Page 86 - SAMENA Trends - December 2020

REGULATORY & POLICY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

The Minister for Rural and Maritime Development, Telecommunications Act to make it easier ‘to move
Inia Seruiratu, has said that the bill to amend the quickly in connecting the 5% of Fijians who face issues
Telecommunications Act is ‘long overdue’ and that work regarding connectivity’. Whilst some progress has been
needs to be done to address problems of unconnected made in recent years – by working with mobile, radio
Fiji areas across the country by strengthening the Universal and TV companies to share infrastructure in some
Service Scheme. While moving the motion to debate
areas – much more needs to be done. The Attorney
the bill to amend the Telecommunications Act 2008 in General is quoted as saying that amongst other things,
parliament, Attorney General and Minister for Economy they ‘are looking at one tower with many transmitters
Aiyaz Sayed-Khaiyum said that the government for these unconnected areas rather than having many
has identified 300 sites in Fiji that do not have any towers in one small area because companies will not
connectivity – fixed or mobile – and that under existing have to fork out that much money’.
legislation, the provisions to redress that are slow. (December 11, 2020) FijiVillage
Sayed-Khaiyum is arguing for an amendment to the

The telecoms watchdog ARCEP has adopted a series of several relevant markets, including obligations for
of decisions, updating the regulatory framework for the SMP, and the imposition of maximum tariffs that
the fixed broadband sector following the completion Orange can charge for access to its copper local loop
of a market analysis program that lasted more than during the period from 2021 to 2023. The relevant
France a year and included dialogue with operators, the markets are: a separate civil engineering market, for
the wholesale provision of access to physical civil
competition authority and the EC. According to ARCEP,
the decisions are aimed at facilitating the migration engineering infrastructure for the deployment of
from the legacy copper network to fiber whilst communications networks; wholesale access provided
maintaining pro-investment regulation and energizing at a fixed location (Market 3a), including unbundling of
the business market. The watchdog notes that it is the local copper loop and sub-loop and passive offers
aiming to complete the switchover from copper to fiber for the provision of optical fiber; wholesale central
within the next ten years and to that end has opened access provided at a fixed location (Market 3b); and
the possibility of a commercial switch-off prior to the wholesale quality access provided at a fixed location
technical switch-off, with the new regulations setting (Market 4), including offers specifically intended for
the terms and conditions for doing so. Although fixed corporate end user sites or network elements. ARCEP
line incumbent Orange France has confirmed its also adopted a decision to implement symmetric
intention to begin deactivating the copper network from regulation of the fiber market, with the regulator having
2021, ARCEP notes that the telco’s plans are ‘far from determined that there is healthy competition in the
fully established’ and has encouraged the operator to segment. Highlighting the progress in the fiber market,
provide clarity on its plans as soon as possible. The the regulator noted that the availability of fiber-to-the-
decisions include several asymmetric regulations that home (FTTH) products has risen from 11% in 2017 to
apply only to the provider with significant market power nearly 88% in Q2 2020.
(SMP), namely Orange France. These were the definition (December 21, 2020) commsupdate.com

The National Communications Authority (NCA) has usage during the COVID-19 lockdown. In anticipation
granted additional temporary spectrum at no cost of increased demand during the election period and
to MTN and Vodafone to improve their service to Christmas season, the extra spectrum has again been
customers. The extra 5MHz of frequencies was made available to prevent congestion and keep costs
Ghana initially made available to the two cellcos in April reasonable for consumers.
2020 for a three-month period to address a surge in
(December 1, 2020) commsupdate.com

Vodafone Greece emerged as the top spender in a infrastructure, and development of new products and
Greek auction of spectrum earmarked for 5G, which services. It tipped 5G to boost the country’s digital
raised a total of €372.1 million after six rounds of transformation, “improving business competitiveness,
bidding. In a translated statement, regulator Hellenic and contributing decisively to economic development
Greece Telecommunications and Post Commission said the and social prosperity”. The auction covered spectrum
in the 700MHz, 2GHz, 3.4GHz to 3.8GHz and 26GHz
sale was expected to yield “significant benefits” for
the industry, paving the way for investment in critical bands, with three bidders participating. Vodafone

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