With the class action lawsuit being brought by incensed businesses using, or trying to use, Telstra's ADSL high-speed Internet access service, the carrier's image with the public has been further harmed.
Telstra under pressure as doubts grow over strategy
By Mike Newlands, Australia
30 July 2001
Pressure is mounting on Telstra Corp.'s chief executive Ziggy Switkowski with the company's share price at a three-year low, and falling. Analysts are also becoming increasingly dubious about the Australian incumbent's international joint ventures with the struggling Pacific Century CyberWorks.
A briefing for analysts late last week, including talks from the chief executives of Reach, the backbone joint venture, and regional mobile venture Regional Wireless, failed to convince them that Telstra has got anything like value for its money from the ventures. And some are now suggesting Switkowski is in danger of losing his job.
With the class action lawsuit being brought by incensed businesses using, or trying to use, Telstra's ADSL high-speed Internet access service, the carrier's image with the public has been further harmed.
And now, according to the respected Australian Financial Review, Telstra has made a confidential submission to the Australian Competition Tribunal seeking to almost double the wholesale prices it charges other telcos for use of its network. If the submission were successful it would bring in an extra $100 million in annual revenue, the AFR report claims, but by the same token it would deal a major blow to the cash flow of struggling second-tier telcos.
But what could really damage the smaller carriers if the submission is successful is that it could be backdated to 1999, when the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission decided to fix the wholesale price.
While analysts don't believe Telstra will be successful, news of the submission is not going to make it any more popular or Switkowski's job any easier. |
