How many MNOs do we need?

In last week's Story of the Week we reprinted a CommsDay article on an OECD report proposing that Australian authorities should positively facilitate the entry of a fourth mobile network operator to increase competition in the sector.  This included facilitation through spectrum allocation via ACMA's processes.  To keep the story going, our story this week is CommsDay's article from Tuesday 27 January 2026 on the differing responses to the OECD proposal from AMTA and ACCAN.

AMTA rejects fourth MNO push from OECD
The Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association has rejected calls to encourage the entry of a fourth national mobile network operator, as the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network used an OECD review to
press regulators to intervene more aggressively in the mobile market.

As CommsDay reported on Friday, the latest OECD Economic Survey of Australia urged governments and regulators to promote the entry of an additional mobile network operator, including through measures such as reserving spectrum for a new entrant or mandating infrastructure sharing.

The chief executive of AMTA, Louise Hyland, said there was no Louise Hyland evidence Australia could effectively sustain four national competitors. “While the OECD report wants to incentivise a fourth mobile network operator to enter the Australian market, there isn’t any evidence our economy could effectively support four competitors,” Hyland told CommsDay.

She pointed to previous attempts to introduce a fourth carrier, including One.Tel and 3 Mobile, arguing that Australia’s mature market and geography had proven challenging, with entrants either collapsing or consolidating with larger players.
Hyland also said the extended consultation process being run by the Australian Communications and Media Authority on expiring spectrum licences had not identified new prospective competitors. “The consultation process did not flush out further interested parties wishing to compete,” she said. “In fact, not one new organisation put their hand up to even express interest.”

Hyland further challenged the OECD’s reliance on international case studies, arguing that France and Japan were not comparable to Australia in terms of population density. “Japan’s population is almost 91 times denser than ours, while France is 35 times denser,” she said.

While the OECD argued that markets with four MNOs delivered lower costs, Hyland said the same data showed Australia had below-average retail prices compared with other three-MNO markets. “Canada, which has a similar population density to Australia and three players, has much more expensive mobile retail prices,” she said, adding that Australian mobile prices in real terms had fallen by 24% over recent years.

Hyland also rejected the need for mandated infrastructure sharing, arguing that Australia’s spun-out tower companies already had incentives to attract additional tenants. “Instead of encouraging a fourth player, we would encourage fair spectrum prices for the operators we do have, supporting them to continue investment in infra- structure, system improvements and capacity,” she said. “Streamlining regulatory conditions across the nation and simplifying planning permissions would also make a significant difference in service quality.”

ACCAN has taken the opposite position, using the OECD report to reinforce its long- standing argument that the mobile market lacks effective competition. On Friday, ACCAN promoted the OECD findings across social media, explicitly linking them to its earlier calls for spectrum auctions rather than licence renewals.

ACCAN has argued that the current approach proposed by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and ACMA would entrench existing market structures by renewing expiring licences rather than reopening spectrum to competitive bidding.

ACCAN chief executive Carol Bennett said the OECD report strengthened the case for intervention. “The OECD identifies international evidence proving that pro- competitive roaming policies and modern spectrum management techniques make a signiϐicant difference for consumer wellbeing,” Bennett said.
“The government must pull all levers at its disposal to ensure the market for essential telecommunications services is robust, reliable and offers value for money.”
ACCAN has criticised ACMA’s current spectrum renewal proposals, arguing they would amount to an effective $1b discount for incumbent operators compared with auction-based outcomes.
Professor Richard Holden, who assisted with ACCAN’s analysis of the expiring spectrum licences, said renewing licences without conditions would entrench poor outcomes for consumers. “With spectrum licences up for renewal, the government has a clear choice,” Holden said. “It can lock in today’s broken market, or it can attach strong, enforceable licence conditions that promote infrastructure sharing, competition and lower prices for decades to come.”

Rohan Pearce

IN TODAY'S COMMSDAY (Friday 30 January 2026)

Sydney has data centre build cost and power-availability advantages over other major Asia-Pacific markets as well as international hubs, according to a new outlook report from real estate services firm JLL. 

A national survey has found some home buyers expect a discount for properties located near visible 5G infrastructure, even as a clear majority say they would not buy a home without reliable mobile coverage. 

Researchers from the University of Adelaide have made a terahertz transmission breakthrough that they believe could bring the development of 6G technology one step closer. 

The NSW-based Connectivity Innovation Network wants to push the boundaries of so-called vehicle-as-a-node technology, significantly expanding the Wi-Fi coverage available to emergency service organisations. The network is targeting a 5-7x improvement on the range that is delivered by the sharkfin antennas currently employed in NSW VaaN deployments. 

Northern Territory-based utility Power and Water is seeking mid-band spectrum that the utility intends to use to support Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition operations in a remote national park. 

Australian smart antenna manufacturer Zetifi has partnered with connected vehicle solutions provider Geotab to provide connected fleet safety insights to Australian businesses. 

The federal government has formally rejected a Senate committee suggestion that NBN legislation should specifically recognise the network as a universal service. However it has noted that it is considering the modernisation of the universal telecommunications service regime.

Hyperscalers have moved decisively from being tenants of global connectivity infrastructure to its primary architects, with new analysis showing they now dominate both subsea cable investment and large-scale data centre deployment as artificial intelligence workloads reshape networks. 

The global telco headcount fell 1.9% to 4.36 million employees in the first half of 2025, with around 20,000 jobs now being lost per quarter due to layoffs, outsourcing, and automation, MTN Consulting estimates. 

OpenAI is in talks with some of the world's largest technology companies about a funding round that could raise as much as US$100bn and value the company at about US$730bn pre-money, according to a report by US publication The Information. 

Plus more
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