Credit: NBN Co
The Australian competition watchdog is calling for feedback on a proposal from NBN Co that aims to address concerns about service standards for wholesale National Broadband Network (NBN) products and the pricing of entry-level NBN services.
The call for feedback relates to two inquiries by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) examining the issues, both of which were paused in April to allow the telco sector to focus on its response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The COVID-19 response process resulted in the issue of a draft determination by the ACCC proposing to grant conditional authorisation until the end January for NBN Co and a group of retail communications services providers to work together to bolster capacity amid COVID-19 disruptions.
However, the prior inquiries on the NBN Co proposals have now started up again.
Broadly, following discussions with the ACCC, NBN Co has proposed measures to ensure an affordable product is available for consumers transitioning to the NBN.
These measures include cheaper wholesale pricing for entry-level products, along with more certainty about NBN Co’s pricing and products and stronger commitments about service standards.
One of the areas of inquiry involves examining rebates to be made payable by NBN Co to access seekers in connection with failures to meet service levels and the possible pass-through of these rebates to consumers.
The commitments are aimed at improving performance in appointment keeping, fault rectification, pricing certainty, connections and service speeds.
If the ACCC, through its inquiries examining the issues, finds the measures reasonable, they would be included in NBN Co’s next Wholesale Broadband Agreement with retail service providers, which is scheduled to commence in December this year and apply for two years.
The ACCC may approve NBN Co’s proposal, or propose a revised package of measures. Such measures could still be included in the new wholesale agreement, if NBN Co agrees, or may be set by regulation, according to the ACCC.
“These inquiries were launched in response to concerns that NBN access terms were limiting competition and efficiency and risked making NBN products unaffordable for some consumers,” ACCC chair Rod Sims said.
“We are now seeking feedback on NBN Co’s proposed access arrangements with respect to each inquiry. Our current view is that NBN Co’s proposals are reasonable but we want to hear from others,” he added.
The ACCC is encouraging interested parties to raise any concerns as early as possible.
The latest date for submissions is 11 September 2020.
