Telco cautions on 112 regulations

By Leon Engelbrecht, ITWeb senior writer

Johannesburg, 21 Jul 2008

SA's fixed and mobile telecommunications providers are still studying the Independent Communications Authority of SA's (ICASA's) final regulations on the interconnection and allocation of costs for the operation of the government's Public Emergency Contact Centres (PECC).

The Department of Communications hopes to have two PECCs operational by the fourth quarter of next year.

South Africans will then be able to dial "112" toll-free for all emergency calls anywhere in the country.

MTN, Telkom and Neotel were, by late morning, still studying the regulations published last week. Vodacom was also still analysing the regulations, but spokesperson Dot Field said the company could make some preliminary comment "based on a high-level review of the regulations".

"Vodacom notes that the regulations contain a number of positive developments for the industry and consumers as they confirm the rights currently enjoyed by consumers in terms of the Electronic Communications Act of 2005," she says.

"These rights include, among others, the right to access the 112 emergency number for free, the right of customers whose commercial services have been temporarily suspended or disconnected to access emergency services during that period.

"Vodacom also welcomes the declaration of 112 as the exclusive national public emergency number."

However, there are some aspects of the regulation that will have adverse technical and commercial implications for licensees and the industry in general, Field warns.

"In particular, the regulations impose additional obligations relating to (among others) provision of automatic location identity, requirements for network diversity and redundancy, network inter-operability, etc.

"Most of these requirements go beyond the scope of what is necessary and relevant to enable emergency organisations to respond to emergency calls."

She says Vodacom will engage ICASA "on these provisions with a view to ensuring the regulations are implemented in a manner that is practical and serves consumer interests to access emergency services without unduly undermining the ability of licensees to provide sustainable access to emergency services calls".

The publication of the regulations follows public hearings in February, where industry expressed some of these same concerns on the draft regulations published last year.