Telstra attacks NBN rivals

TELSTRA'S campaign to win the federal Government's $10 billion national broadband network (NBN) deal has shifted up a gear, with the telco launching a volley of stinging criticisms at its competitors.

The prime target was rival bidder Optus, whose financial credentials were questioned.

"There have been absolutely no disclosures by (Optus owner) Singtel to its shareholders through the Australian Securities Exchange," read one of three Telstra missives sent to media this week.

"If Singtel is actually committed to coughing up the finances for the Optus NBN bid, then clearly it has an obligation to disclose this material fact to the ASX. It should stop hiding behind the 'gag', which in no way prevents it from telling the market and the public about such critical facts as where the money is coming from."

But Optus refused to take Telstra's bait. "The details of our bid are for consideration by the Expert Panel and the Government. It is still an early stage of the process and the Government has strict disclosure requirements under the bid. We are sticking to what the Government has asked us to do -- put forward a compliant bid that is in the national interest," an Optus spokesperson said.

Telstra chief operations officer Greg Winn added his voice to the debate, attacking NBN proposals that would allow rival providers to build their own FTTN (fibre-to-the-node) cabinets and connect them to the carrier's copper lines.

Mr Winn described the process, known as sub-loop unbundling, as one of the "dumbest" suggestions he'd ever seen from a regulator.

He was again vocal on Wednesday when he warned of the dangers of structural separation at a Committee for Economic Development of Australia luncheon.

"History and global experience shows us that all you get from separation is a lack of investment, an increase in costs and duplication, and no increase in competition," he said.

Adding more firepower to its NBN campaign arsenal, Telstra also launched an NBN portal on its propaganda website, nowwearetalking.com.au.

Telstra communications chief David Quilty describes the site as a "one-stop-shop for industry commentary and government statements".

In its final sling for the week, Telstra yesterday morning played host to media and analysts. The telco said more government funding would be needed to roll out the NBN to 98 per cent of the population.

Mr Winn said that under Telstra's proposal the Government would need to "at least double plus" its investment in the network.