Industry comment

In the rapidly evolving telecoms environment, all players must be prepared for the challenges brought by constant change. Our consultants offer an expert perspective on the issues that confront the telecoms industry.

NGNs and the future of regulated voice services

April 19, 2006

As Next Generation Network (NGN) technologies and services begin to replace conventional telecommunications infrastructure, regulators around the world are recognising the need to review and adapt policies and processes accordingly. One of the key regulatory issues that arises from the introduction of NGN is the rapid replacement of PSTN voice services with Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

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Why is New Zealand doing so badly in the OECD broadband penetration rankings?

January 25, 2006

So Telecom New Zealand thinks that New Zealand’s lowly position (22 out of 30 countries) in the June 2005 OECD broadband penetration rankings is due to the existence of free local calling? “Free” local calling exists in Canada and the United States but it has not hindered broadband uptake there. More neutral parties including the New Zealand Communications Minister, the OECD and the president of InternetNZ agree that the real reason for New Zealand’s position in the ranking is high prices.

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Regulation in a convergent future: numbering and number portability

December 19, 2005

Fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) raises a number of important questions for regulators with respect to both numbering plans and number portability. The fundamental issue is that the market will not work effectively if consumers in a converged world are not able to move seamlessly from one service provider to another.

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