Consultancy costs at the Independent Communications Authority of SA (Icasa) more than doubled from 2021 to 2022, as the regulator finally issued new spectrum after more than a decade of delays.
In March 2022 Icasa completed the auction of the spectrum — the government-controlled airwaves that are licensed to mobile phone companies — raising R14.4bn for state coffers. The regulator had initially planned to raise R8bn.
Consultancy costs rose to R19.9m in 2021/2022 from R7.8m in the 2020/2021 financial year, communications and digital technologies minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said in a written reply to a question from the EFF in the National Council of Provinces.
Engineering and technology projects were completed with the support of external experts and consultants, amounting to R7.2m. Items included the development of the “TV white space” framework; development of a frequency migration plan; monitoring; and review of the band plan.
About R8.6m was spent on consultants for the spectrum auction itself.
In 2022, Icasa, which was in charge of conducting the auction, received an additional R300m for financial year 2022/2023, which was earmarked for “strengthening regulatory capacity and licensing spectrum”.
In the same year, the government set aside more than R1bn to cover the final phase of SA’s migration to digital television from analogue platforms in an effort to complete the long-awaited auction.
Alongside the spectrum allocation, the migration of TV broadcasting to digital platforms from analogue technology had been expected to be completed in the 2021/2022 financial year, but that since been delayed by legal action by eTV’s parent company eMedia.
That means that certain spectrum bought by the likes of Telkom is yet to be used by the telecom operator as it is still occupied by broadcasters.
The switch to digital TV has long been a thorn in the government’s side. While the process will clear the frequency spectrum now occupied by broadcasters, allowing for faster wireless broadband services and other applications, broadcasters are reluctant to relinquish their existing frequencies until the migration process is completed.
In August, Icasa announced its intention to start the second phase of the licensing process to make spectrum available to bidders. That auction is expected to be completed in 2023.
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