Two years of regulatory work with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) may have finally paid off for Macquarie Corporate Telecommunications.
So said David Tudehope, chief executive of the company.
Not only is the ACCC close to making a final decision regarding Telstra's monopoly on the local call market and "commercial churn"(see ACCC story page 22), but Macquarie Corporate is "well placed" to take advantage of any changes, thanks to two years of preparation, Tudehope told ComputerWorld.
However, pricing issues are not set to dominate Macquarie Corporate's landscape over the next year. Tudehope said the company's consulting and facilities management areas, new data network and upcoming float will also be important.
The establishment of a nationwide data network across all capital cities and eventually into regional areas is top of the agenda for Macquarie Corporate, Tudehope said.
Scheduled for completion by the middle of the year, he said the ATM-based network deploys new technology which is "more efficient and cheaper" than the data networks from Optus and Telstra, which are close to four years old.
"Our judgement in the last couple of months is that technology has moved so fast . . . there is a real opportunity for us to invest now and have a return on investment," Tudehope said.
Despite being able to offer customers its own data network, Tudehope said Macquarie Corporate will continue to offer Optus and Telstra networks in order to give customers the opportunity of choosing.
Tudehope said Macquarie Corporate is also preparing to list on the Australian Stock Exchange in the second half of the year.
He said the decision to float is part of Macquarie Corporate's "growth curve and the next natural step".
"To grow faster than our normal rate we need to list," he said.
The float will help raise the substantial funds required to expand the data network into regional areas in the future, Tudehope said.