Lobby group welcomes mobile investigation

A telecommunications lobby group says the Government has realised it has to turn up the heat if it wants New Zealand in the top half of the OECD for communications technology.

The latest regulatory threat is a Commerce Commission investigation into why the country has only two mobile phone networks, when other similar countries have three or four.

Telecommunications Users Association spokesman Ernie Newman says overseas policy changes have been happening at a steady pace in the last decade but that has not been the case in New Zealand, largely because Telecom has been powerful in fending off regulation.

Mr Newman says there are significant barriers to entry for new mobile phone operators.

The commission is gathering information from the industry for the first phase of the investigation. It will pass on its findings and recommendations on proposed regulatory changes to Telecommunications Minister David Cunliffe.

- NEWSTALK ZB