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Airtel Kenya has opened a new chapter in the telecoms industry in Kenya with the announcement that it will host three Mobile Virtual Network Operators, (MVNOs) on its Network. A statement was released from the company clarifying that the MVNO services will run on the unused capacity on its network, ensuring that it maintains seamless quality experience to consumers.

This follows the announcement by the Communications Authority of Kenya, through its director general Francis Wangusi, that it had licensed Equity Bank, through its subsidiary Finserve Africa Limited, Zioncell Kenya Limited and Mobile Pay Limited which runs the Tangaza mobile money transfer service to operate as the first MVNOs in Kenya.

The MVNO licenses were awarded under the ‘Application Service Provider (ASP)’ category of the CAK’s Unified Licensing Framework adopted in 2008. Telecom and non-telecom companies as observed from the three licensees can now leverage their existing brand assets and equity to enter the mobile industry and create value.

The MVNOs will be able to provide cellular services similar to those offered by the existing mobile network operators including customer registration, SIM cards issuance, billing and customer care to end users. The CAK has developed guidelines that will generally act as safeguards to the end users in terms of quality of service. The MVNOs are obligated to provide services within the set Quality of Service parameters and targets.