The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) announced on Monday that it has received six submissions of applications in response to the
Invitation to Apply (ITA) for the International Mobile Telecommunications (IMT)
spectrum issued on 2 October 2020.
The country’s communications watchdog said submissions were received from the following entities, in no particular order:
1. Cell C
2. Rain Networks
3. Vodacom
4. Telkom
5. Liquid Telecoms
6. MTN
The regulator added in a statement that it also received a further submission from Women Building a Better Society (WBBS) but unfortunately, the application was submitted after the cut-off time i.e. 16h00 and will not be considered.
In terms of the ITA, ICASA has made available the IMT spectrum bands in the 700MHz, 800MHz, 2600MHz and 3500MHz bands for assignment to qualifying applicants.
The Chairperson of ICASA, Dr Keabetswe Modimoeng expressed his gratitude to all
the applicants who took time to respond to the ITA.
“The Council of the Authority is indeed grateful to all applicants who responded to
this call for the licensing of high demand spectrum,” Dr Modimoeng said.
“We are ready and committed in ensuring that we take the necessary care; and that the release of the spectrum and this process in general is indeed procedurally fair and non-discriminatory.
“The Authority remains committed to defend this important process against any form of litigation, with a full appreciation of what the benefits of licensing high demand spectrum will be for consumers and the public at large. We are unwavering in this regard.”
For more read: Telkom sues Icasa over ‘flawed’ spectrum auction
