ACCC directs Telstra to amend measures developed under the Migration Plan

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission today directed Telstra to improve four processes that will support the migration of customers onto the National Broadband Network.

The processes are referred to in Telstra’s Migration Plan as Required Measures and relate to:

• the disconnection of services (from copper or HFC networks) that have not migrated to the NBN within the applicable switchover period
• the building of new copper lines to supply services that cannot yet be provided over the NBN
• the protection of information that NBN Co provides to Telstra under the Definitive Agreements so that Telstra cannot use it to gain an unfair commercial advantage over wholesale customers.

The ACCC issued this direction as it considers that Telstra’s proposed processes would not provide appropriate protections to consumers and competition during migration.

Telstra must now amend the processes to address the ACCC’s concerns and resubmit them within 40 business days.

In November 2012, the ACCC released a discussion paper seeking feedback from interested parties on Telstra’s draft measures. The ACCC has considered responses to the discussion paper in assessing whether Telstra’s draft measures comply with the principles outlined in the Telecommunications (Migration Plan Principles) Determination 2011.

A decision paper setting out the ACCC’s concerns, the Direction and submissions to the November discussion paper are available at: http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/1082236

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