Federated Farmers is welcoming the Government’s decision to regulate mobile termination access services.

Communications Minister Steven Joyce made the call to step in on MTAS in an attempt to drive down the costs mobile providers charge for calls and text messages.

Feds telecommunications spokesman Donald Aubrey says all farmers will benefit from the move, as many rely on cell phones to do business.

“They affect all New Zealanders, but in particular rural New Zealand, and especially farmers, cellphones are essential business tools.

"The level of use where available is far higher than in cities – it just means instead of having to run back to a landline all the time to make commercial decisions, you can take the call on farm.

"It’s just as important to farmers as it is to any businessman in a city.”

Market analysts aren’t expecting a sudden drop in phone charges, and say more competition is needed to push prices down.