The announcement got no fanfare but Hong Kong has just become an international leader in structuring telecommunications services.
The pioneering move was contained in four paragraphs buried in a 26-page 'guidance note' issued on Friday by the Office of the Telecommunications Authority (Ofta).
The guidance note tells Hong Kong Cable Television, an arm of Wharf Holdings, how to apply for a licence for Fixed Telecommunications Network Services over its hybrid fibre-coaxial cable network.
It says Wharf will have to open its network to other telecoms networks or services on terms that should first be subject to commercial negotiations but will be set by Ofta if no agreement is met.
The guidance note also stipulates that the network should provide customers with broadband facilities for access to Internet service providers (ISPs) on terms that are no less favourable than those enjoyed by ISPs affiliated with Cable TV.
It's a first because, although fixed-line operators are already required to make their networks available to others, this is a broadband service designed to pipe in cable television and offer Internet users much faster access speeds than conventional telephone modems.