buzzanddidj wrote on Mar 1
st, 2012 at 8:19am:
[quote author=5B575C4B380 link=1330550094/2#2 date=1330551196]
I read where Telstra will still be charging for landline even for those who dont want it....
You seem to "read" a LOT of misinformation ?
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OF COURSE IF YOU SAY SOOOOOOOOYou need to keep your old phone line to hook up to the NBN via Telstra.
For all the talk of 21st century infrastructure, Telstra is determined to keep you paying for two cans and a piece of string in order to enjoy the new fibre optic network.
Traditional home phone services are a great money spinner for Telstra so, as you can imagine, the telco is not all that keen on offering "Naked" services which don't include dial tone. Right now if you get your broadband connection via Telstra copper DSL then you have to pay for a phone service, whether you want it or not.
Even if you're with another telco, you still might be forced to pay for a home phone if your internet access comes via the Telstra Wholesale DSL copper network. Thanks to iiNet's recent acquisition of Internode, some customers stuck on a Telstra Wholesale service will be able to migrate to an iiNet/Internode service in the next few months - giving them access to better data plans and the option of Naked DSL.
The National Broadband Network is finally set to break Telstra's stranglehold on Australia's fixed line infrastructure, as all broadband retailers will have equal access to the new network rather than Telstra making the rules. The copper phone lines and metropolitan HFC cable broadband networks will be phased out and people will get their broadband and home phone services over the new fibre network.
Thanks to this new level playing field you'll see a boom in Naked offerings from Telstra's competitors,
but Telstra intends to stick to its guns - forcing customers to pay for a home phone whether they want one or not. Telstra unveiled its new NBN plans this week, with bundles starting at $80 per month for 5 GB at up to 25 Mbps with unlimited local calls thrown in.
At the moment it's possible to sign up for Telstra Cable broadband without paying for a home phone, but Telstra isn't carrying this over to its NBN plans. If you don't want a Telstra bundled plan, you'll still need to pay for a "full service Telstra home phone plan" before you can sign up for an NBN service. Standalone pricing starts at $49.95 per month for 50 GB, but that is only at 25 Mbps and you'll need to play an extra $10 per month for 100 Mbps.
What's really astounding is Telstra phone services will still come in over the ageing copper phone lines, even though you've got a shiny new optical fibre running to your front door. So you can forget about ditching the crackly copper phone line which Telstra has let fall into disrepair but insists is still useable.
Other NBN retailers will offer dial tone over the fibre network and abandon copper completely, yet Telstra will force NBN customers to keep their copper phone line for at least 18 months. After that time it seems likely that Telstra will force customers to pay for a phone line on the fibre NBN network, whether they want it or not.
Telstra's NBN plans are pretty disappointing compared to the competition, but forcing you to keep your old copper phone line just adds insult to injury. But then again all of Telstra's internet plans are generally worse than its competitors but people have stuck with Telstra because they either had no choice or no clue that better services were available.
The NBN rollout out means every home will have a choice when it comes to its internet service provider (remember NBN Co is only a wholesaler, so it owns the network but won't compete against other retailers the way Telstra does now). So there's no reason to stick with Telstra, unless you don't know any better. Telstra's blitzkrieg marketing campaign will tell you it's the way of the future, but it's actually forcing customers to live in the past while it milks them for every cent it can get. Telstra's belief that it retain customers due to "improved customer service" is surely a sick joke.
The storm clouds of true competition are brewing. What should Telstra do to retain customers when real competition arrives at their doorstep?
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14 comments so far
They might spend some that $11 billion dollars the government is giving them to sweeten the deal. It will be interesting to watch it play out.
CommenterDaniel Location Perth Date and time February 29, 2012, 1:52PM
I rent and move regularly and wanted to buy Telstra's exciting new 4G fast mobile internet to move with me when I move house with no relocation fees. I was all ready to sign up for this for $39 per month until whammo the last step says you have to have a full service tesltra landline to get $39 per month otherwise it is $59 per month. The whole benefit of this service to me was that I don't need a fixed line with archaic connection fees, and I could just pick it up and move with me when I go.
CommenterGary G Location Brisbane Date and time February 29, 2012, 3:10PM
If you had provided a compison of the Telstra $59 plan to the equivalent Optus or Vodafone plan and they were cheaper/better then I would rate your issue as a "yes I care" otherwise I'm looking at the discount as a saving becuase I have other Telsta services.
Just like my NRMA Insurance is cheaper because of the multiple cars, house, etc I have with them.
Should you get the same level of discount as I do for your first insurance policy?
Commenterroro1955 Location Gosford, NSW Date and time February 29, 2012, 10:00PM
All fine and well except if you live in a "Telstra Smart Community", which null and voids the whole NBN debate. This is where Telstra have paid the land developer to install Telstra's own Fibre network and no copper lines exist. All services come down the fibre including Free To Air TV. Telstra is the only ISP in this situation, since Telstra owns the Fibre line to the exchange and charges other ISP's top dollar for access, which of course does not then happen. This is outside the NBN, and effectively means Telstra is building its own little NBN and locking a lot of us in, as we have no choice of provider on this Telstra private network. Since its not a copper line, the NBN will not come down my street with a second line, nor do I suspect the NBN will be including these fibre lines in the purchase of the existing copper network from Telstra.
So as crazy as this article makes out Telstra to be in the new world, they have been doing it for a while now to their "Telstra Smart Community" customers which is why this article made me laugh..this is old news to some of us. With no opportunity to change provider like everyone else will have on the NBN, I am resigned to the same bad services, over inflated prices, and metering of broadband both up and down that Telstra have always done.
CommenterRob Location Date and time February 29, 2012, 4:16PM
That's a good point. I've spoken to industry people about this issue in the past but I'll follow up with them and see if there's been any progress as part of the latest Telstra NBN announcements.
CommenterAdam Turner Location Date and time February 29, 2012, 4:31PM
Thank you Julia Gillard. - We will eventually lose (be migrated out of) hard-wired phones, and one of society's most valuable resources, the White Pages. It is essential in business - (I won't give credit to customers who don't haver a fixed place of abode, usually meaning a Plain Simple Phone). With promised massive improvements in quality and speed, why is there to be ANY increase in price for a simple phone line?. Surely those needing speed and bandwidth will be asked to pay a little extra, but for most of the population,. who needs it.. and why will we be hit with massive price rises?
CommenterAnatinus Location Brisbane Date and time February 29, 2012, 5:34PM
You forget that ftth has not been tested in all weather condition or disasters. For example: Plain old copper gracefully dies whereas fibre either works or doesn't. In situations of flooding, when you have pits under water, the line in most cases still works, meaning if you can still dial 000 if need be, otherwise if the fibre is damaged or whatnot, that's it! We don't want another repeat of what happened with the kid who died from asthma in 2003. This is the responsible thing to do until the ACA prove that it is safe enough to only have phone services based on fibre.
Commenterjames Location thailand Date and time February 29, 2012, 6:30PM
The recent outage with Telstra will be nothing once the NBN sends nearly every bit of our data and phone calls into one of two buildings in each major city. If a car hits the wrong pole, it could take out a major chunk of communications for large areas. The NBNCo's solution to this problem has been ignore the advice from other Telcos. If you think the copper is bad after 4 decades, just wait until you see ho bad fibre can get after a decade and so far there is nothing in the projections about its maintenance.
CommenterTim Location Melbourne Date and time February 29, 2012, 6:44PM
Simple solution, don’t use Telstra! The NBN will provide real competition and that is the key word “competition” as something we Australians don’t have now.
CommenterGeorge Naumovski Location Melbourne Date and time February 29, 2012, 7:26PM
Telstra may well be offering what to some may look like an inflexible and over-priced package, but at least now the wholesale and se
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