The Telecommunications (Regulated Service Providers) Regulations 2019 specify the providers that will be regulated, and what kind of regulation will apply to them – ID-only regulation or both ID and PQ regulation.

Regulation 6 provides that only Chorus will be subject to PQ regulation for all fibre fixed line access services, except to the extent that a service is not provided in a geographical area where a regulated provider (other than Chorus) has installed a fibre network as part of the UFB initiative.

PQ paths are set for Chorus under Part 6 of the Telecommunications Act. The PQ paths we set limit the total revenue Chorus can recover from providing regulated fibre services, and the quality at which those services are provided. PQ paths are intended to create incentives for Chorus to act in ways that are consistent with the long-term benefit of end users, such as creating incentives to invest in its network, to innovate and improve efficiency, and to deliver services at a level that meet end-user demands.

What makes up a price-quality path?

The main components of a PQ path are:

  • the maximum revenues that are allowed for the regulatory period (3 to 5 years)
  • the minimum service quality standards that must be met.

We must also reset the components of a PQ path before it expires to create a new path for the next regulatory period. A PQ reset is an opportunity to determine appropriate price and quality controls for the future to promote the objectives of the Part 6 regulatory regime.