Maziv’s “Ruthless” Takeover Exposes Vodacom’s “Treacherous” Plot to Hijack South Africa’s Internet

SOUTH AFRICA’S INTERNET FUTURE HAS BEEN SOLD. Behind closed doors and with a rubber stamp, competition authorities have UNLEASHED a corporate GOLIATH that promises ‘open access’ while constructing a private digital empire. The shocking approval of Vodacom’s stake in Maziv isn’t just a deal—it’s a DECLARATION OF WAR on affordable connectivity for millions.

Forget the policy spin. This is a BOLD POWER GRAB dressed in benevolent jargon. “Open Access 2.0” is a LIE, a slick rebranding of a hostile takeover that CONCENTRATES control over the nation’s fibre backbone into the hands of a FEW ELITE PLAYERS. While regulators nap, Vodacom now commands an UNPRECEDENTED sprawl across mobile, fibre, and backbone networks—a chokehold on South Africa’s digital lifeline.

This isn’t pragmatism; it’s SURRENDER. The so-called “conditions” attached are a PAPER TIGER, weak promises of non-discrimination that will be ERASED by corporate lawyers and regulatory capture. The REAL agenda? To CRUSH smaller ISPs, SKYROCKET prices for the average citizen, and ABANDON underserved townships and rural areas to a perpetual digital dark age. The rich suburbs get overbuilt fibre; the poor get hollow promises.

The implications are TERRIFYING. This deal is the BLUEPRINT for total market domination, paving the way for an MTN/Telkom monstrosity and leaving consumers TRAPPED between two unassailable tech titans. It REWRITES the rules to favor scale over fairness, monopolistic profit over public good. The digital divide isn’t being bridged—it’s being WELDED SHUT with fibre-optic cables the masses can’t afford.

They claim consolidation enables investment. The HARSH REALITY is it enables CONTROL. Your data, your access, your digital future are now held captive by boardrooms prioritizing shareholder returns over universal service. This is not progress; it’s a calculated regression into a feudal digital landscape where you PAY TRIBUTE to connect.

The quiet approval of this merger isn’t just a policy shift—it’s the sound of a nation’s digital sovereignty being SWITCHED OFF FOR GOOD.