What Airtel wants once Safaricom is declared dominant

M-Pesa: To be hived off and operate as a separate and independent business with all other telcos allowed to use the service “so that customers are not locked in by M-Pesa to remain in Safaricom.”

M-Pesa tariff to be at a flat rate on both money transferred within Safaricom network and to other networks “to avoid price discrimination, which is currently detrimental to customers and creates a club effect which is similar to customer lock-in.”

Infrastructure company: Isolate base stations and other network-related businesses to a separate and independent unit, which will be converted into a wholesale outfit, selling connectivity to other companies at regulated prices. The regulator to ensure that all telcos get the same quality of service.

Mobile phone services:

To be set up as a separate and independent unit that runs the retail business of selling voice, SMS and Internet to the public but at prices controlled by the Competition Authority to ensure the prices are equal or slightly higher than those of other operators.

On Safaricom marketing: Airtel wants the leading mobile company ordered to call for public consultation and commission studies on how giant marketing campaigns affect the market before carrying any promotions such as Tetemesha na Safaricom, Bonyeza Ushinde Na Safaricom, or redeeming of ‘bonga’ points. All operators, consumer bodies and the public to be given the opportunity to make representations and the authority to undertake detailed review of the proposed promotion with a view to understanding the impact of such promotions on the entire mobile business. The argument is that “none of the other companies is able to run a promotion of such magnitude due to the limited financial capability.”

Call termination rates:

Given the market share of Safaricom and the nature of the Kenyan market, its rivals end up paying for calls terminated on its network and Airtel suggests that CA should impose a higher interconnection rate such that Safaricom pays 1.55 times the going rate. That means while Airtel and Orange will pay Safaricom 99 cents for calls terminating on it network,

M-Pesa: To be hived off and operate as a separate and independent business with all other telcos allowed to use the service “so that customers are not locked in by M-Pesa to remain in Safaricom.”

M-Pesa tariff to be at a flat rate on both money transferred within Safaricom network and to other networks “to avoid price discrimination, which is currently detrimental to customers and creates a club effect which is similar to customer lock-in.”

Infrastructure company: Isolate base stations and other network-related businesses to a separate and independent unit, which will be converted into a wholesale outfit, selling connectivity to other companies at regulated prices. The regulator to ensure that all telcos get the same quality of service.

Mobile phone services:

To be set up as a separate and independent unit that runs the retail business of selling voice, SMS and Internet to the public but at prices controlled by the Competition Authority to ensure the prices are equal or slightly higher than those of other operators.

On Safaricom marketing: Airtel wants the leading mobile company ordered to call for public consultation and commission studies on how giant marketing campaigns affect the market before carrying any promotions such as Tetemesha na Safaricom, Bonyeza Ushinde Na Safaricom, or redeeming of ‘bonga’ points.

All operators, consumer bodies and the public to be given the opportunity to make representations and the authority to undertake detailed review of the proposed promotion with a view to understanding the impact of such promotions on the entire mobile business.

The argument is that “none of the other companies is able to run a promotion of such magnitude due to the limited financial capability.”

Call termination rates:

Given the market share of Safaricom and the nature of the Kenyan market, its rivals end up paying for calls terminated on its network and Airtel suggests that CA should impose a higher interconnection rate such that Safaricom pays 1.55 times the going rate.

That means while Airtel and Orange will pay Safaricom 99 cents for calls terminating on it network, Safaricom will pay Sh1.5 per minute of a call terminating on other networks.

“Safaricom has much lower interconnect cost than Airtel due to economies of scale and if we implement asymmetric interconnection where Safaricom pays us more and we pay them less, we can invest the savings in the business to become more competitive and improve the market competitiveness for the benefit of consumers and the Authority.”

Retail voice prices:

Airtel wants Communication Authority to force Safaricom to keep its calling rates at a flat fee for both Safaricom-to-Safaricom calls and for calls going to other networks.

Currently, Safaricom charges Sh4 for off-net call and Sh3 for on-net calls. The flat rate should apply and be the same even when Safaricom is calling out a promotion.

The authority should also set a point below which Safaricom cannot price its calling rate to safeguard the industry against low profits.

At the moment, Safaricom prices are the highest in the market with other operators forced to cut prices to woo customers.

National roaming:

Communication Authority to order Safaricom to connect other operators in areas where they have no network coverage, in effect, enforcing mandatory national roaming on Safaricom.

This would make it possible for, say Airtel consumers, to make and receive calls in areas where Airtel has not invested in network but Safaricom has.

Safaricom would then pick Airtel customer’s signal and transmit it to the nearest Airtel base for onward transmission and termination.

Should the termination point be outside Airtel area of coverage but in an area where Safaricom has network coverage, Safaricom would then pick the signal from the last Airtel base and terminate the call.

This, Airtel argues, would level the playing field given Safaricom’s huge investment in network that it is now using to bar entry of other telcos into the industry.

“In the absence of infrastructure sharing obligations for mobile coverage sites in Kenya to aid in coverage, existing players and a new entrant will have to replicate the same infrastructure that an existing licensee has in order to compete effectively which definitely creates a disincentive and therefore a barrier to entry..”

Safaricom will pay Sh1.5 per minute of a call terminating on other networks. “Safaricom has much lower interconnect cost than Airtel due to economies of scale and if we implement asymmetric interconnection where Safaricom pays us more and we pay them less, we can invest the savings in the business to become more competitive and improve the market competitiveness for the benefit of consumers and the Authority.”

Retail voice prices:

Airtel wants Communication Authority to force Safaricom to keep its calling rates at a flat fee for both Safaricom-to-Safaricom calls and for calls going to other networks. Currently, Safaricom charges Sh4 for off-net call and Sh3 for on-net calls. The flat rate should apply and be the same even when Safaricom is calling out a promotion. The authority should also set a point below which Safaricom cannot price its calling rate to safeguard the industry against low profits. At the moment, Safaricom prices are the highest in the market with other operators forced to cut prices to woo customers.

National roaming:

Communication Authority to order Safaricom to connect other operators in areas where they have no network coverage, in effect, enforcing mandatory national roaming on Safaricom. This would make it possible for, say Airtel consumers, to make and receive calls in areas where Airtel has not invested in network but Safaricom has. Safaricom would then pick Airtel customer’s signal and transmit it to the nearest Airtel base for onward transmission and termination. Should the termination point be outside Airtel area of coverage but in an area where Safaricom has network coverage, Safaricom would then pick the signal from the last Airtel base and terminate the call. This, Airtel argues, would level the playing field given Safaricom’s huge investment in network that it is now using to bar entry of other telcos into the industry.

“In the absence of infrastructure sharing obligations for mobile coverage sites in Kenya to aid in coverage, existing players and a new entrant will have to replicate the same infrastructure that an existing licensee has in order to compete effectively which definitely creates a disincentive and therefore a barrier to entry..”

Forget PayTV, here's proof Safaricom is now offering IT Consultancy http://www.safaricom.co.ke/busi...solutions/it-consultancy

Now at this jack-of-all-trades rate, yet all money is made from Voice, Data, MPesa, in that order!