The ACCC has given the green light to the joint functional separation of TPG Telecom, which will allow the company to divide its retail and wholesale subsidiaries.
This will allow TPG to compete in both wholesale and retail superfast broadband services markets for residential customers, and will come into play on October 7.
“The ACCC decided to accept TPG’s undertaking on the basis that it is likely to promote the long-term interests of end-users, subject to TPG adhering to the statutory non-discrimination obligations and each of the commitments in its undertaking,” the company stated.
“We consider that TPG’s undertaking is likely to foster enhanced infrastructure-based competition, as it provides TPG with greater regulatory certainty and flexibility to expand its network footprint.
“The undertaking is also likely to promote retail-level competition by providing wholesale customers access to a larger wholesale network that is simpler and more cost effective to connect to.”
Jonathan Rutherford, Group Executive Wholesale, Enterprise and Government TPG Telecom said of the decision:
“Acceptance of the undertaking provides TPG with greater flexibility to expand its fixed line network footprint and to compete in wholesale and retail markets. This supports our strategy to grow our customer base on these assets.
“This approval provides much needed regulatory certainty to enable further investment into our network.”
The undertaking will apply to TPG’s existing FTTB and TransACT networks, as well as any new superfast local access lines deployed by the telco.
