Final TRS Determinations released
Final TRS Determinations released
The Commerce Commission has released its 2006/07 determinations on the:
- cost of the Telecommunications Relay Service
(TRS) for the hearing impaired; and the
-
allocation of the cost of Telecommunications Service
Obligations (TSO) for local residential telephone service
and for the TRS.
The TRS is a telecommunications service obligation operated by Sprint International New Zealand. The TRS determination covers the period 1 July 2006 to 30 June 2007. The Commission has determined that the TRS cost for that period is $2.4 million.
The cost allocation determination identifies which parties will bear the costs identified in the TSO and the proportion of the cost they will bear.
The TRS cost has been apportioned, as per the cost allocation determination, between Telecom New Zealand Limited, TelstraClear New Zealand Limited, WorldxChange Communications Limited, Vodafone New Zealand Limited, CallPlus Limited, Compass Communications Limited, Teamtalk Limited, Woosh Wireless Limited and ihug Limited, in proportion to their TSO-qualified revenues.
Once the Commission finalises its calculation of the local residential telephone service TSO cost for the 2006/07 period then this cost will also be apportioned as determined in the cost allocation determination.
Copies of the Commission’s determinations are available on the website, www.comcom.govt.nz under: Industry Regulation/Telecommunications/TelecommunicationsServiceObligations
Background
Under Part 3 of the Telecommunications Act 2001, Telecommunications Service Obligations (TSO) are entered into in order to facilitate the supply of certain telecommunications services that may not otherwise be supplied on a commercial basis, or at a price that is considered by the Minister of Communications to be affordable to the affected end-users.
There are currently two TSO instruments:
- TSO Deed for Local
Residential Telephone Service between the Crown and Telecom;
and
- TSO Deed for Telecommunications Relay
Services (TRS) for the hearing impaired between the Crown
and Sprint.
The TSO instruments costs once determined are apportioned among liable persons. Prior to the revision of the Telecommunications Act this cost apportionment was part of the TSO determinations. Now, under the revised act, the apportionment is provided in a separate cost allocation determination.
The Commission administers the TSO deeds by:
- monitoring compliance of the
service providers;
- determining the cost
faced by the service providers, unless the amount is
specified in the deed;
- determining the
liable persons; and
- the apportionment of
this cost among the liable persons.
The ‘liable persons’ are Telecom and the companies operating public switched telephone networks (PSTN) that are interconnected with Telecom’s PSTN.
ENDS