Part XIC Declaration Provisions for Telecommunications Services

On 11 August 2016 the ACCC released guidelines for Part XIC Declaration Provisions for Telecommunications Services.

These update the previous 1999 Guidelines and reflect changes to legislation - they also follow a consultation period in June-July this year.

The Guidelines run to 48 pages and are structured as follows:

Glossary

1. Introduction

2. Outline of the Part XIC access regime

2.1. Background
2.2. How the Part XIC access regime operates

2.2.1. Declaration of a service
2.2.2. Regulation following declaration

2.3. The relationship between the Part XIC access regimes and the Part IV and XIB competitive conduct rules
2.4. The relationship between the Part XIC telecommunications access regime and Part IIIA access regime

3. Procedural issues

3.1. Declaration following a public inquiry

3.1.1. Who may request a public inquiry into declaration?
3.1.2. What is required to request a public inquiry?
3.1.3. Considering requests to hold a declaration inquiry
3.1.4. Conducting a public inquiry
3.1.5. If the ACCC declares the service via a public inquiry
3.1.6. Expiry of declaration made via a public inquiry
3.1.7. Variation or revocation of declaration

3.2. Declaration via SAU

3.2.1. Acceptance of a SAU
3.2.2. Expiry of an accepted SAU
3.2.3. Variation and withdrawal of an accepted SAU

3.3. Declaration following publication of a SFAA by NBN Co

3.4. Mandatory declaration – Layer 2 bitstream service

3.5. Regulatory costs and benefits associated with declaration

4. Service description

4.1. General principles
4.2. Unbundling

5. The long-term interests of end-users

5.1. Scope of the LTIE test

5.1.1. What are the interests?
5.1.2. What are the services?
5.1.3. Who are end-users?
5.1.4. What is the long-term?

5.2. Applying the LTIE test

5.2.1. ‘With and without’ test

5.3. Must the interests of all end-users be promoted?

6. Promoting competition

6.1. Identifying the relevant markets

6.1.1. Market in which the service under consideration is supplied
6.1.2. Market(s) in which declaration may promote competition

6.2. The current state of competition in the relevant markets

6.3. The extent to which declaration would promote competition

6.4. Infrastructure-based and service-based competition

7. Achieving any-to-any connectivity

8. Economically efficient use of, and investment in, infrastructure

8.1. Competition and efficiency
8.2. Technical feasibility

8.2.1. Technology in use or available
8.2.2. Supply costs
8.2.3. Effect on telecommunications networks

8.3. The legitimate commercial interests of the access provider

8.4. Incentives for investment in infrastructure

8.4.1. Infrastructure used to supply the service
8.4.2. Infrastructure used to supply other services
8.4.3. Risks involved in investments

ACCC Media Release

ACCC Update, 'ACCC issues guideline for Part XIC declaration provisions for telecommunications services' (11 August 2016)

View Part XIC Declaration Provisions for Telecommunications Services