Is the C.A really obligated to act as directed by the MPigs?

Safaricom iko na wenyewe.
If you rattle a snake be ready to be bitten

its nt in th market, they only have th regular sim

Is that normal sim of yours able to send money anywhere at reduced rates? ? if no its useless

Mercenaries for hire!!! I wonder what their going rate is for this one.

How does separation of power work in this one? CBK & CAK are independent bodies! Can they work under the direction of Mpigs?? I believe they are expressely protected from external interference. No? Short of implementing new laws, I don't see how a group of Mpigs - a committee no less - can hold sway over independent bodies anchored in the constitution. They can come up with new laws - that's their job - but giving directives, that's over stepping!

Wait for tomorrow or Friday. Reversal pap! And in any case, CAK said there is no evidence of security breach and Safcom's allegations are therefore not valid. Doesn't that mean the are conviced of the security of the thin sim. Whatever happened to innocent till proven guilty? Sort of. The accuser should prove his case, not the accused!

If I try to stop my friend McDoba from building a house next to mine because I somehow imagine his son is a 'security threat' to my daughter, will he be stopped until he can prove his son is nice church going youth leader or I am the one to prove my allegations?

The level of reasoning by our so called leaders as compared to the countries we want to emulate economically is a joke. I have never heard an intellectual debate especially oriented towards business, the economy, governance, education, healthcare, security etc. in our parliament. All of them discuss rubbish that is inactionable! Or pass laws that are idiotic at best.

I wish we could somehow do without elected characters. We just have a meritocratic hiring system and we fill all the positions with employees. Real employees. Not this clowns we give jobs and they think they are owner-directors of the company (Kenya)!

There is a reason for safaricom to tremble.

Fafanua @guka!!!

So the SIM doesn't have to be thin? I don't get the whole business of virtualness! What restrictions/weakness(es) make the virtual licence different from what Safaricon licence offers?

If they roll the regular sim the drive and impact of the the thin sim will be diluted.
The thin sim is a killer to safaricom mpesa because once you put and compare you will wonder why they have been stealing from you all that long.

By Charles Kimani: I think the thin sim strategy is brilliant...in theory.

However, I am also wondering just how wise it is to place the success of your business model at the mercy of a hostile, powerful and uncooperative business rival.

What if - 6 months after launch, for example - Safaricom decide to upgrade all their sim cards (genuinely or otherwise) just when Equity is in the middle of a critical (probably expensive) product rollout?

What if Safaricom customer service and dealer/retail channels start advising subscribers who are having issues with their lines that the thin sim is the cause of their problems and show them how to remove it?

How will Equity map their processes and logistics with the Safaricom SIM replacement processes? Will Equity subscribers need to remember to make an extra stop at an Equity outlet to have their thin sim re-attached once they do a sim swap? How easy is it to attach these thin sims?

We have previously seen smart sabotage tactics bring down SAB Miller ambitions in the Kenyan market. Equity - in my opinion - is giving too much firepower to a determined competitor. It might be cheaper in the long run to just invest in own SIM and take Safaricom head-on.

What John Walubengo thinks:

Interesting views. I don't speak for Equity - and am not even a MEMBER (their customer). However, they have the following going for them.

1) they do have their OWN SIM card targeting their 8M banking customers. They can actually make money out their core group of customers using their mobile virtual network (riding on Airtel telco infrastructure i believe).

2) the thin-SIM technology is just a nice option for their 8M customers and the 20+million Safaricom customers.

3) indeed Safaricom can play dirty but I am sure they wont because (a) they can take on Equity challenge and (b) the regulator seems more ready than ever to pounce on them (recall regulator has been "looking" for them over quality issues

Remember, this looks like a mobile money battle, but the real deal is the collateral damage it is likely to cause in the voice market because once a Safaricom customer mounts the thin SIM Card and discovers that they can make cheaper calls/sms with it without losing their MPESA functionality...they will actually be having their cake (MPESA) while eating it (making Cheaper calls on the Equity Mobile virtual network).

Essentially, Equity is breaking a small gap into the Safaricom defensive wall (MPESA) and once in, even the data-market may eventually be free for all i.e. #checkmate.