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Nigerians to Pay Less for Phone Calls as NCC Slashes Interconnect Rates

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Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has released a new set of interconnection rates for voice services for the country’s telecommunications industry which when in force will see telecom subscribers paying less for telephone calls.

Interconnection rate represents what operators charge themselves for allowing calls to be terminated on another’s networks and it is considered as very critical to the proper functioning of a competitive telecoms market.
 
NCC in a statement yesterday said that the termination rates for voice services provided by new entrants and small operators in Nigeria irrespective of the originating network shall be N6.40 from April 1, 2013; N5.20 from April 1, 2014; and N3.90 from April 1, 2015.

The termination rates for voice services provided by other operators irrespective of the originating network shall be N4.90 from April 1, 2013; N4.40 from April 1, 2014; and N3.90 from April 1, 2015.

The current rate, which is symmetric to all operators, is N8.2.

The new rate will replace that of December 31, 2009, which pegged interconnection rate for mobile voice termination at N10.12 for telecoms companies that had operated for less than four years in the country.

The commission had planned that the rates would be reduced on a yearly basis to N9.48 on December 31, 2010, N8.84 on December 31, 2011 and N8.20 on December 31, 2012.

In the current rate , telecoms operators not considered as new entrants, having operated for more than four years in the country as at December 31, 2009, were required to pay N8.20 as mobile voice termination rate.

But the new regime has factored new entrants and small operators in with a tariff drop of 21.95 per cent from April 1 this year, while for other operators, the drop will be by 40.2 per cent.

“This determination shall take effect from April 1, 2013, and remain valid and binding on licensees for the next three years until further reviewed by the commission,” the NCC maintained.

According to the NCC, a new entrant is a newly licensed operator entering an existing or new market within zero and three years, while a small operator, for the purpose of the determination, is an existing operator with a market share of zero to 7.5 per cent in terms of subscriber base.


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Telecom

Vitel Wireless Makes History as First MVNO to Get Mobile Number Series

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Vitel Wireless, a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) has made history as the first operator in Nigeria to be allocated a mobile number series by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

Vitel Wireless Makes History as First MVNO to Get Mobile Number Series

MVNO is a telecommunications company that leases network capacity from another mobile network operator (MNO) and then resells it to consumers.

MVNOs offer wireless services like mobile network operators, but they don’t own the physical network infrastructure.

NCC in a statement, it noted that the allocation of the 0712 mobile number series marks a significant step in Nigeria’s evolving telecom landscape.

“The Nigerian MVNO market has historically been tightly regulated, with only a few players entering under stringent licensing requirements. Vitel’s emergence as a fully licensed MVNO, complete with its own number series, highlights the country’s growing openness to competitive and innovative telecom solutions aimed at improving service delivery and accessibility,” the statement read.

Reacting to the development, Kenneth Nwabueze, chairman and CEO of Vitel Wireless, said the company’s acquisition of its unique mobile number series, 0712, demonstrates the trust and confidence of the NCC in the company’s vision and readiness to serve the Nigerian market.

“As part of its international readiness, Vitel was also issued by NCC its own international routing code, enabling seamless international connectivity and positioning the company to offer high-quality global telecommunications services.

“Having successfully met all government regulatory requirements, Vitel Wireless is now prepared for a smooth market entry and poised to launch innovative, affordable and customer-focused services across Nigeria,” he added.

Going forward, he said the company has a focus on leveraging the latest technology, offering tailored solutions that meet the diverse needs of individuals and businesses.

 

 

 


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Elon Musk’s $97.4 Billion Bid for OpenAI Rebuffed by Sam Altman

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Sam Altman
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OpenAI Chief Executive Officer, Sam Altman, on Monday rebuffed a reported bid by a group of investors led by world’s richest person, Elon Musk, to buy the non-profit organisation that controls the ChatGPT creator.

Sam Altman

Sam Altman

The unsolicited bid of $97.4 billion was submitted to OpenAI’s board Monday, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing Musk’s attorney, Marc Toberoff. In response, Altman posted on Musk’s X social-media platform: “No thank you but we will buy twitter for $9.74 billion if you want.”

OpenAI formally declined to comment. Toberoff didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment, the report said.

The bid is being backed by Musk’s own AI startup xAI, which could merge with OpenAI following a deal, the Journal said, as well as investors including Valor Equity Partners, Baron Capital, Atreides Management, Vy Capital and 8VC, a venture firm led by Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, and Ari Emanuel through his investment fund. Lonsdale declined to comment. The rest of the named investors didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Musk and Altman have been locked in a long-standing feud for years over the direction that the AI company has taken since its founding. Musk has blasted OpenAI for abandoning all pretence of proceeding as a charity to benefit humanity with a focus on openness and safety.

The company is actively working to transition from its nonprofit roots in 2015 — when Musk and Altman worked together as founders — to a for-profit company, following billions of dollars in outside investment by Microsoft Corp. and others.

In a revised version of a lawsuit that he originally filed in August, Musk called OpenAI’s partnership with Microsoft a “monopoly” that is “actively trying to eliminate competitors, such as xAI, by extracting promises from investors not to fund them.”

The revised suit lists 26 legal claims and runs 107 pages, compared with 15 claims in the 83-page original complaint.

Microsoft’s $13 billion investment in OpenAI has raised concerns from the US Federal Trade Commission that the tech giant could extend its dominance in cloud computing into the booming AI market.

The Japanese investment firm SoftBank Group Corp., however, is in talks to invest as much as $25 billion in OpenAI, a move that would potentially eclipse all other stakes and make it the startup’s biggest backer.

Last month, Microsoft altered its multiyear deal with OpenAI, allowing the startup to use cloud-computing services from rival providers, so long as the software giant doesn’t want the business itself.

The restructured deal coincided with an announcement by OpenAI, Softbank and Oracle Corp. of a new $500 billion joint venture to build cloud computing data centres in the US, dubbed Stargate.

The Journal cited a statement from Musk provided by Toberoff, saying “It’s time for OpenAI to return to the open-source, safety-focused force for good it once was.”

Musk, who is a top advisor to President Donald Trump, is in the middle of a heated legal and public relations battle with Altman. They were two of the co-founders of OpenAI in 2015, establishing the entity as a nonprofit focused on AI research.

OpenAI has since emerged as a giant in generative AI, launching ChatGPT in 2022 and setting off a wave of investment in new tools and infrastructure for next-generation AI products and services. SoftBank is close to finalising a $40 billion investment in OpenAI at a $260 billion valuation, sources told CNBC’s David Faber last week.

Musk now has a competitor in the AI market, a startup called xAI, and is suing OpenAI, accusing it of antitrust violations and to try and keep it from converting into a for-profit corporation.


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Court Affirms FCCPC’s Authority in Regulating Telecoms Sector

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Federal High Court in Lagos has declared that the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has secured a landmark legal victory after the Federal High Court in Lagos reaffirmed its authority to regulate competition and consumer protection across all sectors, including telecommunications.

Court Affirms FCCPC’s Authority in Regulating Telecoms Sector

This was disclosed in a press release by Ondaje Ijagwu, FCCPC’s director of Corporate Affairs on Sunday.

Ijagwu, said  Justice F.N. Ogazi gave the verdict in a case that was filed by Emeka Nnubia, a shareholder of MTN Nigeria and a legal practitioner.

In the suit, Nnubia wanted the  court to stop the FCCPC from investigating MTN Nigeria on the ground that Nigerian Communications Commission was the sole regulator of the telecom sector.

But the judge maintained that the law gives the FCCPC the power to  regulate on competition and consumer protection across all sectors, including telecommunications.

The court said that the NCC does not have exclusive control over competition regulation in telecoms. H said both the FCCPC and the NCC are both regulators.

The court said,  “FCCPC acted within its statutory powers in issuing a Summons to MTN Nigeria as part of its ongoing inquiry,” emphasising that the commission’s “Summons and Request to Produce was found to be lawful and within the scope of FCCPC’s investigative powers.”

The court also held,  “FCCPC’s request for information from MTN did not violate any data protection laws, including the Nigeria Data Protection Act 2023 and the NCA 2003.”

It  said, “No personal data was requested, and MTN’s obligation to disclose information in the public interest is a legitimate basis for compliance with FCCPC’s inquiry.”

 


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