The ACCC is taking Telstra, Optus and TPG to court, hoping to exact a large enough penalty to prevent future misleading conduct.

The consumer watchdog is suing Telstra, Optus and TPG over allegations the three telco operators misled hundreds of thousands of customers over NBN speeds.
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has initiated separate legal proceedings against the three companies in the Federal Court, specifically related to guarantees they made about fibre-to-the-node connections between April 1, 2019 and April 30, 2020.
Many NBN customers could not get the speeds they were paying for, but were never told, the ACCC says.
ACCC chairman Rod Sims said that the companies had previously given undertakings that they would tell customers in a timely manner whether they could get the speeds they were paying for. While this appeared to have happened for some customers, reports indicated that for hundreds of thousands of others it had not.
Internet speed is hugely important. The companies in general show a lack of regard to their customers, and I think a lack of regard for the law, Mr Sims said.
ACCC Chair Rod Sims.Credit:Dominic Lorrimer
We could have taken them to court for this in 2017, but in the end just accepted an undertaking that they fix this up. The idea that they didnt take the undertaking they gave to us seriously is of great concern to us. And so thats why well be going for particularly high penalties.
The ACCC pointed to statements made by the three companies starting in 2019 that lines would be tested within a matter of weeks of connection to ascertain the maximum attainable speed. If that speed was less than was promised in the plan, customers would be contacted with options for alternatives.
The three companies have now apologised and said they would reach out to customers who never received those notifications, offering refunds. But Mr Sims said he believed that the companies did not have sufficient systems in place to make good on their promises, that they had made false, illegal representations, and that they would continue to do so unless courts gave them an incentive not to.
Were taking two or three cases a year between these three telecommunications companies, where theyre misleading consumers or not treating their consumers very well, he said.