A Personal View – April 2014

Like most government enterprises, Telkom shares common traits with other governmental departments & institutions as if it is hardwired into their DNA irrespective where they were located. This is not a South African phenomenon but a world-wide one.

The example that I would to share is something that occurred in the late 1970s & early 1980s. In retrospect, it is no more ludicrous than the episode that arose some 10 years ago but it would have been no less tragic as it would have stymied progress in South Africa.

First let us recapitulate on the most recent example.

In the mid-nineties Telkom entered the internet services market with SAIX. It claimed that it had the sole right to provide internet services granted to it in terms of the Telecommunications Act. This claim was predicated upon the assumption that it would be able provide internet access to poor & rural areas faster. It would have been in line with the universal access goals of the government.

The ISPAs [Internet Service Providers Association] opposed Telkom’s application with SATRA, the South African Telecommunications Regulatory Authority. They argued that Telkom’s monopoly would hinder rather than promote universal access.

In turn, Telkom countered this by claiming that the ISPs would cherry-pick by aiming at highly concentrated high paying customers.

Ultimately this case fizzled out as the ISPs became VAS [Value Added Service] for Telkom rather than part of its licence’s remit.

Now let us cast our minds back 25 years to the dawn of the era of the fax machine. Unbelievably at this distance, this was a revolutionary advance for its time. It opened up a new channel of communication that would create a quantum leap over snail mail in terms of the speed of distribution of information.

Telkom was not opposed to the introduction of the fax machine but what they proposed is that all faxes would be handled by themselves only.

The practicalities of this suggestion are mind-blowing. Given the lethargy, inefficiencies & insolent malaise that exists within this institution, I would wonder whether the faxes would ever have been received by the intended recipient.

The steps to send an email would then have operated as follows:

• Ascertain the recipients closest local Post Office
• The Sending Company must send the Messenger to their local Post Office
• The Messenger must then queue for 20 minutes before the fax can be scanned by indolent staff & faxed to the Post Office closest to the recipient
• Payment made for faxing service performed
• Messenger returns to his office
• Recipient phoned to inform them that a fax is waiting at their local Post Office
• A Messenger of the recipient is sent to retrieve the fax
• The Post Office takes 20 minutes to track down the correct fax amongst thousands that they have received & are unclaimed

Apart from the speed which would have been compromised in this convoluted method of handling the fax, what about confidentially.

Progress would have been stymied as the hassle involved in trying to send a fax would not have been worth the effort.

Likewise if Telkom had won its battle in order to control the Internet, progress in this regard would undoubtedly have been stalled in a thousand different ways.

Fortunately for South Africa, Telkom lost on both counts.