The New Zealand Commerce Commission announced in a draft report published on Friday that no further regulations would be required on Telecom New Zealand's two backhaul links as the connections were already subject to competition.

Backhaul links are Telecom's gateway for its local loop network that rival telcos must connect with in order to deliver data and voice services to their subscribers, with the additional benefit of doing away with redundant services when tapping is permitted on the link.

The commission earlier issued a ruling in June 2008, which stated that backhaul routes for the unbundled copper local loop must be regulated, including the terms and conditions that guide the flow of service on such routes.

In its latest inquiry on the services, the commission studied a number of routes to determine if actual or potential competition was in existence to challenge the services being dispensed by Telecom.

Following its examinations, the commission concluded in its draft review that the two backhaul links in question would not be regulated after all, stressing that no signs were seen that Telecom would be facing competition from rival carriers of backhaul services.

The commission added that 25 more backhaul links were also tested and their findings yielded similar outcomes, further prompting them to issue the review, which will be subjected for submissions until August 13 prior to the release of the conclusive review on the month's end.