Sentech has already been allocated 100 000 numbers in the 087 range, and is ready to take on Telkom in the voice telephony arena, says Winston Smith, portfolio manager for wireless broadband.
"Sentech is not technically waiting for anything - in our view we can legally provide packet-voice services now," adds Mike Kuczmierezyk, product manager for value-added services.
However, communications minister Ivy Matesepe-Casaburri is expected to make a determination on the Telecommunications Act within the next few weeks, which among other things, should provide clarity on Sentech's ability to provide voice services, Smith explains.
"We have all but the important ingredient [legislative clarity] to be a voice provider and compete with the likes of Telkom," he says.
No reason why not
"I can think of no reasons why the minister would prevent Sentech from offering voice services," he states, adding that he is keen to begin creating infrastructure for the service "sooner rather than later".
Sentech proposes offering packet-voice services to ordinary consumers on its MyWireless platform, and to businesses on its Biznet Wireless and VSTAR platforms. "It is our intention to offer voice to both businesses and private users," notes Smith.
He says Sentech has been busy upgrading the core network to be able to provide quality voice services in the future, and now plans to upgrade the MyWireless network.
Smith would neither confirm nor deny reports that Sentech was made to wait for the establishment of the second national operator before being considered for a switched-voice licence.
Coverage investment
He confirms that Sentech has requested capital from the government to roll-out the wireless infrastructure, but cannot disclose the amount.
Smith admits that many numbers concerning the amount applied for have been publicised, but declines to indicate which is the correct estimate.
"It will cost over a billion rand to deliver coverage to all," he says.
Sentech's plans include offering data and voice bundled minutes at a flat rate fee, but Smith cannot predict what the likely charges for the consumer would be. "The only way we can compete with the fixed and cellular operators is to offer competitive bundles of voice and data together."
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