Telkom,Icasa settles out of court

Government has welcomed the out-of-court settlement between Telkom and South African telecommunications regulator, the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa),

In a statement Communications Minister, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni says the out-of-court settlement brings the country one step closer to the availability of spectrum licenses by the first of July as per the ICASA roadmap.

Telkom had taken ICASA to court over high-demand radio frequency spectrum licensing.

The Minister says the settlement now clears the path for the release of the IMT spectrum and will help the country to bridge the digital divide.

In the statement, the Department of Communications and Digital Technologies says it will also work to complete the Analogue Switch Off as per the Gauteng High Court Order.

It further says they will oppose the application for leave to appeal in the High Court by eTV as its last hurdle towards the release of digital divide.