Spectrum management needs to be passed on

Spectrum management needs to be passed on

Econet Wireless New Zealand (Econet) is calling upon the Ministry of Econet Development (MED) to transfer its responsibility for spectrum management to the Commerce Commission’s specialist Telecommunications Commissioner.

Speaking at today’s MED technical co-ordination workshop on spectrum management, Econet’s Tex Edwards described the process of fine tuning spectrum co-ordination amongst a telecommunications duopoly as akin to tuning the music on the Titanic whilst it was sinking.

“More fundamental change is needed, as this is yet another example of self-regulatory failure,” says Mr Edwards. “Nowhere else in the world is there a 900 MHz spectrum monopoly, and as a consequence no same-technology competition. New Zealand is the only market in the world where Vodafone has a monopoly on that spectrum. New Zealand is also the only country in the OECD that has only one GSM network.

“The MED needs to have a primary focus on creating competition for the benefit of the end user consumer. Poor spectrum management has seen New Zealand consumers paying the highest mobile phone charges in the world.

“For 10 years the MED has failed to manage the natural resource of spectrum properly. It is time for spectrum management to be transferred to the specialist Telecommunications Commissioner at the Commerce Commission.”

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