Stop NBN from creeping into retail Opposition demands

Stan Beer
Thursday, 17 March 2011 18:15

IT Policy - Government Tech Policy

The Federal Coalition has launched a campaign to stop NBN Co from retailing broadband services to utilities and telecoms carriers for their internal communications needs. According to the Coalition, two key National Broadband Network (NBN) Bills, due to be debated in Parliament on Monday, if passed without amendments would allow the NBN to creep into the retail market.

South Australian Liberal, Senator Mary Jo Fisher, Deputy Chair of the Environment and Communications Legislation Committee, told iTWire that the Bills are designed to enable NBN Co to become a retailer by stealth and would cut broadband retailers out of the action.

Senator Fisher warned that the Government would try to use essential services such as utilities as means to pry open the floodgates for NBN Co to become both a wholesaler and retailer - in effect recreating another government-owned Telstra.

"The Government is trying to use utilities as a prop to allow the violation of its promise that the NBN will not compete in retail," Senator Fisher said.

"If NBN is allowed to retail services to utilities then it will cut retailers out of the action."

According to Senator Fisher, claims from the Government that utilities support the move are misleading.

"The utilities say if they don't get an exemption (to allow them to buy from NBN direct) they won't use the NBN," Senator Fisher said.

"The Government is saying that utilities support the NBN. The utilities are saying they won't support it unless the Government cuts out the retailers."

Senator Fisher says Coalition Senators have today tabled in the Senate their own report into the Bills, differing from the report also tabled by the Government and Greens members of the Environment and Communications Committee.

'Coalition Senators are concerned that these latest Bills continue to undermine the Government's repeated reassurances that NBN Co will provide 'wholesale only' services, and will not compete in any way whatsoever with retail service providers,'  Senator Fisher said.

According to the Coalition, the Bills do this by:

·       allowing NBN Co to directly service internal needs of utilities (like water and electricity suppliers), thereby cutting other retailers out of bidding for that potential market;

·       failing to stop NBN Co from directly servicing internal needs of licensed carriage service providers;

·       effectively forcing a would-be competitor of the NBN to meet technical specifications of the NBN when wanting to build a rival network; and

·       stopping NBN Co from being subject to Freedom of Information laws.

'We also think the milestones set for future privatisation of the NBN are deliberately so onerous as to stop it ever being sold,' Senator Fisher said.

'It's hypocritical for the Government to require a Productivity Commission review of NBN Co should the company be privatised in the future, whilst continuing to evade a similar level of scrutiny before committing the Australian taxpayer to the most expensive single project in the country's history,' Senator Fisher said.

'We've recommended these Bills be fixed to keep the Government to its 'wholesale only' and 'NBN Co shall not creep' promises,' she said.

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