Published on the 19/10/2011 | Written by Newsdesk
Telstra shareholders have overwhelmingly voted to hand over the company’s fixed line network to the National Broadband Network in an $11 billion deal…
Following two years of negotiations, the deal will see Telstra transfer its customers to the National Broadband Network and shut down its copper network.
Telstra CEO David Thodey called The NBN network “a transformational event in the history of this industry” and said that it provides Telstra “with new strategic opportunities”.
“It does provide us with a unique opportunity to accelerate the investments in this new generation of technology.”
While more than 99 percent of the shareholder voters backed the deal, the move has yet to receive approval from The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Prime Minister Gillard said that 500 hundred jobs will be created in the Wollongong construction phase alone, and said that the network will bring further benefits to Australia, including “access to new markets for current businesses [who will] literally be able to deal with the rest of Australia and the rest of the world as if it was at their door.”
