Page 89 - SAMENA Trends - November 2020

REGULATORY & POLICY UPDATES SAMENA TRENDS

concerning Operational Provisions and Licensing in 2017 Telkom subsidiary Telkomsel invested IDR1
Procedures for Radio Frequency Spectrum Usage’, the trillion (USD70.6 million) for an additional 30MHz block
government intends to award three 10MHz blocks of of spectrum at 2.3GHz. It estimates that if it seeks a
spectrum. It confirmed that only MNOs already holding further 30MHz block, it might have to ‘pay twice the
a Cellular Mobile Network Operation License will be upfront fee and frequency BHP’ from the price it paid in
able to participate in the process. The paper notes that 2017. (November 24 2020) commsupdate.com

The Italian government has reportedly agreed to the saying that the government will approve the transaction
acquisition of a minority stake in Telecom Italia’s on the condition that KKR agrees to a plan to create
(TIM’s) last-mile networks unit FiberCop by US a single national broadband network by merging the
investment firm KKR. The deal between TIM and KKR assets of TIM and wholesale operator Open Fiber. KKR
Italy was agreed in August, and sources suggested at the has offered EUR1.8 billion (USD2.1 billion) for a 37.5%
time that authorities in Rome would be favorable to the
interest in FiberCop.
tie-up. Reuters now cites three unnamed sources as (November 16, 2020) commsupdate.com

The Jamaican government is considering a proposal since before our involvement with Hurricane Katrina
from US firm Rivada Networks, which would see the in 2005’. It says that its network solutions have been
vendor deploy a 5G network free of charge, in exchange deployed 225 times in the last five years, often in
for a share of the eventual revenues. According to response to natural disasters. While the company’s
Jamaica the Jamaica Observer, which quotes remarks by international vendor experience remains unclear,
Donald Tapia, the US Ambassador to Jamaica, the TeleGeography notes that Rivada was previously
proposal has been on the table for some time, but the disqualified from Mexico’s Red Compartida open
authorities remain undecided. According to its website access 4G network tender in 2016, for failing to meet
‘Rivada has been in the business of providing tactical the necessary financial obligations to compete.
communications solutions to the federal government (November 6, 2020) commsupdate.com

The Liberia Telecommunications Authority (LTA), creation of a reliable database of subscribers by
working with the National Identification Registry agency operators. The new regulations will now enter a three-
(NIR) and the country’s mobile network operators month testing phase (November 2020 to January
(MNOs) – Lonestar Cell-MTN and Orange Liberia – 2021), and after the results are evaluated (February
Liberia have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) 2021) full implementation is expected to begin in
on new SIM/RUIM registration regulations. The local
March 2021. Edwina C Zackpah, Acting Chairperson,
Daily Observer newspaper reports that under the plan, LTA, said: ‘We all know that there are a lot of crimes
the NIR will join the LTA and the MNOs to implement the that are committed using the telephone, and one of the
new regulations which they hope will: improve national first places that the police will go when investigating
security; establish a platform for e-communications a crime is the cellphone; what were the last sets of
services such as mobile money transfer and other such numbers you called and who is associated with those
services; make it easier for subscribers to replace their numbers? You may never know who committed such
SIM cards in the event of loss; minimize the opportunity a crime if the SIM card they are investigating is not
for communication frauds (e.g. grey routing of calls) properly registered. So this is a significant milestone
as operators are mandated to activate only registered for the country.’
SIM/RUIM cards on their networks; and ensure the (November 4, 2020) commsupdate.com

The Communications Regulatory Authority (Rysiu ongoing sale process of MEZON, the retail broadband
Reguliavimo Tarnyba, RRT) has issued a statement and IPTV business of state-owned Lithuanian Radio &
on its preliminary plans for auctioning 5G frequencies, Television Centre (LRTC, also known as Telecentras),
tentatively scheduling a sale of spectrum including the having received requests from operators to postpone
Lithuania 700MHz band for the first quarter of 2021. The RRT spectrum auctions until the transaction is completed.
highlighted that its schedule must take into account the
In August, Lithuania’s Competition Council received

89 NOVEMBER 2020