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Johannesburg - On Monday the country's three cellphone operators may already submit a new agreement on interconnection tariffs to the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa).
Robert Madzongo, MTN's acting head of corporate services, told Sake24 on Sunday that the cellphone group had had discussions with the other two operators regarding amendments to interconnection tariffs agreement that Icasa rejected last week.
He said that Icasa had not yet seen the new agreement, but that the group believed it would resolve the problems that Icasa had found with the previous agreement.
The intention was to present the new agreement to Icasa on Monday.
On Friday afternoon MTN followed in Vodacom and Cell C's footsteps and issued a statement that it would still cut its interconnection tariffs on March 1, although Icasa had rejected the first agreement.
In terms of this agreement, MTN, Vodacom and Cell C would have cut peak-time interconnection tariffs from R1.25/minute to 89c. Then in October next year the tariff would be reduced to 85c/minute and in October 2012 to 80c/minute.
The agreement had stipulated that Icasa could not interfere in the interconnection market for the next three years. This was Icasa's difficulty.
In its statement, MTN said that it would also have discussions with Icasa and the Minister of Communications, General Siphiwe Nyanda, on the sliding scale for cutting tariffs.
- Fin24.com
For more business news in Afrikaans, go to Sake24.com.
