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Australia: Broadband panel questions ACCC’s role in telco

By  |  February 17, 2014

A broadband panel is set to review the role of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission as a regulator over the telecommunications industry, say reports.

The National Broadband Network, formed last December, is currently accepting comment on how the ACCC’s role as telco regulator affects the industry, suggesting that Australia is “unusual in vesting responsibility for economic regulation of telecommunications in a generalist body whose responsibilities include administration of the competition laws.”

The panel also noted that the ACCC’s appointment to oversee the industry stemmed from the assumption that telco-specific policies would eventually merge into the national regime, an assumption that has not yet materialized.

The NBN is now seeking comment on whether the ACCC’s presence in the telco market could and should be open to change.

Full Content: Business Spectator

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