The ACCC said in a statement the inquiry followed requests made to it by the telecommunications industry to look into whether or not there are anti-competitive agreements covering Internet network connection.
The ACCC's acting commissioner, Ross Jones, said "Whilst consumers can already send emails to almost anyone they desire and visit websites located in far-flung destinations all over the world, the ACCC is concerned to ensure that the arrangements between domestic ISPs that allow consumers to do this are competitive.
"There are some apparent curiosities with current interconnection arrangements," he added. "If I am connected to a smaller ISP and I send an email to my friend at one of the four larger ISPs, the larger ISP will generally charge my smaller ISP for sending the email. However, when my friend at the larger ISP sends me a return email, my smaller ISP will have to pay the larger ISP once again".
The ACCC said in a statement whilst it hoped its inquiry would draw out these pecularities, its key focus was to determine to what extent the way in which Internet traffic moves may inhibit competition and whether in the longer term consumers will be better off if the ACCC is more directly involved.
If an Internet interconnection service were declared, the carrier or network owner that provided Internet access would be required to allow another network owner to connect to its network on terms and conditions that may ultimately be set by the ACCC.
I say go for it. The ACCC should become more involved in issues regarding the internet and the ways businesses exploit the lag time between the cutting edge of technology and the long drawn out (unneccessary?) processes required to create regulating laws. The ACCC should also look into the peculiarities of certain major telecommunications companies charging megabucks for transpacific traffic that they aren't charged for themselves. Someone has to break up the duopoly in this country, and if the ACCC can't, then maybe the government should think about bestowing more power in them. Just a thought here, why is the chairman of Telstra also a top figure in the Broadband Advisory group? Sounds like a conflict of interest there don't you think?
For more broadband/internet info, goto www.whirlpool.net.au - Some very interesting and relevant concepts have come up in their forums.