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The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) has initiated a consultation process to develop a new framework that will simplify licensing for Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite operators, such as Starlink, to provide services in South Africa.
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According to a consultation paper released last week, ICASA aims to streamline the licensing process for satellite service providers to better address the growing demand for satellite communications, particularly in remote and underserved regions where terrestrial networks are either impractical or prohibitively expensive to deploy.
The proposed framework seeks to establish clear guidelines and rules for satellite operators, including detailed procedures for authorizing various satellite services such as user terminals, IoT terminals, and earth station user terminals.
ICASA’s approach focuses on being technology-neutral, with licenses based on the type of service provided rather than the technology used. This means that service providers would only need to apply for a single license instead of multiple licenses for different technologies.
