Telstra launches 200GB ADSL assault

Telstra has again put the squeeze on its competitors by undercutting resellers of its wholesale ADSL ports by up to $100 a month on high-quota plans.

The telco confirmed rumoured plans yesterday, by slashing the cost of its BigPond Elite products, shaving $40 a month off the 50GB plan and $90 a month from its 200GB offer.

The aggressive move widened the gap between the incumbent's retail and wholesale prices and will renew pressure on competition regulators to intervene.

ISP Internode last week accused Telstra of engaging in "anti-competitive conduct" in a letter to Australian Competition and Consumer Commission chairman Graeme Samuel.

Telstra's 200GB plan was now $89.95 a month when bundled with a "full-service fixed phone" from the carrier.

Internode's 200GB ‘Fast' plan (which used Telstra Wholesale infrastructure) was $189.95 a month - now $100 (rather than $10) more than Telstra's retail equivalent.

At the weekend, Internode managing director Simon Hackett said he expected "to add ... to the complaint already filed" against Telstra with the regulator.

By 8am, Hackett posted in the Whirlpool forums that Internode staff were "off talking to the ACCC", promising that "lots is going on behind the scenes".

He said Internode "can't and won't go broke matching pricing [on resold Telstra ports] that is now so far underwater financially that it would be insane to try".

Hackett said that Internode would "re-examine our pricing where we can do something especially on our own ports and Optus ones in the light of the new BigPond release".

"We think we're worth the prices we charge today - and the history of past price squeezes has shown us that the world doesn't end when such things happen," he wrote.

"We'll keep doing a great job for everyone who trusts us to do so."

Telstra ignited the price war earlier this year with a short-term 25GB offer for the $50 sweet spot in the market.