The Commerce Commission today issued notices requiring Telecom to submit standard terms proposals for the two backhaul services necessary to support local loop (LLU) and bitstream access.

The notices require Telecom to specify the non-price terms and conditions on which it proposes to provide an unbundled local loop backhaul service and an unbundled bitstream access backhaul service.

While the backhaul process is on a different timetable from LLU, the Commission is satisfied that this will not affect the implementation of LLU, as there will be other commercial LLU backhaul options available (either from third party backhaul providers or, in some cases, Telecom itself) before LLU is implemented.

The issuing of the notices comes after the Commission held industry scoping workshops on 25 May.

Telecom is required to submit the standard terms proposals by 28 September 2007. The date has been unanimously supported by the Telecommunications Carrier Forum, and industry representative body of which Telecom is a member.

The Telecommunications Act specifies that, following receipt of a standard terms proposal, the Commission must seek submissions from access seekers before issuing a draft standard terms determination for further industry consultation, after which a final determination will be made.

Background

Copies of the notices are available on the Commission's website www.comcom.govt.nz under Standard Terms Determinations

The 'unbundled bitstream access backhaul service' provides transmission capacity in Telecom's network between the trunk side of Telecom's first data switch that is connected to the end-user's building and the access seeker's nearest available point of interconnection.

The 'unbundled copper local loop network backhaul (telephone exchange to interconnect point) service' provides transmission capacity in Telecom's network between the handover point in Telecom's local telephone exchange and the access seeker's nearest available point of interconnection, for the purpose of providing access to, and interconnection with, Telecom's unbundled copper local loop network.

On 22 December 2006, the Telecommunications Act was amended to incorporate a process for the Commission to make a standard terms determination on which a designated access or specified service must be supplied by an access provider to all access seekers requesting the service. A standard terms determination will include:

· non-price terms developed by an access provider, usually in consultation with access seekers; and

· price terms for access to the service, set by the Commission.

It is intended that a standard terms determination should be comprehensive enough and contain sufficient detail so that there is no need for an access seeker and access provider to enter into a separate agreement for provision of the service within the specified timeframe.

The Act specifies that the following steps must take place before a standard terms determination may be made by the Commission:

  • Initiation of the determination process
  • At least one scoping workshop
  • Commission issues notice to provide a standard terms proposal
  • Access provider submits a standard terms proposal
  • Submissions from access seekers on the standard terms proposal
  • Commission issues draft standard terms determination
  • Parties to provide submissions on the draft standard terms determination
  • Commission issues standard terms determination

Standard terms determination processes for Telecom's unbundled copper local loop service and unbundled bitstream access service were initiated on 22 February 2007. Access to the unbundled local loop service and bitstream access service is necessary for other operators to provide voice and/or data (eg high speed broadband) services to consumers.

A standard terms determination process for the unbundled copper local loop (co-location) service was initiated on 28 March 2007 (a co-location service is necessary to allow access seekers to co-locate their equipment in Telecom's local exchanges in order to access the unbundled local loop service).