Zimbabwe Telcos Want Over The Top Services Banned

Ephraim Batambuze III February 9, 2017

Less than a minute

Telecom operators in Zimbabwe have started advocating for a ban on Over The Top Services (OTTs).

This is because of the significant revenues lost as subscribers abandon voice calls for cheaper alternatives like WhatsApp and Skype.

The Telcos say they’ve lost over US$26 million because of OTTs, which has inturn denied government some $4 million in potential tax revenue collection from the three operators- Econet, NetOne and Telecel Zimbabwe.

Supa Mandiwanzira, the Minister of Information Communication Technology, Postal and Courier Service confirmed the concerns raised by the mobile operators, saying that they have approached him saying that they need to do something about this because the investment that they put in infrastructure is not going to be recouped due to revenue loss.

Over 186 million voice minutes, which is an equivalent to $26 million, were lost in the process as subscribers turned to OTTs.

The minister said that there was evidence of the telecom sector bleeding due to OTTs, but was quick to add that the government is yet to make a pronouncement.