INVESTIGATION
Relief from high price of data expected
The Competition Commission probe will put more pressure on mobile and fixed-line network operators voluntarily to reduce tariffs
Consumers can expect some relief from high data prices, with the Competition Commission having officially launched an investigation into the cost of internet bundles. The commission has launched an investigation into the high price of accessing the internet in a move that will put more pressure on mobile and fixed-line network operators voluntarily to reduce tariffs. South Africans have been campaigning for a reduction in data prices in recent years, forcing the government to rope in the commission as the communications regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of SA, was seen to be taking too long to probe broadband prices and prescribe regulations. The high price of data is holding back more rapid uptake and more intensive use of data in the mass market. The government wants to connect 22-million people to meet the SA Connect and National Development Plan target of universal access to high-speed internet by the end of 2020. Commission spokesman Sipho Ngwema says they ini...
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