/ 20 June 1999

SOUTH AFRICAN CELLULAR RIP-OFF?

A UNITED STATES-based technology research firm ranks South Africa’s cellular phone service as amongst the world’s most expensive, along with Brazil, Colombia, India and Mexico. The Yankee Group’s finding is based on a comparison of purchasing power, or how expensive cellular service is compared to other standard goods and services in any particular country, rather than on absolute values according to exchange rates. The group ranks Canada as having the world’s most affordable cellular service. It is rivalled by Finland — home to well-known phone manufacturer Nokia — Italy and Israel. The findings are sure to strike a chord with local consumers. On the other hand, South African telecoms analysts have been known to argue that given the dollar cost of building and maintaining a cellular infrastructure, local cellular services are extremely reasonably priced.