Australia’s two peak telco bodies, ATA and AMTA, set to merge
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The news: The boards of telecommunications industry groups the Australian Telecommunications Alliance (ATA) and the Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association have agreed to a proposed merger.
The context: The merger is subject to the approval of members, which will be sought at general meetings set to be hosted by each body.
The two groups have some crossover in membership, although the ATA has a longer list of members. The common members include Telstra, Optus and TPG Telecom as well as Nokia, Ericsson and Pivotel.
Under the merger, AMTA operations will be moved into the ATA with a target completion date of 30 June.
The two groups said in a joint statement that the merger would establish “full coverage of regulatory, technical, and operational issues impacting telcos, equipment suppliers (including network technology vendors and mobile device manufacturers), and a broad range of other industry participants (including TowerCos, messaging and application providers, and more)”.
What they said: “Together, we believe a merged organisation will provide a more coordinated and effective voice for the telecommunications sector, while recognising and building on the longstanding contributions of both organisations and their members,” ATA chair Deena Shiff and AMTA chair Trent Czinner said.
“A united body will also put the industry in the best position to deliver for consumers, by bringing together the broad range of participants in the Australian telecoms ecosystem.”
The source: ATA and AMTA joint media release
