Deputy Speaker, the ANC government, in collaboration with the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa, Icasa, has over the years worked hard to cement the monopoly of MultiChoice in the broadcasting industry to the detriment of the SABC. They have also done so in the telecommunication sector by cementing the duopoly of the MTN and Vodacom.
We therefore cannot associate ourselves with this report and we reject it. The immediate example relating to this is the high spectrum demand whose resolution we have learnt has been subjected to an auction. This, however, will not change the duopoly of Vodacom and MTN because essentially to auction is to sell and the reality is that only the powerful players have money to compete for an auction.
There is really no way that the auction can, without conditions attached to it, break the duopoly and create competition in the market - which means that the idea of data prices falling is a fallacy or was in the first place just a trick. The other fallacy from a policy perspective is to think that there might be a new entrant anytime soon. It is difficult to see how new entrants in the industry will marshal the massive resources needed to compete with Vodacom and MTN. So, the only option is one, which must be getting the majority of the spectrum.
The other reason is that companies must be obliged in relation to sporting rights and this is why it is important. Why people couldn't watch any soccer match in
the first place is that the majority of the high premium sports rights are monopolised by MultiChoice to the detriment of the SABC, and they subcontract them to the SABC with unreasonable prices and there is no regulation in that regard.
The other thing is that Icasa must be persuaded to change its Must-Carry Regulations, which over 11 years are actually the reason that has bankrupted the SABC. For the past 11 years, SABC has been giving its millions worth of content for free to MultiChoice, including donating over 5 million viewers for free to MultiChoice. So, it is not really the fault of the SABC itself; it is because the ANC government and the regulator have worked well together - possibly through corrupt deals to disable and to disempower the public broadcaster. We reject this report. [Applause.] [Interjections.]