INTERNET
ComReg slashes LLU charges
28-05-2003
by
ComReg is to cut the charge other operators will have to pay to Eircom for access to the local loop.
In in a decision notice on Wednesday, the Irish communications regulator said that it would fix Eircom's LLU (local loop unbundling) charges at EUR14.67, over EUR2 lower than the current rate of EUR16.81, set last year.
The local loop is the so-called "last mile" of copper wires that run from an exchange to a customer's home or into a business. Eircom effectively owns all of the local loops in Ireland and any entrant telecom that wants to provide services to customers must deal with Eircom in one form or another. Opening up the local loop is generally regarded as a key factor in broadband/DSL provision.
The cut in prices means that telecoms looking to enable a line for broadband, or any other service that involves the local loop, will now have to pay significantly less for access to that line.
More importantly, the move from ComReg is the exact opposite of what Eircom was seeking after the former monopoly applied for a 60 percent increase in LLU charges last year. A spokesperson for Eircom on Wednesday said the company had no comment on the move as yet and the firm was still analysing the decision.
Meanwhile, ComReg blasted Eircom for even requesting such a large price hike (EUR16.81 to EUR27.00), calling the requested rise "overstated" and saying it would "seriously impact on Ireland's competitiveness in the key electronic communications sector and could not be justified."
The regulator went on to say that the rates proposed by Eircom would place Ireland's LLU charges at more than three times best international practice and 70 percent above the next highest country. "It potentially would have significant price implications for retail line rental, increasing the level well over EUR30 per month," ComReg added.
"Businesses and citizens in this country must have access to an inexpensive, world-class communications infrastructure and a wide range of services," added Etain Doyle, ComReg chairperson. "Unbundling the local loop for other service providers is one method to bring about a substantial reduction in the costs of using the Internet."
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