Smaller telcos sign up for NBN wholesale

More and smaller telcos are accessing NBN Co's wholesale services, reducing Telstra's market share, a report from the ACCC reveals.

The regulator's latest Wholesale Market Indicators Report found "Telstra remains the dominant wholesale access seeker, but its market share declined slightly, while TPG and Optus made small gains. Smaller RSPs also increased their collective share from 6.8 per cent to 7.1 per cent."

TPG and Optus saw their share increase to 21.9 percent and 14.4 percent, respectively, while telcos listed under “other” increased their collective share from 6.8 percent to 7.1 percent. Vocus saw its share dip slightly from 8.3 percent to 8 percent.

The ACCC found there are at least eight “access seeker groups” acquiring wholesale services directly from NBN Co at its 121 NBN points of interconnect across Australia. Access seeker groups are at least two retail service providers (RSPs) that are acquiring NBN access and that are related to each other.

“The ACCC is pleased to see this growth in the number of RSPs acquiring wholesale services directly from NBN, which is good for both consumers and businesses,” ACCC chair Rod Sims said.

“Connecting directly to the NBN allows RSPs to better control the quality of service they can provide to their customers.”

The report also found that more than 5.6 million Australian premises are now connected to the NBN, up 9.2 percent from the previous quarter. While there are more customers on the faster 50Mbps and 100 Mbps plans, some 2 million remain on entry-level 12Mbps and 25Mbps plans.

“We remain concerned about the entry-level options that are available on the NBN. Consumers must have a genuine choice," Sims said.

"They should not be forced to take up higher-speed plans due to a lack of entry-level products that are affordable and that offer adequate data allowance. We remain in active discussions with NBN Co about wholesale pricing.”