Consumers get a bigger voice in telecoms

Consumers have been battling with high telecommunications and broadband prices for years, and despite some regulatory interventions, not much has changed.

One of the biggest obstacles for consumers in the South African regulatory environment is that big telecoms companies typically spend millions on top regulatory specialists to protect their rights, but consumers have virtually no voice in regulatory matters.

While a few consumers may take the time to get involved in the regulatory process, they don't have access to high-level legal expertise to effectively fight for consumer rights. This is set to change.

MyBroadband.co.za has partnered with Ellipsis Regulatory Solutions - specialists in telecommunications regulation - to give consumers a chance to have some bearing on regulatory matters. A regulatory forum has been opened up where consumers can engage with legal experts from Ellipsis.

As one of the leaders in the telecoms regulatory environment, Ellipsis will educate consumers on current regulatory matters, provide them with easy to understand explanations of regulatory documents and draft regulations from the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), and give consumers an easy way to officially comment on relevant regulatory matters.

MyBroadband founder Rudolph Muller applauds Ellipsis for their willingness to share their knowledge with consumers and to help bridge the gap so that consumers can form part of the local telecommunications regulatory environment.

"It is a privilege to partner with Ellipsis and give consumers access to high level regulatory specialists and legal opinion," said Muller. "We are confident that through this medium, consumers will find it easier to get involved in the regulatory process which we hope will in turn result in more consumer-friendly regulations."

Ellipsis director Dominic Cull says this is indeed a necessary undertaking, as the consumer is significantly affected by regulation. An educated and vocal consumer base will go some way to ensuring a consideration of the impact on the public as the end-user in the regulatory process.