Telcos preview ACCC pricing submissions

Submissions close this week on the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) Review of Access Pricing, where telcos say how they think pricing for Telstra's customer access network should look.

Back in 1997, the ACCC provided guidance on the pricing approach, but since then there has been nothing but uncertainty, with a continual reassessment of prices that has satisfied no one, not even Telstra.

In this week's Twisted Wire we talk to Telstra, Optus and Macquarie Telecom, as they feverishly apply their finishing touches to their ACCC submissions. They reveal their hand early, just for us.

You'll hear from:

• Jane Van Beelen — acting executive director of Regulatory Affairs, Telstra
• Andrew Sheridan — general manager of Regulatory Affairs, Optus
• Chris Zull — senior manager Regulatory & Government, Macquarie Telecom

We try to get to the bottom of some of the arguments over this complex issue and learn a few accounting terms in the process. Click the play button on the player above and in 30 minutes you'll be an expert in regulatory pricing principles.