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According to a study report released by the Asia Pacific Carriers' Coalition (APCC) on June 14, 2010, Hong Kong provides the most economical local broadband access services in the Asia Pacific region.
The Office of the Telecommunications Authority (OFTA) welcomes the findings of the APCC study, which affirm Hong Kong's position as the premier telecommunications hub in the region.
"According to the study findings, the prices of broadband leased lines in Hong Kong at transmission speeds of 1.5 Mbps, 2 Mbps, 45 Mbps and 155 Mbps are the lowest among the 14 economies covered in the study. In terms of Ethernet access facilities, Hong Kong's prices are the lowest at transmission speeds of 10 Mbps and 1 Gbps. The price for a symmetric digital subscriber line (DSL) in Hong Kong is likewise the most competitive. The study also shows that the prices of the various categories of local leased lines in Hong Kong have fallen on average by 30% to 50% between 2006 and 2009," a spokesman for OFTA said.
"An excellent telecommunications infrastructure with cost-effective international telecommunications connections and associated local access facilities underpin the premier position of Hong Kong as a regional financial and trading hub and as the preferred city for regional headquarters of multinational corporations. The confluence of key information technology segments, such as data centre operators and content service providers, also rely on competitively priced and reliable telecommunications connections within the region and beyond," the spokesman said.
"The study confirms once again the success of our facility-based competition and market-driven approach, which began with the liberalisation of the local fixed market in 1995 followed by the liberalisation of the external facility market in 2000. While there are 12 local wireline-based fixed carriers in Hong Kong providing local access services, 29 cable-based external carriers are also operating here. These external carriers may make use of the local access services provided by the local fixed carriers, or they may choose to build their own backhaul facilities after acquiring the appropriate telecommunications licence from this office," the spokesman added.
The APCC commissioned the consultant TRPC to conduct the local access price benchmarking study for the Asia Pacific region in 2009. The study compares the prices of local leased lines, Ethernet access facilities and DSL in 14 economies: Australia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, India, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand and Vietnam.
Background
The APCC commissioned the consultant TRPC to conduct the local access price benchmarking study for the Asia Pacific region in 2009. The study compares the prices of local leased lines, Ethernet access facilities and DSL in the 14 economies. The price data used in the study are based on the price information provided by seven international carriers, all members of APCC, to the consultant, and represent the wholesale price actually paid by the seven carriers to the domestic operators in these 14 economies for local access services in 2009.
The APCC commissioned a similar study in 2006 which noted that the local access service is necessary for the completion of an international circuit but the price incurred is often found to be disproportionately high as a percentage of the price of the whole circuit. This is a concern not only to international carriers that operate in the region, but is also a concern to multinational corporations that have to rely on the services provided by the international carriers in the upstream market.
The APCC was formed in 2004 to promote and assist in the development of open market policies and telecommunications regulatory frameworks in the Asia Pacific region. Its membership comprises the major global and regional telecommunications carriers operating in this region.
The full report may be downloaded from the APCC website at www.asiapacificcarriers.org/sp/user/attach/2010-06-13_APCC%20Final%20Report%202010.pdf
Ends/Sunday, June 27, 2010
Issued at HKT 09:30
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