L-R: Vicki Brady (Telstra), Iñaki Berroeta (TPG Telecom)
The war of words between Australia’s largest telcos has heated up as TPG and Telstra accuses Optus of “twisting” their proposed 10-year network-sharing agreement.
Following Optus’ comments that the agreement was a “uniquely one-sided network sharing arrangement”, Telstra and TPG have claimed Optus’ leadership team is “leverag[ing] the suffering of communities affected by bushfires and floods in social media stunts” to criticise the proposal.
In a joint submission to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), TPG and Telstra accused Singtel-owned Optus of “scaremongering” and of using “emotionally manipulative” images of kangaroos escaping bushfires in its advertising.
“It is a disappointment to our industry Optus chose to use emotionally manipulative images of kangaroos seeking to escape a bushfire, in an increasingly desperate attempt to stop a competition-enhancing arrangement,” the two said in a statement. “Such posts have been recognised by the Australian public for exactly what they are: misguided and inappropriate.”
In addition, the duo hit back at Optus’ use of the word “merger” in its submission to the ACCC arguing against the deal, claiming the wording “mischaracterises” the deal.
“Contrary to the assertions of Optus, this is not a merger,” said James Rickards, TPG general manager of external affairs.
“To suggest otherwise is an attempt to mislead the public, industry and key stakeholders in the hope of creating controversy where none exists. This is an infrastructure sharing agreement in the interests of all Australians.
“Similarly, statements regarding the arrangements for pooling of spectrum in the shared network have seemingly been twisted intentionally.”
Announced in February, the deal will allow TPG access to 3,700 of Telstra’s mobile network assets, while TPG will decommission around 725 mobile sites it currently operates within Telstra's coverage area.
Meanwhile, Telstra will obtain access to and deploy infrastructure on up to 169 of TPG Telecom’s existing mobile sites as well as some of its existing 4G and 5G spectrum in regional areas.
Optus however claimed the deal will effectively “eliminate choice” in regional Australia and “undermine” and “lock out” any further regional investment from other players, including itself.
Responding to this, Telstra and TPG, said the regional sharing arrangement will “benefit all Australian consumers by increasing the choice of mobile service providers in regional Australia”.
They also noted that Australia Tower Network (ATN), which is commercially tied to the investment decisions of Optus and is owned by Singtel, is also opposing the deal.
“ATN’s submission appears motivated by concerns its shareholders may not recover what they paid for the Optus and Axicom towers, which appears to have been based on obtaining TPG as a new tenant in regional Australia. TPG has no intention of materially building out its regional coverage and was never a possible customer of ATN in regional Australia,” a statement by the companies read.
In a statement to ARN, Optus noted that the ACCC has received an "application for merger authorisation from Telstra Corporation Limited (Telstra) and TPG Telecom Limited (TPG).”
"Optus has consulted with recognised experts and reviewed the facts surrounding Telstra and TPG’s proposal – and we’ve lodged our concerns with the ACCC through our submission, which is available online along with the experts’ reports," a spokesperson said.
"We are convinced this arrangement will undermine competition, and Australia’s regional consumers and businesses will be worse off if it is allowed to proceed."
