"Jonathan Wilson" <jfwfreo@tpgi.com.au> wrote in message
news:47458c0f$1@dnews.tpgi.com.au...
> No government should be telling a private business that it has to maintain
> a service (i.e CDMA) that it no longer wishes to maintain. Telstra is a
> private business and has the right to decide to stop offering services
> just like any other private business.

Wrong answer. As a telco, Telstra needs to hold a carrier licence, and the
Commonwealth can add conditions or requirements that the licence holders
needs to meet.

>
> Any private business should be free to stop offering any product or
> service without government interference. For example, an airline should be
> free to discontinue any routes that it decides to discontinue, a retail
> store should be free to stop carrying any item that it currently carries.
> And, like those other businesses, a mobile phone provider should be free
> to stop supporting any networks, protocols, technologies, phones or
> services that they choose to stop supporting.

That would be fine, however Telstra is an ex-government monopoly that would
stomp on all competition otherwise.

>
> The government should butt out and let the marketplace sort itself out. If
> a private business does not provide services that consumers want, someone
> else will step in and provide it as long as the demand is there. e.g. if a
> shop stops selling eggs, someone else will step in and start selling eggs
> if the market wants eggs. If an airline stops flying to a given airport,
> another airline will come in and fly to that airport if the market wants
> to fly to that airport. And if Telstra stops providing cellphone service
> to a given location, another carrier will step in and provide that service
> if the market wants cell service in that location.
>
> The only time the government should step in is if a company is abusing its
> power to ensure that services are not provided to people that want said

Telstra has along history of abusing power; th TIO figures are plain
enought to demonstrate this.

> services. As long as there is adequate competition, the government should
> stay out of it and let the market sort it out. And where there are
> government rules that are restricting competition (such as rules about
> which airlines can fly to which airports) the government should work to
> remove such obstacles to competition (unless such rules are required to
> maintain Australia's quarantine and/or the health and safety of its
> citizens)



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