INFRACO BILL

PUBLIC COMMENTS AND DPE RESPONSES

Entity commenting	Summary of comments	DPE response
Neotel (10 June 2007)	Neotel Neotel should get an exclusivity in respect of the use of Infraco’s infrastructure Licensing Infraco should have a deemed licence granted in the Infraco Bill Competition law Infraco should be exempt from competition law – the merger provisions Rights of way The provisions of the Infraco Bill should be more prescriptive and note extend as far as expropriation	Neotel Infraco will provide access to its network in accordance with the EC Act and Icasa regulations, to Neotel and every other player The relationship with Neotel is one of agency – Neotel will act as Infraco’s agent in providing access Licensing Section 6 has been amended to provide for the licensing of Infraco to happen in terms of the EC Act; to provide for the amendment of the EC Act to indicate that the licensing process will be established by the Minister of Communications (but carried out by Icasa); and to provide Infraco authority to operate the FSN pending the conclusion of licensing Competition law The DPE is of the view that it is not appropriate to exempt Infraco from competition law requirements Rights of way Infraco will benefit from the general provisions regarding rights of way in the EC Act and the specific provisions in the Infraco Bill which are deemed necessary to ensure affordable and timely access
MTN (undated)	Policy Infraco may not have a positive impact on policy of managed liberalization, or increase competition, so policy should be debated in a green paper/white paper process first Neotel relationship It is not clear to whom Infraco will provide its infrastructure Licensing Can licensing happen outside the EC Act?	Policy The DPE disagrees that a green paper/white paper process is necessary Neotel relationship Infraco will provide access to its network in accordance with the EC Act and Icasa regulations, just as every other ECNS licensee must do The relationship with Neotel is one of agency – Neotel will act as Infraco’s agent in providing access Licensing Section 6 has been amended to provide for the licensing of Infraco to happen in terms of the EC Act; to provide for the amendment of the EC Act to indicate that the licensing process will be established by the Minister of Communications (but carried out by Icasa); and to provide Infraco authority to operate the FSN pending the conclusion of licensing
USAASA (11 June 2007)	Objects of Infraco Objectives should be expanded/clarified Licensing Infraco should have deemed authority to operate and be granted a licence by Icasa in the conversion process Rights of way The provisions of the Infraco Bill should not be seen to negate the rights granted all ECNS licensees under the EC Act	Objects of Infraco Amendments have been effected capturing comments in this regard, to the extent possible and appropriate Licensing Section 6 has been amended to provide for the licensing of Infraco to happen in terms of the EC Act; to provide for the amendment of the EC Act to indicate that the licensing process will be established by the Minister of Communications (but carried out by Icasa); and to provide Infraco authority to operate the FSN pending the conclusion of licensing Rights of way Infraco will benefit from the general provisions regarding rights of way in the EC Act and the specific provisions in the Infraco Bill which are deemed necessary
Eskom (11 June 2007)	Various Various suggested language amendments Include SARCC rights of way Right of way costs to be agreed by Infraco, Eskom and Transnet	Note to DPE – have the Eskom suggestions, which are about an earlier draft, been accommodated?
Telkom Media (13 June 2007)	Licensing Infraco will need a licence in terms of the EC Act Neotel relationship Infraco should provide open access and not exclusivity to Neotel Telkom There may exist a conflict where the state holds shares in more than one player in the ICT industry Rights of way Infraco should have not special rights in respect of rights of way	Licensing Section 6 has been amended to provide for the licensing of Infraco to happen in terms of the EC Act; to provide for the amendment of the EC Act to indicate that the licensing process will be established by the Minister of Communications (but carried out by Icasa); and to provide Infraco authority to operate the FSN pending the conclusion of licensing Neotel relationship Infraco will provide access to its network in accordance with the EC Act and Icasa regulations, just as every other ECNS licensee must do The relationship with Neotel is one of agency – Neotel will act as Infraco’s agent in providing access Telkom The DPE does not intend to appoint government representatives to the board, rather it intends to appoint qualified and experienced persons that are able to ensure the objectives of Infraco are met in the context of the ICT sector Infraco has different strategic objectives than other entities that the state holds an interest in Rights of way DPE believes that the specific provisions in the Infraco Bill regarding rights of way are necessary to contribute to the object of affordable access
SITA (24 July 2007)	SITA SIta requests a provision that indicates specifically that it may use the Infraco infrastructure to deliver government services	SITA Such a provision is not necessary as access is governed by the EC Act
IS (25 July 2007)	Equal access Infraco Bill should address issues: access, pricing, contractual arrangements, anticompetitive behavior	Equal access All of these issues are more appropriate dealt with in the EC Act, which Infraco will be subject to
Vodacom (25 July 2007)	Licensing Licensing should comply with EC Act Equal access Clarify scope of services to be provided by Infraco Provide that Infraco must provide open, fair and non-discriminatory access Neotel relationship Will Neotel have special rights?	Licensing Section 6 has been amended to provide for the licensing of Infraco to happen in terms of the EC Act; to provide for the amendment of the EC Act to indicate that the licensing process will be established by the Minister of Communications (but carried out by Icasa); and to provide Infraco authority to operate the FSN pending the conclusion of licensing Equal access The issues of access is more appropriately dealt with in the EC Act, which Infraco will be subject to as is every other ECNS licensee Neotel relationship The relationship with Neotel is one of agency – Neotel will act as Infraco’s agent in providing access
Sentech (25 July 2007)	Sentech The division of activities between Sentech and Infraco should be spelt out Sentech should be placed in Schedule 2 of the PFMA	Sentech The objects of Infraco have been amended to take account of various comments requesting more clarity It is not appropriate in legislation to spell out restrictions on the type of services and technologies that may be used by Infraco and Sentech, as these are dynamic issues that will change over time Infraco will be complementing Sentech’s services and not duplicating resources, as Sentech is largely a wireless service provider in the last mile tier of the market
Telkom (25 July 2007)	Licensing An Infraco licence should be granted in terms of the EC Act Telkom There may exist a conflict where the state holds shares in more than one player in the ICT industry Language Include definition of ECS Rights of way Infraco should have not special rights in respect of rights of way	Licensing Section 6 has been amended to provide for the licensing of Infraco to happen in terms of the EC Act; to provide for the amendment of the EC Act to indicate that the licensing process will be established by the Minister of Communications (but carried out by Icasa); and to provide Infraco authority to operate the FSN pending the conclusion of licensing Telkom The DPE does not intend to appoint government representatives to the board, rather it intends to appoint qualified and experienced persons that are able to ensure the objectives of Infraco are met in the context of the ICT sector Infraco has different strategic objectives than other entities that the state holds an interest in Language Definition of ECS included Rights of way DPE is of the view that the specific provisions in the Infraco Bill regarding rights of way are necessary to contribute to the object of affordable access
Cell C (31 July 2007)	Policy Policy objectives of Infraco are not clear Licensing Infraco can’t be a deemed licensee Infraco can’t take transfer of Eskom and Transnet licences	Policy Amendments have been effected capturing comments in this regard, to the extent possible and appropriate Licensing Section 6 has been amended to provide for the licensing of Infraco to happen in terms of the EC Act; to provide for the amendment of the EC Act to indicate that the licensing process will be established by the Minister of Communications (but carried out by Icasa); and to provide Infraco authority to operate the FSN pending the conclusion of licensing