Telecom NZ (ASX:TEL) may be released of more obligations to provide line access to its copper networks, following a regulatory decision.
New Zealand's Commerce Commission (ComCom) on Wednesday announced that 88 of Telecom NZ's unbundled local loop (ULL) copper backhaul links now face sufficient competition.
This has come about due to ULL unbundling and the deployment of competing backhaul lines, ComCom said.
Telstra's (ASX:TLS) New Zealand subsidiary, TelstraClear, also provides competitive constraints wherever it has fibre cables within two kilometres of a Telecom NZ exchange, it added.
Under local telecom laws, backhaul links which do not face sufficient competition are subject to regulation specifying the terms of supply of the service to access seekers.
But if a link is found to face sufficient competition, these regulatory burdens do not apply.
ComCom has also decided that Telecom's network infrastructure division, Chorus, has not restricted new competition with the recent launch of a commercial co-location service.
TEL shares declined 1.3 per cent in Wednesday's trading to $1.515.