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Telecommunications Act 2001

Fibre fixed line access services - Reviews

208: Anchor services review

You could also call this:

"Checking basic phone and internet services are working well and are fairly priced"

Illustration for Telecommunications Act 2001

The Commission checks if an anchor service is working well before each regulatory period. You want to know what they check. They look at things like what the service does, any rules it must follow, how long it is available, and its maximum price. The Commission asks people for their thoughts on these matters and considers what they say. After checking, the Commission makes a recommendation to the Minister for the purposes of section 227.

The Commission recommends changes to an anchor service only if it still meets its purpose. The purpose of anchor services is to ensure you can get basic services like voice and broadband at reasonable prices. It also helps control the price and quality of other fibre services.

The Commission follows rules when recommending price changes. If they make a recommendation before the first regulatory period, they use the old contract price with an adjustment for inflation. If they make a recommendation after the first regulatory period, they use a price based on the cost of providing the service.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS132023.

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Part 6Fibre fixed line access services
Reviews

208Anchor services review

  1. The Commission may, before the start of each regulatory period (including the first regulatory period), review whether, and how effectively, an anchor service meets the purpose of anchor services in subsection (7).

  2. A review must consider the following in respect of an anchor service:

  3. any prescribed description of the service:
    1. any prescribed conditions that apply to the service:
      1. any prescribed period for the service:
        1. any prescribed maximum price for the service.

          1. The Commission must give interested persons a reasonable opportunity to give their views on the matters subject to review and the Commission must have regard to any views received.

          2. The Commission must make a recommendation to the Minister after a review for the purposes of section 227.

          3. The Commission must not recommend a change to the description of an anchor service unless the service (with the amended description) meets the purpose in subsection (7).

          4. The Commission must not recommend a change to the prescribed maximum price of an anchor service unless,—

          5. if the recommendation is made before the start of the first regulatory period, the recommended maximum price is based on the contract price for the service immediately before the implementation date, with an annual CPI adjustment mechanism; and
            1. if the recommendation is made after the start of the first regulatory period, the recommended maximum price is a cost-based price.

              1. The purpose of anchor services is—

              2. to ensure that baseband equivalent voice and basic broadband services are available to end-users at reasonable prices; and
                1. to act as an appropriate constraint on the price and quality of other fibre fixed line access services.

                  Notes
                  • Section 208: inserted, on , by section 24 of the Telecommunications (New Regulatory Framework) Amendment Act 2018 (2018 No 48).