The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission today extended until the end of June 1998 the transitional period for which its pricing determination relating to interconnection with Telstras network will remain in force.
The extension means that those access seekers covered by the determination who have not negotiated alternative arrangements will continue receiving usage charges for interconnection for capital cities of 2.84 cents per minute in peak periods and 1.34 cents per minute in off-peak periods.
The extension of the period for which the determination will apply also maintains the charges access seekers must pay for non-code access.
The extension of the period for which the determination will remain in force will encourage competition in the provision of telecommunications services by allowing access seekers to continue receiving access services at reasonable terms and conditions and thus compete effectively with existing carriers. This is likely to benefit consumers through lower prices and improved service quality, ACCC Commissioner Rod Shogren said today.
While the determination is in force the Commission will continue reviewing Telstras draft undertaking which specifies the prices Telstra proposes to charge other carriers for interconnection with its fixed-line and mobile phone networks.
The Commission intends to undertake a detailed analysis of the undertaking to determine if the terms and conditions are reasonable. This analysis will involve assessing the implications of the prices in the undertakings on competition in the provision of retail and wholesale services, estimating the forward-looking total service long-run incremental costs of providing the services and comparing the prices contained in the undertaking with the prices for the same or similar services in other countries.
The ACCC intends to make a full and detailed assessment of the undertaking in an open public process, Commissioner Shogren said.
For further information about this media release: Mr Rod Shogren, Commissioner, (02) 6243 1115 Alana Woods, Acting Director Public Relations (02) 6243 1108
The extension means that those access seekers covered by the determination who have not negotiated alternative arrangements will continue receiving usage charges for interconnection for capital cities of 2.84 cents per minute in peak periods and 1.34 cents per minute in off-peak periods.
The extension of the period for which the determination will apply also maintains the charges access seekers must pay for non-code access.
The extension of the period for which the determination will remain in force will encourage competition in the provision of telecommunications services by allowing access seekers to continue receiving access services at reasonable terms and conditions and thus compete effectively with existing carriers. This is likely to benefit consumers through lower prices and improved service quality, ACCC Commissioner Rod Shogren said today.
While the determination is in force the Commission will continue reviewing Telstras draft undertaking which specifies the prices Telstra proposes to charge other carriers for interconnection with its fixed-line and mobile phone networks.
The Commission intends to undertake a detailed analysis of the undertaking to determine if the terms and conditions are reasonable. This analysis will involve assessing the implications of the prices in the undertakings on competition in the provision of retail and wholesale services, estimating the forward-looking total service long-run incremental costs of providing the services and comparing the prices contained in the undertaking with the prices for the same or similar services in other countries.
The ACCC intends to make a full and detailed assessment of the undertaking in an open public process, Commissioner Shogren said.
For further information about this media release: Mr Rod Shogren, Commissioner, (02) 6243 1115 Alana Woods, Acting Director Public Relations (02) 6243 1108