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NZ BB Analysis before 16/9

Wed, 16 Sep 2009 11:09:00 +1200

Analysis of NZ Broadband before the 16/9 government announcement

So, we are about to make the largest single public investment in telecommunications ever in our nation's life - $1.5 billion ? we may be wrong - still a big number !

We think this is excellent, as the Government's decision to invest $1.5 billion to bring fibre to the home (FTTH) for 75% of New Zealanders is fundamentally important to achieving our economic and social development goals.

However, anyone in the least interested and informed about the issue will know that this is a very complex issue.

We have been working in this field since 2001 and recently we applied our minds to just one aspect of this business - regulation.

Read our views in this paper (19 pages, easy to read)

Intranet and KM

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 06:54:00 +1200

Leveraging Technology to Streamline Intranet Strategies was the topic of our presentation at an IIR in 2002.

Back then we wrote that "Most organisations are striving to reduce the cost of doing business to deal with the pressure of a highly competitive, global marketplace". We opined that in this context Intranets have emerged to be an
essential tool for increased profitability, improved workforce morale and improved customer relationship.

Well the drivers have not changed and we think you will find the presentation and paper even more relevant today. The paper is here and the presentation is here

Broadband Thought Leadership

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 06:36:00 +1200

I will make a statement now: "Broadband is an industry, in fact it is a super-industry – it will be bigger, more pervasive, than electricity and roads, the last two superindustries."

... thus we wrote in the InfoTech Weekly - way back on 19th November 2001.

We continued ... Yes, for the first time since the advent of civilisation we have an economic infrastructure that "virtually" extends the human being in real time and demonstrates electricity and road-like characteristics in its potential impact on civilisation.

I will make a statement now: "Broadband is an industry, in fact it is a super-industry – it will be bigger, more pervasive, than electricity and roads, the last two superindustries."

We are proud to have forseen the role of Broadband in human society and feel good that it is now mainstreamed and we continue to contribute to realise the benefits for all New Zealanders.

Good to note that Government, Business and Society have come to see what we saw way back then.

Hope you enjoy the article.

Web Services - Setting the Agenda

Tue, 11 Aug 2009 06:23:00 +1200

Way back in 2002 Web Services were in their infancy, sun was shining on SUN! and we were there leading the thought and action on Web Services.

The presentations here were delivered to a packed audience at Wellington and Auckland as a guest of Sun.

Auckland Presentation

Wellington Presentation

An allied opinion on the matter was a lecture on UDDI to a Vic Uni class in 2000.

Today we talk about mashups and those in the know realise that web services are at the heart of what is happening - hope this information of use to you.

Most things in this business have not changed, the slides have now come alive and become real and oh yes - even Microsoft does web service now.

e-business Govis 2002

Sun, 02 Aug 2009 06:02:00 +1200

Our Principal Project Managed and implemented a major, early, innovative e-business project for Public Trust in 2000-2001. We were privileged that our client (IBM client at the time) Public Trust agreed to share the stage with us at the GOVIS 2002 conference to share our lessons from that project.

It may appear a bit dated, however it was moment of truth in the integration and exposing a complex corporate application to the "Cloud" and given that in 2002 the phrase Cloud Computing was not even invented - we are proud to have been involved with using the INTERnet for serious industrial strength corporate IT way back then.

We still use the learnings from this project and hope you find this useful for your work.

You will find the presentation in pdf format here.

Early opinion UFB

Sun, 09 Oct 2011 15:04:29 +1300

The government has made its mind up and it is all looking very good for future generations of New Zealanders.

Hon Steven Joyce announced this morning the Ultra Fast Broadband Initiative

The Ministry of Economic Development also issued a 19 page document providing details.

On the regulation front (read our earlier analysis) the government has signalled an interesting approach: (reproduced from Ministry document)

87. The draft proposal of 31 March 2009 did not envisage the government making any specific steps affecting LFCs' regulatory operating environment. LFCs will be subject to the telecommunications regulatory regime established by the Telecommunications Act 2001 and the Commerce Act 1986.

88. Taking into account the comments in submissions on the draft proposal, it is apparent that there is an element of regulatory uncertainty facing LFC investors. However, on balance, the government has concluded that the risk of price and/or non-price regulation being introduced in relation to services provided by LFCs is reasonably low in the short-to-medium term.

89. This conclusion is supported by the fact that the government is putting in place up-front design arrangements for LFCs that are intended to give ex-ante effect to many of the regulatory treatments that are current best practice in the communications sector. These include the restriction on retailing, retail ownership, requirements to provide specified open access products, and equivalence and transparency obligations.

90. The government does not consider that up-front price regulation is necessary ordesirable. Instead, prospective partners will be required to set out their proposed prices for products, which they will be required to commit to. This requirement, in combination with ongoing independence, equivalence and transparency requirements, is likely to impose a level of discipline that is appropriate for nascent LFC businesses.

91. In order to provide some comfort to investors in LFCs, the government will transmit a statement of economic policy to the Commerce Commission pursuant to section 19A of the Telecommunications Act 2001.

92. This is a non-binding statement that the Commission must take into account, among other factors, when making decisions under the Telecommunications Act 2001.

93. The following draft text indicates the likely content of such a statement:

"It is the economic policy of the government that decisions relating to the regulation of telecommunications services provided on ultra-fast broadband access infrastructure should take into account the risks to investors inherent in providing such services and deploying such infrastructure, and promote efficient and timely investment at the deepest levels of infrastructure, in addition to promoting competition for the long-term benefit of end-users of telecommunications services in New Zealand."

94. In addition, the Commerce Commission is considering what steps it could appropriately take in support of providing regulatory certainty to potential LFC investors. Such steps could include, for example, promulgation of a statement of regulatory principles relating to LFC networks.

95. Some submitters expressed concern about the effect of the existing regulatory framework for electricity lines companies (applying under the Commerce Act 2001) and specifically the impact that the framework might have on the incentives of lines companies to invest in broadband businesses. The government understands this concern, but does not consider that it is appropriate to pre-judge the outcomes of the Commerce Commission's current work on input methodologies for price regulated businesses. In reaching this view, the government notes that the input methodologies "must not unduly deter investment by a supplier of regulated goods or services in the provision of other goods or services."

We are pleased to see that the Commerce Commission is considering a "statement of regulatory principles" up front - a point we emphasised in our analysis earlier.