IT News Nigeria:
The potentials for Nigeria telecoms Value-Added Service (VAS) is huge and the apex industry regulator, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) is in tune with this reality and proactively developed a working template for the industry.
Following the development of its Value-Added Service (VAS) Aggregator Framework for the telecoms Value-Added Service (VAS) segment, the NCC, in 2019, awarded the VAS Aggregator licenses to 10 companies to provide aggregator services. This will boost the competitiveness of the telecoms VAS segment of the telecommunications industry.
It is also to unlock the huge potential of the telecoms VAS market, which has been estimated to be worth N180 billion ($500 million) in the next few years. The licensees are I-Cell Multimedia Limited, Nina-Jojer Limited, 21st Century Technologies Limited, Nitroswitch Limited, HML Consulting Limited, Iykejordan Limited, Cognys Systems Limited, Perpetual Communications Limited, Mobile Intelligence Limited and Aerandir Technologies Nigeria Limited.
In a similar remarkable oversight, NCC regularised commercial satellite operations for increased access.
In line with the relevant provisions of the Nigerian Communications Act (NAC), 2003, the NCC, in 2019, regularised the activities of all satellite operators including Space station operators as well as Earth Station operators; as well as issued Landing permits to Space Stations beaming signals over Nigerian territory. To this end, the NCC, in June, 2019, granted its first landing right permit (licence for satellite internet) to Avanti Communications Groups Plc, a United Kingdom-based satellite operator, for hosting of its HYLAS 4 Satellite specie segment over Nigerian territory. The landing permit, which is the first of its kind in satellite communications in Nigeria, implies authorisation that allows operators to beam its signal over the territorial integrity of a country.
Chief Regulatory Officer of Avanti, Ann Vandenbroucke, stated during the granting of the permit by the Commission that the deployment of the satellite would enable immediate broadband access and faster internet services to Nigerians, saying the permit was a big step forward for Nigeria and its economy. The company further stated that it was “attracted to invest in Nigeria because of the stable and predictable regulatory environment.”
