Denis Opudo
There are many occasions where mobile operators in South Africa if not the whole Africa, charge out-of-bundle (OOB) tariffs. This takes place on many occasions without the knowledge of the subscribers. Consequently, this has led to complaints from many subscribers forcing others to switch to other different operators in the land. But the subscriber’s complains and actions have just been falling on deaf ears. This is why the Independent Communications Authority Of South Africa (Icasa) has decided to come to the rescue of the country’s subscribers.
Icasa has decided to put in new regulations that will restrict operators from charging out-of-bundle (OOB) tariffs without subscriber’s knowledge. The body announced the development in a presentation held on 25th April 2018. It said that it reached out to the decision after printing its draft Subscriber Service Charter and End-User regulations for comments in 2017. It also carried out public consultations before reaching out to the decision.
The new developments mean that operators will not be in a position to automatically charge subscribers out-of-bundle tariffs. This is especially when they exhaust their data bundles. They are required to offer subscribers an option to buy a new bundle or rather agree to bill subscribers out of bundles. This must come alongside as an SMS to notify subscribers about the depletion of their data bundles.
Icasa also proposed that the subscribers’ mobile data must be carried forward in case they do not fully use it. They also asked the operators to transfer data to other subscribers who are operating on the same network. The likes of Vodacom and MTN who are the main mobile operators in the land announced that they will reduce their OOB prices in accordance with the new regulations. Subscribers will be the main beneficiaries of the new regulations once they start working. This will help them reduce their data expenditure.
