From: Steve Olive [steve@skecscomputers.com.au]
Sent: Friday, 22 August 2003 8:31 AM
To: ECITA, Committee (SEN)
Cc: Peter.Andren@aph.gov.au
Subject: Telstra Sale
I object to any further sale of Telstra. Any sale would have a severe impact on communications in rural and regional Australia. The current infrastructure is severely degraded and new installations are placed behind equipment that doesn't support any advancing of communication methods - broadband Internet access at speeds recognised by the digital community as broadband not Telstra's lame definition of 128 kbps download speeds that have been available at exorbitant prices for a number of years. When you sell Telstra off completely you will be creating Australia's Microsoft - a totally dominant organisation with little regard for community requirements or desire to support areas that don't drive high profit.

If the Australian Government was serious about equal access to communications in all of Australia they would recognise that they have sold as much of Telstra as is possible. They should take control of the infrastructure and provide equal access to this infrastructure to all telecommunications companies including Telstra which would now be operating the "profitable" section of Telstra (as Telstra frequently state that they lose money on "the last mile").

Yours faithfully,

Steve Olive
138 Stewart Street
Bathurst NSW 2795
0407 224 251