The Competitive Carrier’s Coalition today described Telstra’s statement this morning that there was a gap between its financial expectations on a National Broadband Network deal and those of NBN Co as practically being blackmail.

“This statement is little more than an extortion note to the Government,” said the lobby group in a statement. The CCC represents a number of telcos such as Primus, iiNet, AAPT and more — but not Telstra. It is led by David Forman.

Telstra, the NBN Co and the Federal Government have been negotiating for months on the exact terms of which the telco would work with NBN Co on migrating its retail customers across to the planned new fibre network and other matters such as access to Telstra’s infrastructure.

“Currently there is a significant gap between Telstra and NBN Co on what each party considers to be an acceptable financial outcome, and there are also a range of commercial matters that are yet to be agreed,” the telco said in a brief update to shareholders on the status of the talks.

But the CCC said the statement translated into “a demand that taxpayers bail it out of the hole it has dug for itself, presumably to the tune of billions of dollars”. “It is clear that NBNco has refused to pay an inflated price for Telstra’s assets, so Telstra has declared it is going to continue to frustrate good policy unless it is paid-off by taxpayers,” the CCC said.

The lobby group further slammed Telstra for what it said was the telco’s success in blocking reform legislation in the Senate.

Communications Minister Stephen Conroy is currently facing difficulties in getting his wide-ranging package of telecommunications reform legislation through the Senate, with the Opposition having pledged to vote against the bill and the Greens — crucial to getting it passed — threatening to pull their support if Conroy does not table the NBN implementation study which lays out the future of the network.

Among other things, the reform package contains provisions for breaking up Telstra into retail and wholesale arms.

“Senators who believed Telstra’s claims last week that negotiations were serious and on-going, and that reforms to support consumers and competition should be stalled in the meantime, should today hang their heads in shame,” said the CCC.

It claimed Telstra had made senators look like “laughing stock” by revealing the truth the day after Parliament had adjourned. “Such senators have learnt a lesson that competitors long ago learnt – there is no such thing as a negotiation with Telstra.”

The CCC also called for the Government to “expose Telstra’s contempt for the public and the parliament” by immediately releasing McKinsey and KPMG’s report into how the NBN should be implemented.

“Clearly, Telstra’s bargaining position with the NBNco is weak or else it would not be demanding taxpayer handouts. If this is reflected in the implementation study, taxpayers, senators and Telstra shareholders deserve to know it,” said the CCC.

Image credit: Mateusz Stachowski, royalty free

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