Overview On 31 March 2008, pursuant to section 69L(a) of the Telecommunications Act 2001 ("the Act"), the Minister for Communications and Information Technology approved the Amended Separation Plan, including Telecom Corporation New Zealand 's ("Telecom") Undertakings for the Operational Separation of Telecom. The goal of Operational Separation of Telecom, is to promote competition in telecommunications markets for the long term benefit of all New Zealanders. It is one of a number of measures in the government's strategy to deliver a more effective and dynamic telecommunications sector by requiring transparency, non-discrimination, equivalence of supply in relation of particular telecommunication services and, to facilitate efficient investment in infrastructure and services by Telecom. The main requirement of Operational separation in Part 2A of the Act : the establishment of at least three separate business units – a stand-alone, arms-length fixed network business network (referred to as the Access Network Services (ANS)), one or more arms-length wholesale units, and one or more arms-length business units that provide one or more other functions (for example, retail services); the establishment of an independent oversight group (IOG); and transparency and equivalence of supply of relevant services and access to Telecom's network. Telecom's operational separation implementation and internal compliance is governed by the Independent Oversight Group (IOG), a self regulatory body within Telecom. The Commerce Commission's role in the implementation is one of enforcement. Below is a link to Telecom's Independent Oversight Office, where the Operational Separation Undertakings are publicly available. |