Competitors blast Telstra's NBN regulatory submission

Stuart Corner
Friday, 12 June 2009 17:53

IT Industry - Strategy

Telstra's submission to the Government's regulatory reform paper has produced instant outrage from Telstra's principle competitors, Optus and the Competitive Carriers Coalition which represents a number of other major competitors.

The main thrust of Telstra's submission is that it be allowed to retain its current level of vertical and horizontal integration and compete with the future NBN subject to controls from a new body rather than the ACCC.

Optus and the CCC have been quick to dismiss the submission, but in reality they may well feel it represents a serious threat to their own preferred outcome of full structural separation.

"Telstra's submission to the Government's regulatory review demonstrates the company remains deeply out of touch," CCC executive director, David Forman said. "Telstra's submission persists in the delusion that there is no real problem with communications competition in Australia caused by Telstra's market power, and proposes little more than tinkering to address what is now universally acknowledged as a competition crisis... It is really quite remarkable that Telstra continues to think it can stand apart from the entire industry and the ACCC by pretending not to see what is now obvious to all – that its vertical and horizontal integration is at the heart of the communications market competition problems."

Forman seized on the brevity of the Telstra submission - a mere 28 pages - to dismiss it out of hand. "About the only thing that can be said for Telstra's submission is that, at 28 pages, it is longer than the press release Telstra submitted instead of a proper NBN bid."

Maha Krishnapillai, Optus' director of government and corporate affairs, said: "Instead of providing a constructive response, Telstra has instead proposed removing the independent regulator, the ACCC, and replacing it with a Telstra funded 'adjudicator'. That is like a football team replacing the referee at halftime with one of its fans.

"Telstra are treating the Government, the industry and the Australian people with contempt. They're like a dictatorship in the final throes of power."

CONTINUED