Telkom Kenya CEO calls for review of internet traffic metering — The Rio Times
Telkom Kenya CEO Mugo Kibati called on Kenya’s parliament to review the proposed rules requiring internet service providers to bill customers for the actual volume of data used. Speaking before the National Assembly’s Committee on Communication, Information and Innovation on November 10, 2026, he said the approach could increase operators’ costs, create risks for subscribers’ personal data and slow the development of fixed broadband access, The Rio Times reports.
What the bill provides for
The Kenya Information and Communications Amendment Bill 2025 proposes requiring every internet service provider to introduce a metering system. Each customer would be assigned a unique meter number, while bills would be generated according to the traffic consumed. Users must also be able to verify their bills.
The document, introduced by Aldai constituency MP Marianne Kitany, also provides for submitting information on billing systems and subscribers’ meter numbers to the Communications Authority of Kenya at least once per financial year.
The operator’s arguments
Kibati said Telkom Kenya supports tariff transparency and customers’ right to verify and challenge charges. At the same time, the company believes that, instead of a single metering model, requirements for transparent consumer information should be established.
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According to Telkom Kenya’s estimates, mobile internet accounts for about 96% of all data subscriptions in the country and is already charged based on usage volume. Therefore, the new rules would primarily affect fixed broadband access, whose share is about 4%. The company also states that this segment, under the current pricing model, grows by more than 30% annually.
The operator proposed requiring providers to disclose pricing models, service costs and fair-use rules before entering into a contract. Other proposals include free subscriber access to traffic usage data, itemized bills upon request, dispute-resolution procedures and independent audits of billing accuracy. Telkom Kenya also proposes submitting aggregated data to the regulator rather than data on each individual customer, and allowing at least 18 months for implementation of the new requirements.
The bill has not yet been adopted: the parliamentary committee has not yet published its conclusion on the provision for mandatory internet traffic metering.
