JOHANNESBURG, South Africa—After years of uncertainty and a lack of clear policy, the South African Department of Communications has opened the way for Global Mobile Personal Communications by Satellite (GMPCS) services, inviting potential operators to apply for licenses.
The latest policy direction has placed no limit on the number of licenses, provided that appropriate radio-frequency spectrum is available. The license criteria appear to be weighted toward financial, technical, black empowerment and social objectives of the applicants.
The various operators in this field, such as Iridium, Globalstar and ICO, have expressed an interest in applying for a license. Mobile network operator Vodacom has expressed some interest in rekindling its relationship with Globalstar, having invested in the construction of an earth gateway station in the late 1990s. The coverage offered by GMPCS would go a long way to extending operators’ reach into the geographic expanses of Africa.
An interesting aspect of the policy direction is that it precludes bypass of the PSTN, and therefore, certain GMPCS operators will not be licensed. However, Inmarsat, which was licensed to operate in South Africa in 1998, will not be forced to comply with the interconnect and bypass directions.
The closing date for applications is 30 April.
