If the ACCC had made the declaration,it would have forced Telstra,Optus and Vodafone to let rival carriers access their entire networks at regulated prices.
In particular,this would have allowed the telco's access to Telstra's extensive regional network in areas where they didn't have their own coverage.
Telstra had long previously said it was dedicated to providing mobile networks nationally – provided the current regulatorysettings remained.
Vodafone claimed consumers would collectivelysave more than $650 million a year if Telstra were forced to share its regional network and drop its prices to remain competitive.
It asked the Federal Court to review the ACCC's inquiry process,which it did not believe had been carried out properly as a specific domestic roaming service was not defined by the regulator.
This was rejected on Thursday by Justice John Griffiths,who said he did not accept"that such specificity at the outset of the public inquiry process is necessary to give effect to statutory provisions relating to public consultation".
"It is revealing that Vodafone availed itself of the opportunity to make submissions as invited by the ACCC in the discussion paper without any complaint that it was disabled from doing so because of the alleged absence of specificity in the concept of a wholesale domestic mobile roaming service,"he said in his judgment.