Icasa set to probe cellphone giants

THE gloves are off in the fight to apparently lower communication costs for South Africa's consumers.

An inquiry into competition in the information and communications technology sector is coming and cellular giants Vodacom and MTN seem to be the targets.

The Independent Communications Authority (Icasa) said yesterday it would take the next six to eight months to probe companies and other role-players in the sector.

Icasa said despite the profusion of new entrants into the market, the cost to communicate had not come down substantially and South African consumers paid considerably more than their counterparts in Africa.

This comes barely a month after an earlier intervention by Icasa to slash interconnect rates – the fees your network provider charges you when you make calls to other networks. – TJ Strydom