Anthea Paelo
The complexity and range of mobile money-related services provided in various African countries has grown significantly from ‘basic’ money transfer between people with customers storing currency in a mobile wallet via a handset, to include savings and loan products, insurance and bill payments.
Anthea Paelo
In August this year, two shipping companies were fined by the Competition Commission of South Africa for restrictive horizontal practices including; fixing a purchase or selling price of a product or service, dividing markets and collusive tendering in the transport of vehicles, equipment and/or machinery by sea on the route between Japan and South Africa.
Anthea Paelo
South Africa has one of the highest levels of income inequality in the world with a Gini coefficient that has remained around 0.65 over the past decade.1 In addition, South Africa’s unemployment rate, using the narrow definition, at 26.4% is very high.2 Much of this has been attributed to the legacy of apartheid during which the majority of South Africans were economically marginalised with few economic opportunities.
Anthea Paelo
The deregulation of the South African airline industry in 1991 paved the way for the entry of a number of low cost carriers (LCCs). However, of the eleven airlines to enter the industry between 1991 and 2012, only one is still in operation. Other privately owned airlines such as Nationwide, Velvet Sky and 1time operating from 1995 to 2008, 2011 to 2012 and 2004 to 2012, respectively, have exited even after remaining in the market for significant periods.
Anthea Paelo
The COMESA Competition Commission (CCC) in October 2014 published merger guidelines to help clarify procedural issues regarding the notification of mergers. The CCC is relatively new having been established in January 2013. In the last year alone, the CCC has approved mergers worth over US$41 billion.
Anthea Paelo
In a public seminar hosted by CCRED in June 2014, panelists from different telecommunications companies debated the revised call termination rates announced by the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA), with some arguing that the severe reductions in rates overall, although necessary, would significantly reduce revenue to operators.
Anthea Paelo and Pamela Mondliwa
Kenya’s recent competition case against DSTV in the pay-tv industry is only one more in a growing list of complaints relating to exclusive agreements in the industry in African countries. In this particular case, Zuku, a satellite pay-tv provider and competitor to DSTV, approached the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) to protest MultiChoice’s (DSTV’s parent company) exclusive rights over content such as broadcasting of the English Premier League (EPL).
