Explained: Econet’s decision to cap SmartBiz

Recent discontent among some Econet Wireless Zimbabwe’s SmartBiz customers regarding the enforcement of a Fair Usage Policy (FUP) on “unlimited” data packages has brought to light a crucial, yet often misunderstood aspect of telecommunications: the practical limits of “unlimited” services.

While some customers felt a promise was broken, the reality, as sources within the industry explained, is a necessary measure to ensure equitable service for all users in a data-constrained environment.

A Fair Usage Policy is, in essence, a “reasonable use” guideline established by service providers.

Its purpose is to guarantee that all customers have fair access to resources and services.

In the global telecoms industry, FUPs enable operators to offer competitive, often “unlimited”, data packages while simultaneously protecting against misuse or excessive consumption by a small minority of users.

This ensures that vital resources like bandwidth and network performance are shared fairly across the entire user base.

It is critical to understand that “unlimited” does not equate to infinite. No mobile network, particularly in regions like Zimbabwe, where bandwidth is imported using valuable foreign currency, can sustain unregulated, unmetered consumption by all users without compromising the overall quality of service.

The recent outcry from SmartBiz users stems from a situation where a few individuals were reportedly downloading massive volumes of data for activities such as personal server hosting, torrenting, or streaming to multiple third-party devices.

This excessive usage, unfortunately, occurred while other legitimate business users struggled to access basic services.

For Econet, therefore, the enforcement of the FUP for SmartBiz was not an arbitrary decision, but a necessary step to protect the integrity of its network and the experience of its core customers.

The only problem, probably, is that it was implemented as a blanket measure instead of targeting the abusers.

SmartBiz was specifically designed as a targeted solution for small businesses, schools, churches and MSMEs, aiming to boost business productivity and digital inclusion.

The product name SmartBiz suggests an intelligent approach to business operations, not an open invitation for extensive personal entertainment streaming.

Reports indicate that some SmartBiz users were treating their routers as “neighbourhood hotspots” or makeshift cybercafés, transforming a business-focused solution into a personal Internet Service Provider.

If left unchecked, such usage, particularly with growing subscriber numbers, would inevitably degrade the experience for all, leading to slower speeds, dropped connections, and network congestion.

This outcome would disproportionately harm the very businesses SmartBiz was intended to serve, those genuinely reliant on reliable, high-speed internet for their operations.

Econet’s decision to manage excessive usage should therefore be viewed as a pro-consumer decision intervention as it safeguards the rest of the data consumers from overconsumption by a few, which undermines the resource for the benefit of the many.

Global Precedent and Future Transparency

The application of Fair Usage Policies is a global best practice. Leading telecommunications companies worldwide, including AT&T, Verizon, Vodafone, and African giants like MTN, Safaricom, and Vodacom, all employ FUPs to manage their network resources.

Their commercial mobile data or fixed broadband offers, even those promising ‘unlimited usage,’ invariably include caveats in their terms and conditions specifying that their Fair Usage Policy applies.

Econet’s SmartBiz customer forms, too, clearly stipulate in their terms and conditions that product use must adhere to the FUP, aligning the company with international standards.

However, the company acknowledges that it could have been more proactive in communicating the strict enforcement of this policy to SmartBiz users.

While Econet reserves the right to take such action to protect the interests of the majority of its product users, greater transparency in this instance would have been beneficial.

The lesson from the SmartBiz situation is that it is crucial to continually educate customers on product terms and conditions.

This ensures there are no surprises for the customer and, more importantly, that customers fully comprehend what they are committing to from the outset.

Econet’s ongoing task is to convey that while its Fair Usage Policy might inconvenience a few, it is, in fact, a necessity for the many. – Herald