The Commerce Commission gives notice, under section 39(c) of the Telecommunications Act 2001 (“Act”), that it has prepared a final designated multinetwork service determination (“Determination”) for local and cellular number portability under section 39(a) of the Act.

This notice summarises the Determination in accordance with section 6(2)(b) of the Act.

Summary

Subpart 2 of Schedule 1 of the Act contains two designated multinetwork services:

• Local Telephone Number Portability Service; and
• Cellular Telephone Number Portability Service (together, the number portability services).

Number portability services allow end-users to keep their local and mobile phone numbers when they switch service providers. We reviewed the settings for these services ahead of the current determination expiring in December 2021.

The number portability Determination largely carries over the regulatory settings from the previous Determination set in 2016, including the cost allocation formula and terms that parties to the Determination must follow.

However, the Determination also includes a new Fraud and Security protection section in the General Business Rules section of the Local and Mobile Number Portability Terms and amends the Bilateral and other Agreements section to help facilitate the prevention of fraud in number porting.

The Determination will come into force on 20 December 2021.

Further Information

Copies of the Determination, and the supporting Reasons Paper, are available on the Commission’s website at: https://comcom.govt.nz/regulated-industries/telecommunications/projects/number-portability-determination-2021-review-.

Dated at Wellington this 2nd day of December 2021.

COMMERCE COMMISSION.