Home / Business and Economy / Telstra Outage Cost Economy Over $550M
Telstra Outage Cost Economy Over $550M
13 Oct
Summary
- Nationwide outage cost Australian economy $552 million.
- Telstra paid out $1 million in compensation.
- Outage caused by GPS card reset date error.
A significant nationwide mobile outage experienced by Telstra in July has resulted in an estimated $552 million economic loss for Australia. This figure, presented by FTI Consulting for the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN), far exceeds the roughly $1 million Telstra has disbursed in compensation for the disruption. Consumer advocates emphasize that households and small businesses bore the substantial economic burden of the event.
The extensive outage, which impacted over 8 million Australians, began on July 8 when a GPS card in a Melbourne equipment room malfunctioned after a power supply replacement. This caused the network to incorrectly register the date as 2006. FTI Consulting's analysis identified direct costs of approximately $130 million, with lost business productivity being the largest single component at $104.2 million. The total economic impact, including flow-on effects, reached $552 million in lost gross domestic product.
ACCAN is advocating for increased compensation caps for non-financial loss, suggesting an increase from $1500 to around $15,000. Discussions are also underway in the Senate regarding the Universal Outdoor Mobile Obligation bill, which aims to grant the communications minister power to establish enforceable reliability standards for mobile networks. ACCAN supports amendments for enforceability and the introduction of domestic roaming.
