Commpete has brought a team including Pivotel and BAI Communications to front the Australian parliamentary inquiry into co-investment in multi-carrier regional mobile infrastructure. Australian legal firm Maddocks also appeared at the hearing as external counsel for Commpete.
The group has re-affirmed its support for co-investment in regional telecommunications, emphasising its potential for positive impact on market competition for retail and wholesale markets in Australia.
The parliamentary inquiry, initiated in October at the request of Minister for Communications, Michelle Rowland, aims to examine the current state of Australia’s non-co-located mobile infrastructure and explore the feasibility, cost, and benefits of introducing multiple carriers, especially in regional areas.
Commpete Chair, Michelle Lim, said: “While Commpete’s members may have differing commercial interests, we stand united in advocating for government co-investment in regional telecommunications.
“Our focus is on fostering competition and choice in expanding coverage in regional areas, and maximising public benefits right from the start, the four entities uniting before the inquiry to represent the alliance demonstrates the significance and urgency of the message,” said Lim.
“The current regulatory settings were put in place in a different era, 25 years ago. They could not and did not anticipate the massive change in the sector over that time. We’ve seen decisions over coverage become concentrated in a few hands,” she said.
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