Telstra faced Federal Court proceedings last week, following allegations made by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission that Telstra call centre representatives misinformed One.Tel Next Generation customers by telling them they would incur early termination fees if they transferred their mobile phone service to any mobile phone service provider other than Telstra, or did not transfer to Telstra before a certain date.
However, it's the view of the ACCC that the customer must not incur a penalty when it is the business that stopped providing its services - as is the case when One.Tel Administrators turned off the Next Generation mobile phone network on June 9, 2001.
The case was adjourned following an interim injunction ordered by the Court against Telstra that there be no further representations of this kind be made to One.Tel Next Generation customers.
"The ACCC welcomes the court making the interim injunction order which the Commission was seeking. This vindicates the ACCC's swift action," ACCC chairman, Professor Allan Fels, said in a statement.
"Any failure by Telstra to comply with this interim injunction order would be at risk of constituting contempt of court."
The ACCC claims it wrote to Telstra with its allegations on June 29, seeking assurances that these representations would not be made.
On July 2, Telstra denied the behaviour was occurring but said that it had issued instructions to prevent the behaviour happening, according to the ACCC.
The competition watchdog produced evidence to the court that the behaviour continued, at least in respect of calls made by ACCC staff to the Telstra call centre, contrary to Telstra's advice of July 2.
Telstra has continued to publicly deny that any such representations as the ACCC alleges have been made.
The ACCC said that it will now continue with the case and seek declarations of unlawful conduct, a permanent injunction to ensure the behaviour is not repeated, an opportunity for consumers who may have been misled to rescind their new Telstra contracts without penalty, corrective advertisements and a compliance program by Telstra.
