Commission recommends removing outdated mobile tower-sharing rules

The Commission’s review found that tower companies and mobile operators are negotiating access without regulatory intervention, and that regulation is no longer needed to support competition.

Telecommunications Commissioner Tristan Gilbertson says the industry has fundamentally changed since the rules were introduced in 2001.

“When mobile operators owned the towers, they had little incentive to give competitors access. The rules addressed that risk by allowing operators to use a competitor’s tower rather than building their own.

“Spark, One NZ and 2degrees have since sold their tower infrastructure to specialist tower companies. These companies make money by attracting multiple tenants onto their towers, giving them a strong commercial reason to support sharing,” says Mr Gilbertson

The existing rules apply to mobile network operators, not the specialist companies that now own the towers. They therefore provide no effective regulatory backstop.

“We found no significant barriers preventing access to mobile towers. Tower companies have strong commercial incentives to attract existing operators and new entrants.”

“Removing the rules would better reflect how the market has operated since mobile operators sold their towers three years ago. During that time, tower access arrangements have been negotiated commercially without regulatory intervention.

“It will also ensure that the benefits of competitive access continue flowing through to consumers,” Mr Gilbertson says

The Commission will continue to monitor access and competition. If new competition concerns emerge in the future, it is able to investigate and recommend appropriate regulatory intervention.

The Commission has provided its recommendation to the Minister for Media and Communications, who will decide whether to remove the rules.