Telstra deal prompts questions

Earlier this week Telstra announced a $1.6 billion deal with nbn co, which quickly drew the attention of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC). The deal would see Telstra providing planning, design, construction and construction management within the existing Telstra Hybrid Fibre-Coaxial (HFC) footprint, according to the media release.

While Telstra focused on the positive, claiming that supporting the nbn in building out the new network in the existing footprint is a logical step, given its experience in network construction, the Competitive Carriers Coalition (CCC) had a different take on things. The CCC represents the non-dominant telcos in Australia and, according to a report on itWire.com, sees the deal as a sign of “how much consumers and competitors are being compromised in order to speed up the delivery of the NBN in areas where it is dependent on Telstra’s technology”. The CCC website does not carry a media release on the topic, so it’s assumed they spoke directly with itWire.com.

Regardless, the matter drew the attention of the ACCC, which came out saying that while it recognises Telstra’s technical expertise may indeed lead to a quicker rollout, it still has concerns that “Telstra may receive a competitive advantage if it has access to better information than other service providers or if it is able to use infrastructure built for the NBN network before that infrastructure becomes available to other retail service providers”.

Both nbn co and Telstra have reportedly furnished the ACCC with proposals aimed at addressing these concerns, which the watchdog says it will carefully examine to ensure a level playing field. No doubt this is merely the latest instalment in the ongoing saga that is the nbn rollout — and there is sure to be more. Stay tuned.

Image credit: ©hans engbers/Dollar Photo Club