Tuanz, InternetNZ win more time to grapple with sweeping telco bill

Tuanz and InternetNZ - some-time rivals in the world of telecommunications lobbying - have succeeded in their bid to get the deadline for submissions on the Telecommunications Amendment Bill extended.

The government has yielded, and extended the deadline to May 11 for the sweeping legislation which among other things, allows the Crown to buy Telecom shares or assets, or Telecom to buy into lines or fibre companies with no M&A scrutiny.

Originally, submissions were due to close this Friday (February) as part of a two-week process, short-circuiting the usual six-week Select Committe consultation period - a fast-track approach that Labour Communications and IT spokesperson Clare Curran called "an outrageous abuse of process".

On Wednesday week, Communications Minister Steven Joyce tabled a 77-page Supplementary Order Paper (SOP) to the Telco Amendment Bill (introduced before Christmas).

"There's more in the Supplementary Order Paper [SOP] than in the bill itself, and it's got a broader scope than I think anyone was expecting," Tuanz chief executive Paul Brislen told NBR.

Mission creep
The provisions of the SOP went way beyond that required for the structural separation of Telecom, the Tuanz boss said.

"This fundamentally changes the entire industry".

Given the sweeping nature of the proposed reforms, more time was needed for Tuanz, InternetNZ and others to submit feedback.

With the addition of the SOP, The Telecommunications Amendment Bill allows for the separation of Telecom into two separately listed companies - one retail, one service/network (necessary in the event the company wins Crown Fibre contracts).

It also allows the government to buy Telecom shares or assets.

Or, conversely, for Telecom (or a spun-off Chorus) to co-invest, with Crown Fibre Holdings and a local fibre or lines operator, in a Local Fibre Company without any of the usual merger and acquisition scruitiny.

Wishlist
NBR asked InternetNZ policy director Jordan Carter for his wishlist of changes to the legislation:

The are:

• Drop the ten year regulatory holiday - it isn't needed and it isn't a good idea to remove regulatory control from the government's own investments
• Strengthen the undertakings regime that would apply to the new fibre companies, so that it requires true equivalence of Inputs for fibre [all retailers get the same access for the same price]
• Mandate consultation throughout the steps the Bill requires. This is big change for the telco industry and consultation and public inputs needs to be at least as open and detailed as for the (less intrusive) operational separation done in 2007/08.

Mr Carter said his wishlist only applies to the original Telecommunications Amendment Bill. His organisation, and Tuanz (the Telecommunications Users Association), are still analysing the supplementary orders added last week.

Labour has also strongly opposed the so-called 10-year regulatory holiday (officially, a 10-year "forbearance" from Commerce Commission scrutiny).

Communications Minister Steven Joyce has said called the provision a pragmaitc move, designed to attract more private sector investment.