ISPA Key Membership Benefits

  • All members gain limitations on liability for third-party traffic hosted or carried over a member’s network, as a member of an Industry Representative Body (IRB) that is recognised in terms of section 71 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, 2002.
  • ISPA provides an IRB membership certificate to members in good standing, which may be useful for tender applications or in other regulatory matters. Members are displayed as such on the ISPA website, and can include their services for listing on ISPA’s internet services search tool.
  • ISPA provides a voice to the internet industry to lobby on contentious issues such as:
    • Fair and equitable access to wholesale telecommunications
    • Fair and equitable access to the mobile wholesale space
    • Reduced ICASA regulatory burden on the small players in the market
  • Ongoing support and advice on regulatory matters is available, covering:
    • Monthly internet industry regulatory and policy briefings.
    • ICASA licensing compliance.
    • Compliance with End User and Subscriber Service Charter regulations.
      • There is an obligation on all licensees to run four educational/public awareness campaigns per annum and to report this to ICASA. ISPA generates four (4) educational articles per year, which members can refer to in their reports in order to satisfy this obligation.
    • Assistance in registering with the Film and Publication Board.
  • ISPA handles a certain number of take-down notices, mediation requests and formal complaints as part of the membership benefits for each category of membership:
    • Small members: Up to ten (10) consumer queries per year included.
    • Medium members: Up to fifty (50) consumer queries per year included.
    • Large and backbone members: Unlimited consumer queries per year included (for the member and one subsidiary member)
  • Members have access to the activities and expertise of ISPA’s working groups, covering the following topics: Domain Names, Operators, Regulatory, Security, and Social Development. Members also have access to ISPA’s archive of advisories.
  • ISPA operates the recognised Internet Sector CSIRT as part of its CSIRT.net.za project. This project makes vulnerability reports available to members and non-members alike. Reports are available on request.
  • Membership provides access to a network of members, and shared experiences of participation in ISPA events. Most importantly, ISPA members all have an equal right to vote for ISPA’s Board members at the AGM, so members choose the people who drive ISPA’s strategy.