. TCRA will carefully monitor progress through its system to ensure that there is no defaulting, he added.
According to Mwakyanjala, TCRAs announcement to slash interconnections charges from today stands unchanged, so customers should start enjoying making calls at 34/92 and therefore without finding need to carry along more than one handset or SIMcard as some normally do.
Contacted for comment, Airtel Public Relations Manager Jackson Mmbando said negotiations on interconnection rates has gone through the required process and we as Airtel will implement the regulators directive immediately.
Andrew Mvungi, who described himself as a mobile phone company, said TCRAs intervention was a job well done as it had made interconnection charges uniform, which will spare many people the burden of carrying around more than one mobile phone or having to frequently change SIMcards as convenient.
The regulator announced in January that, effective from today, voice call termination rates per minute for this year would be 34/90 down relative to last years 115/-. The rate for 2014 is set at 32/40, dropping to 30/58 in 2015, 28/57 in 2016 and 26/96 in 2017.
TCRA Director General Prof John Nkoma said the rates were still higher than those in use in other African countries and added that, in reducing the rates, they were guided by the fact that telecom interconnection rates across the world had dropped appreciably in the past five years.
He said The decision to slash the rates was made by a panel of experts from various universities and international organisations after studying all mobile phone firms in Tanzania and coming up with conclusions in accordance with the laws of the land.
We conducted an inquiry involving all telecom network operators and other stakeholders as per TCRA Procedures for Rules of Inquiry of 2004, noted Prof Nkoma.
He added that during subsequent consultations some of the mobile companies rejected the results, each proposing a different rate while arguing that a drastic cut would eat into their capacity to invest in rural areas.
The TCRA head explained that all mobile phone operators are required to apply the new interconnection rates and submit reports to the agency by the end of this month, adding that all have had enough time to make preparations.
This is an order from the Authority and the government to all mobile operators and they should follow it if they are licensed, he noted, adding that operators have the liberty to reduce the rates as much as they can as dictated by competition but not increase them.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN
TCRA Acting Head of Corporate Communications Semu Mwakyanjala said in a telephone interview yesterday that customers will start enjoying the new interconnection rates of 34/92 per minute as earlier announced by the regulator, noting that there has been no resistance from mobile telecom operators so far.
He said telecom companies were given 30 days to appeal if they were not satisfied with the new rates but not a single appeal has been submitted to us as we speak.
This means that all the operators will implement the new interconnection rates to the letter. TCRA will carefully monitor progress through its system to ensure that there is no defaulting, he added.
According to Mwakyanjala, TCRAs announcement to slash interconnections charges from today stands unchanged, so customers should start enjoying making calls at 34/92 and therefore without finding need to carry along more than one handset or SIMcard as some normally do.
Contacted for comment, Airtel Public Relations Manager Jackson Mmbando said negotiations on interconnection rates has gone through the required process and we as Airtel will implement the regulators directive immediately.
Andrew Mvungi, who described himself as a mobile phone company, said TCRAs intervention was a job well done as it had made interconnection charges uniform, which will spare many people the burden of carrying around more than one mobile phone or having to frequently change SIMcards as convenient.
The regulator announced in January that, effective from today, voice call termination rates per minute for this year would be 34/90 down relative to last years 115/-. The rate for 2014 is set at 32/40, dropping to 30/58 in 2015, 28/57 in 2016 and 26/96 in 2017.
TCRA Director General Prof John Nkoma said the rates were still higher than those in use in other African countries and added that, in reducing the rates, they were guided by the fact that telecom interconnection rates across the world had dropped appreciably in the past five years.
He said The decision to slash the rates was made by a panel of experts from various universities and international organisations after studying all mobile phone firms in Tanzania and coming up with conclusions in accordance with the laws of the land.
We conducted an inquiry involving all telecom network operators and other stakeholders as per TCRA Procedures for Rules of Inquiry of 2004, noted Prof Nkoma.
He added that during subsequent consultations some of the mobile companies rejected the results, each proposing a different rate while arguing that a drastic cut would eat into their capacity to invest in rural areas.
The TCRA head explained that all mobile phone operators are required to apply the new interconnection rates and submit reports to the agency by the end of this month, adding that all have had enough time to make preparations.
This is an order from the Authority and the government to all mobile operators and they should follow it if they are licensed, he noted, adding that operators have the liberty to reduce the rates as much as they can as dictated by competition but not increase them.
SOURCE: THE GUARDIAN