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April 23, 2007
Optus: where the buck never stops
Optus got half-way to being gracious about the network fault that denied up to 200,000 Melbourne mobile customers service on the weekend. It did actually apologise for a fault that also sent SMS messages from other networks into the electronic version of the garbage tip. What it didn't do was accept responsibility.
According to an Optus spokesman, the problem was "a vendor-related hardware fault". In other words, a piece of hardware failed. We seem to recall the same ducking and weaving and finger-pointing in a previous Optus debacle. Oh yes. Here it is: another "vendor-related fault".
But hang on, Mr Optus. Equipment fails all the time. This time it took you nine hours to identify and fix the fault. Hasn't anybody there heard of the concept of redundancy, or fault-tolerant design? It's alarming enough for a public telephone network to be beset by a series of escalating debacles. It's much worse when its response is to point the finger at a supplier. Aren't you supposed to have engineers on staff who design, test and monitor the network, to prevent these nasty little faults, or at least ensure the network can recover quickly? Nine hours off the air because a piece of hardware went down is simply unacceptable. And blaming someone else for your own serious shortcomings is unseemly, to say the least. In our view, consumers should steer clear of companies that act like this. They're duds.
We criticise Telstra constantly - usually for charging WAAY too much for its services - but they at least know how to run a phone network.
Posted by cw at April 23, 2007 05:19 PM
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Comments
It is outrages that optus tries to pass the buck! and what is worse, will not offer customers any form of compensation for the 9 - 10 hour downtime. Many people think that because its not during business hour its fine for the network to go down.
However what bout the hundreds of people out on saturday night trying to get home, calling taxis etc...
and then the lost sms...
Posted by: Laurence at April 24, 2007 01:37 PM
i was on my way home when my phone wasn't working. i bashed the crap out of the phone thinking it was the phone, and i didn't get the SMS.
so i had to use the public phone by Telstra to ring home. hmmmmm, they got my $0.40. was the equipment second hand off telstra!!??
ohh my phone is ok, it can take a few bashing.
Posted by: gto_pontiac ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://bleedingedge.com.au/blog/nav-commenters.gif)
at April 27, 2007 01:14 AM