ACCAN recently submitted to the ACCC’s inquiry into NBN Access Pricing. The inquiry examined the possibility of ACCC regulating the price of entry level NBN services, in order to facilitate consistent pricing for services that are equivalent to legacy ADSL internet services.

ACCAN is supportive of measures being taken to allow for consumers to smoothly transition to NBN services without facing material increases in the price of their existing service.

Although broadly supportive of the ACCC’s inquiry, ACCAN argued that:

• The best approach to providing pricing relief is through the introduction of a funded concessional broadband service for low income households;
• If pricing regulation of the NBN is implemented, it should be applied to the 25/5Mbps speed tier rather than the 12/1Mbps speed tier;
• The proposed retail price point of $60 for (a 12/1Mbps service) was well in excess of what many consumers can afford to pay.

ACCAN believes that price regulation of the NBN 12/1Mbps service will encourage many consumers to switch to that service , and based on current data usage trends a 12/1Mbps service is unlikely to meet their needs and expectations. As a result, those consumers may be discouraged them from seeking high-speed NBN services into the future due to a poor experience.

Download:  ACCC inquiry into NBN access pricing829.54 KB
Download:  ACCC inquiry into NBN access pricing800.58 KB