Australia - Mobile - Termination, Fixed-to-Mobile Charges

Synopsis

This report has been archived and has not been updated. The wholesale GSM termination service is a wholesale access service that enables mobile subscribers to receive calls from other mobile subscribers and fixed-line callers. This market has been the most profitable voice market for the three carriers involved. Fixed-to-mobile calls are in most instances more expensive than international calls to Europe or the USA. Australia may be in breach of its World Trade Organization commitments due to excessively high international mobile termination charges. A review of the charges was launched in 2003. In 2004 the regulator tabled its report, a drop in fees by 50% over three years, but no regulated pass-on to consumers. Very little action has been seen since that time until June 2007 when the ACCC issued a draft determination on pricing principles for the period from 1 July 2007 to 31 December 2008 and proposed a further reduction in the indicative MTAS rate to 9 cents per minute (from the current 12 cents per minute).