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How do mergers affect relations with TENET and Telkom?

Revised on 7 January 2005

Guiding principle

The guiding principle is that institutions do not, by virtue of being a party to a merger, lose any rights nor shed any obligations that they have in terms of contracts with third parties. These rights and obligations devolve onto the new institution formed by the merger.  Likewise, contractual rights and obligations of third parties, such as TENET and Telkom, in relation to any of the merging institutions become obligations and rights in relation to the new institution.

Applicability and Terminology

The policy statements below apply when a statute or ministerial order empowering the merger of two or more institutions or specified sites of the institutions into a single higher education institution has been promulgated or issued.  The terms “merge” and “merger” are taken here to include cases in which one institution takes over responsibility for a campus or campuses of one or more other institutions.

The institution, new or otherwise, that is taking on additional responsibilities is referred to as “the Merged Institution”, while the erstwhile independent institutions are referred to as “former institutions”.  It may be the case that the Merged Institution is one of the former institutions and that some or all of the other former institutions also continue ito exist.

The date on which the merger becomes effective in terms of the statute is called “the effective date”.  

Policies

1.                  The Merged Institution and TENET are bound under the Agency Agreement and associated Resolution and Appointment of Agent from the effective date.

2.                  The Merged Institution and Telkom are bound under the GEN2 Agreement from the effective date.  In particular, in terms of the GEN2 Agreement:

2.1.            All GEN2-Sites of former institutions are deemed to be GEN2-Sites of the Merged Institution.

2.2.            Unless specifically agreed between the Merged Institution and TENET, the Merged Institution is deemed to have appointed Telkom as its preferred supplier of Internet access services, and is obliged to terminate as expeditiously as possible all contracts with other parties for the provision of Internet access services to any of its sites.

2.3.            Telkom is bound to continue the provision of GEN2 services to all such GEN2-sites and to new sites and to its other obligations under the GEN2 Agreement.

2.4       The merged Institution is committed to paying for these services and to the other obligations of GEN2-Institutions under the GEN2 Agreement.             

3.         TENET recognises that a merged institution may wish to upgrade the GEN2 services to some sites and downgrade those to other sites.  However, because the entire HEIST and GEN2 initiatives were driven by the need for more Internet connectivity at affordable prices, TENET does not accept the fact of a merger as justifying any special needs or claims for a merged institution to reduce the value of orders for GEN2 services to its sites below the total value of orders for GEN2 services to these sites immediately prior to the merger.

5.                  On the effective date, the Merged Institution becomes the assignee of any UNINET Project IP address space that was assigned to any of the former institutions and used for a site that has become the responsibility of the Merged Institution.

6.                  On the effective date, the Merged Institution becomes the assignee of any sub-domains of the ac.za name space that were assigned to any former institution that ceases to exit after the merger.