In March we consulted with you on our copper retirement strategy and roadmap. Thank you for sharing your feedback, your input has been useful in helping us refine our copper retirement plans.

After reviewing the responses, we identified several key themes in your feedback:

• Communicating about copper retirement early and providing information about the availability of alternate technology options will be important to both service providers and their end-users as we retire the copper network.
• The cost of transitioning to an alternate technology is an important consideration for both service providers and end-users.
• Service providers are overwhelmingly open to working with Chorus on joint migration programmes in rural areas (e.g. copper to wireless).
• Most service providers are open to Chorus leading conversations with end-users on alternate technology options provided the retailer is kept in the loop.
• Service providers appear confident they can keep up with the proposed pace of copper retirement.
• Where copper customers inside a Specified Fibre Area experience a copper service fault, migrating those customers to alternate technology solutions (fibre, wireless) rather than repairing the copper fault was accepted as a reasonable outcome by most service providers.
• Service providers would like to see a more detailed copper retirement timeline.
• Regional wireless network operators are keen to be involved in solutions.

We have considered the feedback received from the industry and will use it as we continue to develop our copper retirement plans. Please look out for future updates from us regarding copper retirement.

Copper Services Investigation

The Commerce Commission recently published a draft recommendation to deregulate copper services. Some of our proposed copper retirement activity is contingent on the deregulation of copper. If copper deregulation proceeds, Chorus will need to transition from regulated copper terms to new commercial terms until copper is retired. We are in the process of ideating what such terms might look like, and we'll provide further information on this at a later date.

Consumer Information

Please visit our consumer website which provides information for consumers on copper retirement, alternative telecommunications options, and answers questions they may have such as power back up options.  

We also have brochures available for customers including Voice Calling Options, Copper Myth Busting and Preparing for a Power Outage.  

For further information, please contact your Customer Engagement team, or refer to the Copper Retirement page on the Chorus Service Provider website.