Fight for good LLU starts now, don't forget rural

For immediate release

Orcon says the fight for good LLU starts now, and don’t forget the rural community

After many months of meeting with MPs from a number of political parties and working with industry interest groups (ISPANZ), Orcon believes the hard work for LLU starts now. There are a number of issues still to be worked out such as tenancy costs (power, rent etc), standard rack design, line rentals, access charges, call out fees, provisioning costs, backhaul and third party access.

“I am thrilled that the Government has taken the bold step in announcing this raft of changes to the broadband scene in New Zealand. Our job now moves to making sure that the devil doesn’t get worked into the detail of LLU. We don’t want to have an incredible success story today, and then spend the next two years trying to fix it like they are doing in Australia” says Orcon’s General Manager of Regulatory Scott Bartlett.

“I know that the Commerce Commission and the Ministry of Economic Development are working now on the details of LLU, and Orcon has already contacted them to participate in this process” continued Bartlett.

Several blogs and news articles have also been criticizing the expected timeframes for any LLU deployment, with a number of customers also calling Orcon and asking when we will be deploying our own ADSL2+ network. Mr. Bartlett says a lot of work is yet to be done, but is hopeful the Government won’t waste any time.

“After we see the legislation changes in July there is absolutely no reason why Telecom couldn’t deliver unconstrained UBS and Naked DSL within 30 days of that law change; and this should be a requirement placed upon them. Following on from that I would hope that LLU access seekers can begin placing provisioning requests with Telecom for rack space and backhaul within two months, not the six to seven months currently earmarked.”

Orcon has also rubbished claims that LLU is bad for provincial and rural communities, saying that it hopes to have LLU rollouts in places such as Masterton, New Plymouth, Whangarei, Dunedin and Hamilton.

“We aren’t going to give up on our vision of true ADSL2+ broadband in provincial areas; in fact we have been making plans for LLU roll out in some areas other players would never dream of. The best way to encourage additional investment in true broadband for provincial areas is for customers to choose Orcon as their ISP; it all comes down to scale and vision” concluded Bartlett.

Orcon has sustained a high level of growth over the past 3 years to become NZ’s 4th biggest ISP, and the largest ISP that is 100% New Zealand owned and operated. Previously known as a provider of wholesale internet and business connections, Orcon has become a household name in New Zealand.

ENDS

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