Vodafone says it will make its special mobile termination rate deal with 2degrees open to any new mobile market entrant.

Vodafone has previously challenged 2degrees to reveal the terms of the pair’s confidential deal on mobile termination rates (what telcos pay each other when calls cross between their networks). The implication is that while 2degrees is complaining about getting a raw deal, it's actually doing pretty well out of Vodafone. 2degrees won't comment.

Although Vodafone is bound to stay silent until 2degrees also agrees to spill, logic dictates that new operator, launching August 5, would not strike any deal unless it was below current MTR rates of around 14.5 cents per minute for voice calls (which the Commerce Commission has said, in a draft ruling, should be lowered to 7.5 cents).

The commission has said that high MTR sits above its true wholesale cost, serving as a barrier to new entrants, and inflating the cost of mobile calls and txts.

Vodafone spokesman Paul Brislen said the special 2degrees MTR rate would only be available to an operator which, like 2degrees, built its own network (as opposed to an MVNO launching under Telecom’s umbrella, or an MVNO like CallPlus Mobile and Slingshot Mobile, launching August 15 - which will both sit under the Vodafone umbrella already).

Asked whether it was likely that another operator would try to build a new network, Mr Brislen replied: “The commission thinks it is”.