Communication leaders better bet

Tuesday, 21 March, 2000 - 21:00
BUILDINGS with leading telecommunications facilities will maximise returns to building owners, a communications expert told the recent Property Council forum.

Clive Stein of Amcom Telecommuni-cations said many tenants now required high speed telecommunications services to meet their customers’ needs.

“A single fibre cable has more capacity than all the satellites ever launched,” he said.

Mr Stein said traditional copper wire limited the flow of data. Access to high speed and unlimited bandwidth fibre optic cable technology was needed by tenants.

Newer services such as office-to-office networks, high speed Internet access, off-site data storage and recovery and low cost local calls required modern telecommunications technology, Mr Stein said.

Andrew Milner from Internet service provider iiNet said tenants would increasingly make tenancy decisions based on access to telecommunications services.

He said facilities such as twenty-four hour access to the telecommunications room, back-up power, backbone access and rooftop availability allowed for higher returns from tenants.

Access to properties by providers to install telecommunications equipment was discussed by Freehill Hollingdale and Page lawyer Paul Wilson.

Mr Wilson told the forum that such companies were not necessarily required to pay for access to properties.

Telecommunications companies were entitled to access a property to install low impact facilities, including cabling into MDF rooms, installing racks and cabling up risers to connect with a subscriber’s equipment.

To exercise a power of entry, the carrier must satisfy a number of conditions, including compliance with industry standards, a Code of Conduct and regulations.

The telecommunications carrier must also give at least ten business days’ notice of an intention to install.

Mr Wilson said: “Owners can object no later than five business days before the intended start date.

“Objections can be made on a number of grounds, but not on the basis that no payment was required.”

Mr Wilson said that owners could refer disputes to an Ombudsman who could make a determination on the dispute.

Where telecommunications companies damaged a property, the owners could claim ‘reasonable’ compensation determined by agreement or a court.

l Additional information is available for Property Council members from Geoff Cooper on (08) 9321 1156.