By Emeka Aginam

The  recent suspension of data price floor by the Nigerian Communications Commission, NCC, has continued  to receive   reactions among industry stakeholders in the Nigerian Information Technology industry.

Price floor  is  one of the regulatory safeguards normally put in place by the telecommunications regulator to check anticompetitive practices particularly by the dominant operators.

But following the concerns that visited the recent directive to introduce price floor for data segment of the telecommunications sector, NCC had suspended any further action in that direction.

The decision to suspend the directive, NCC, explained  was taken after due consultation with industry stakeholders and the general complaints by consumers across the country.

The decision to have a price floor, according to Tony Ojobo, Director, Public Affairs of the Commission,  was primarily to promote a level playing field for all operators in the industry, encourage small operators and new entrants.

Meanwhile, the  price floor in 2014 was N3.11k/MB but was removed in 2015. The price floor that was supposed to flag off on December 1, 2016 was N0.90k/MB.

Good step at the right time—NIRA

Reacting to the new development, the President of the Nigeria Internet Registration Association NiRA,  Sunday Folayan said that  the  suspension  was  the right step at the right time.

“The focus of NCC at this time is to set the Minimum acceptable quality of service and enforce this. Providers will naturally meet such quality at a cost effective price.

“ Setting a price floor without assuring that consumers get a good service for what they already pay for, is counter productive. Good the policy is suspended it will be great if it is never revisited”, he explained.

For the  President of Association of Telecommunications Companies of Nigeria, ATCON, Olusola Teniola, the suspension of the data floor plan  was to allow NCC enough time to complete the data cost determination for both wholesale and retail.

Eradicate predatory pricing that excludes effective competition—ATCON

“ATCON believes that the true cost of effectively delivering data services at the best quality that allows both small and large operators to exist is paramount.

“ Any suspicion of predatory pricing that excludes effective competition in the market must be eradicated for the consumers long term benefit”, he added.

 NCC  consulted-ALTON

Clearing the air that NCC  did not consult  the industry stakeholders before taking the initial decision,  the  Chairman of  Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria ,ALTON, Engr. Gbenga Adebayo in a statement said that the  NCC commenced extensive consultation with the industry prior to the finalization of the data tariff floor.

“ALTON notes that it is within the statutory remit of the NCC for it to make decisive interventions to address the data price concerns which had led to data prices falling to unreasonably low levels with the effect that telecommunications operators were unable to recover the cost of providing data services and reinvest in capacity expansion to accommodate the increased usage arising from lower tariffs.

“The situation has been compounded by the recent economic challenges characterized by the steep depreciation of the naira, the need to resort to the parallel market and foreign exchange scarcity which have considerably increased the capital and operational cost of providing telecommunications services, thus making current data tariffs unsustainable”, he said.

“This situation, if left unaddressed, could result in a sustained deterioration in the quality of data services across all networks and the attendant poor quality of experience for users.  In this regard, our members await the conclusion of NCC’s market study when the Commission will be in a position to determine its requisite intervention”, the ALTON President explained.