NBN Co must pay TPG, Canberra VDSL2 users for disconnection notice bungle
https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-must-pay-tpg-canberra-vdsl2-users-for-disconnection-notice-bungle-548857
NBN Co misled Canberra consumers about needing to move to the NBN
https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/nbn-co-misled-canberra-consumers-about-needing-to-move-to-the-nbn
On the one hand it's good to see action at last.
On the other hand, the absence of any meaningful penalty means that
there's no deterrent against such breaches by NBNCo or anyone else.
It seems more like an open invitation to organisations to breach the
law. That's because:
(a) the chances of attracting the attention of a resource-limited
regulator are pretty low; and
(b) the costs are limited to reparations, and hence a rational
company can see a net profit from breaking the law, even if
they get caught out.
It was particularly galling that the blunder (if that's what it was) was
committed in relation to domestic premises as late as the first half of
2019.
In July *2018*, I drew the same errors in relation to business premises
to the attention of NBNCo's Exec GM, Business Sales and Marketing, Ben
Salmon. He replied, but vacuously. To me, that's indicative of an
intention to flout the law.
See the email exchange below.
-----Original Message-----
From: Roger Clarke [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: Thursday, 26 July 2018 4:00 PM
To: Ben Salmon <[email protected]>
Subject: Re: 'Your business is ready to be connected'
Dear Exec Assistant to Ben Salmon
Emails to [email protected] and [email protected] bounced.
I then emailed to [email protected], [email protected].
The ceo address bounced.
However - apparent success - the Ben.Salmon one didn't.
A copy is below.
I'd greatly appreciate an acknowledgement of receipt (and a substantive
response in due course).
I appreciate that your standard practice may well be to send
acknowledgements of receipt, but given the uncertainties involved with
email-addresses, this one's particularly important.
Many thanks ... Roger Clarke
______________________________
Mr Ben Salmon
Executive General Manager
Business Sales and Marketing
NBNCo
100 Arthur St
North Sydney NSW 2060
Dear Ben
On 25 July 2018, I received a letter from you, addressed "To the
manager", and bearing the date 18 July 2018, reference Location ID:
LOC000111875787.
It declares to me that "Your business is ready to be connected". As
will be apparent from what follows, that catchphrase may be appealing to
a marketing consultancy or a PR person, but it's quite wrong, both for
my business and, I'm sure, for many others that receive the letter.
Your letter informs me that "Most existing landline phone and internet
[sic] networks in your area will be disconnected from 17 January 1920".
It is then vague about whether my services are affected by that stipulation.
Your letter and the accompanying brochure refer to "landline" multiple
times, although there is also a mention of "copper" on p.5 of the brochure.
As far as I could see, nothing on the NBNCo web-site, including the
FAQs, provides any meaningful assistance with the uncertainties created
by your letter.
I eventually found small-print on p.9 of the brochure, which refers to
"landline networks, including copper and the majority of HFC networks
within the fixed line footprint" and says "fibre networks ... may not be
affected".
1. It would be helpful to recipients if your letter contained the
correct date, which is 25 January 2020 (i.e. both the day and the year
were wrong).
2. It would be helpful to recipients, if your letter wasn't vague about
whether any landlines to the identified Location will or will not (under
current arrangements) be disconnected on the relevant date.
3. It would be helpful to recipients if your letter explained quite
specifically what "landline" means in their particular context.
3.1 Does 'landline' include the coax cables used by both Telstra and
Optus to support their (originally) PayTV service? (To NBNCo or a
telecomms engineer, "HFC networks" may mean the same thing, but your
letter is addressed to managers of mostly small businesses).
3.2 Does 'landline' include the coax cables used for many years by
TransACT/iiNet/TPG to deliver a VDSL/2 service in many parts of Canberra?
The Location in question lies within the TransACT footprint, so
presumably everyone who uses the TransACT service has received or will
receive the same letter, and has been or will be left wondering what it
actually means.
It's particularly confusing given that:
(a) TransACT users have copper running from the nearest node to their
premises, which appears to be included within the "landline networks,
including copper" that you say will be "disconnected"; and
(b) TransACT users already have a VDSL2 modem, but they see on pp.8-9
that they will need ... a VDSL2 modem.
3.3 Does it include fixed-wireless services, particularly those *not*
run by NBNCo?
It's completely inadequate to attempt, as your letter and brochure do,
to deflect these questions to the incumbent ISP and other retailers.
This is all basic information, NBNCo knows the answers, and you, on
behalf of your company, have an obligation to provide that information
to the organisations and individuals you send this notification to.
Would you please provide meaningful responses to the above questions, in
writing, either via email reply-to, or by snail-mail.
Thank you for your consideration
Roger Clarke
-------- Forwarded Message --------
Subject: RE: 'Your business is ready to be connected'
Date: Thu, 26 Jul 2018 06:58:23 +0000
From: Ben Salmon <[email protected]>
To: Roger Clarke <[email protected]>
Hi Roger,
Thanks for your note. I apologise for the incorrect date in your letter
- I'll certainly look into this to understand how that happened and how
to prevent it in future.
Our reason for directing enquiries to retail service providers is that
nbn has limited information about individual end-users or their retail
services.
Thank you.
Ben
--
Roger Clarke mailto:[email protected]
T: +61 2 6288 6916 http://www.xamax.com.au http://www.rogerclarke.com
Xamax Consultancy Pty Ltd 78 Sidaway St, Chapman ACT 2611 AUSTRALIA
Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Law University of N.S.W.
Visiting Professor in Computer Science Australian National University
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