Telecom faces limited competition in wholesale broadband markets and its cabinets that are used to provide fast broadband over the ageing copper network will continue to be monitored by the antitrust regulator.
The Commerce Commission has ruled Telecom's unbundled bitstream access service, which lets rival telecommunications companies differentiate their products from Telecom's retail offerings, doesn't have strong competitors and will continue to be regulated nationwide.
"In the wholesale market, there is no effective competition for the more than 50 per cent of end user lines served from cabinets," Telecommunications Commissioner Ross Patterson said in a statement.
"We concluded that the unavailability of this service has resulted in limited competition in the broadband access market. As a result, the terms of the STD (Standard Terms Determination) will continue to apply across all areas in New Zealand," he said.
That means Chorus will still be obligated to meet the existing terms, even after Telecom carves itself up in a bid to tap tax-payer funds to build a nationwide broadband network and shed some of its regulatory burden.
