Court turns down telco challenge

VODAFONE Australia has failed in its challenge to the consumer watchdog’s handling of an inquiry into domestic mobile roaming services.

The Federal Court has dismissed a challenge mounted by Vodafone against a finding by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission on technical grounds.

In May, the ACCC made a preliminary ruling that there was insufficient evidence a wholesale domestic mobile roaming service would benefit customers in the long term.

Under such a service, a Vodafone customer would automatically have access to a rival network, such as that offered by Telstra, in areas without Vodafone coverage.

In June, Vodafone claimed the inquiry process that produced the draft decision was flawed and had not been carried out properly because a specific description of the roaming service had not been defined by the watchdog.

Yesterday, Justice John Griffiths dismissed Vodafone’s claims, saying the ACCC did not need to define the service at the inquiry’s outset.