New Zealand Operator Criticised Over Tower Sharing Delays

New Zealand's Commerce Commission has written to the country's 3rd mobile network operator, 2Degrees warning the firm that it has to take its regulatory obligations seriously and provide required documents when asked.

The company is required to make available a list of base stations that it has signed a co-location agreement with the two incumbent operators, Telecom and Vodafone, but is alleged to have failed to do so. After the warning, the company complied with a June 5th deadline to return to compliance.

The Commission also noted though that it is disappointed with the number of co-location sites agreed to date, although 2Degrees lays the blame largely at the other tower owners. 2 Degrees chief executive Mike Reynolds told Business Day newspaper that there were also compatibility problems with the 2Degrees (Huawei supplied) equipment and the other operators towers.

2Degrees - formerly, NZ Communications, and then before that, Econet Wireless - was granted a mobile license in 2001 when it formed an alliance with the Hautaki Charitable Trust which was allocated a 3G license at a discount price by the regulator. The company still has not launched any commercial services.

On the web: Business Day

Posted to the site on 12th June 2009