Live: Telstra CEO to be grilled over nationwide outage and compensation

live Live: Telstra CEO to be grilled over nationwide outage and compensation Telstra CEO Vicki Brady and senior executives will be grilled over the nationwide outage that disrupted business, transport and access to the Triple Zero emergency system. Follow the day's financial news and insights from our specialist business reporters on our live blog. Disclaimer: this blog is not intended as investment advice. Live updates New: Filters Choose what information you see below by using filters Fri 17 Jul 2026 at 7:46am Program for inquiry into Telstra Triple Zero outage A Senate committee is examining the Telstra outage in parliament today. Set your clock for midday when it begins. The ABC Business team will be here to report and analyse what it finds. Here's who'll be there. From Telstra - Vicki Brady, Chief Executive Officer - Michael Ackland, Chief Financial Officer (the man who was answering questions on the day of the outage) - Jane Elkington, National Manager, Triple Zero - Gerard Tracey, Group Owner, End-to-End Service Performance and Resilience - Bill Gallagher, Executive, Regulatory and Legal - Lanai Scarr, Head of Government Relations Then, set for 2pm, reps from the regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA): - Nerida O'Loughlin, Chair and Agency Head - Cathy Rainsford, General Manager, Consumer Division - Elizabeth Quinn, Executive Manager, Triple Zero Then it's time for the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts: - David Mackay, Deputy Secretary, Communications, Media and Sport Group - Lisa La Rance, First Assistant Secretary, Communications & Markets Division - Clare Chapple, First Assistant Secretary, Triple Zero Custodian Division - Jennie Hood, Assistant Secretary, Triple Zero Custodian Division It's all set to wrap up by 3pm. Fri 17 Jul 2026 at 7:18am Countdown on for answers from Telstra's bosses From midday, Telstra's chief executive and senior executives will be questioned at a Senate committee about the recent disruptive outage that put lives in danger when intermittent faults meant customers could not contact emergency services. One of the key questions will be about potential compensation. Already, Victoria's Premier Jacinta Allan flagged Telstra would match compensation given to stranded regional rail passengers: "Telstra should compensate Victorians and help make sure it never happens again. "To start with, V/Line will reimburse regional rail passengers who incurred extra costs. "I expect Telstra to match it, dollar for dollar." But the biggest impact is with individual businesses. This great article from colleagues Lin Lin and Ahmed Yussuf lays out some of the issues. Under Australian Consumer Law, services that cost less than $100,000 are generally covered by consumer guarantees, including a requirement that they be provided with due care and skill. The protections can apply to individuals and small businesses and cannot be excluded by contract. Compensation is not guaranteed, but affected customers can still make a claim, and Telstra has published online complaint forms for residential and small business customers. Businesses claiming direct financial losses must explain the impact, estimate the amount sought and provide evidence such as booking records, invoices, EFTPOS reports, accounting records or comparable sales. Last week, chief financial officer Michael Ackland said complaints would be handled on a "case-by-case basis". He's on the list for questioning from midday today. Let's see how that line holds up. Fri 17 Jul 2026 at 7:05am Market snapshot ASX 200 futures: -0.2% to 8,785 points Australian dollar: -0.1% at 69.93 US cents Dow Jones: -0.2% to 52,552 points S&P 500: -0.5% to 7,533 points Nasdaq: -1.5% to 25,881 points FTSE: +0.5% to 10,572 points EuroStoxx: +1% to 643 points Spot gold: -2.2% to $US3,972/ounce Brent crude: flat at $US84.94/barrel Iron ore: -0.1% to $US98.88/tonne Bitcoin: -1% to $US64,056 Prices current around 7:00am AEDT. Live updates on the major ASX indices: Key Event Fri 17 Jul 2026 at 7:00am Let's get going Good morning! Hello, I'm Daniel Ziffer from the ABC business team and I'll be taking you through the morning on our business, finance and economics blog. Overnight, Wall Street indices were lower. The blue-chip Dow Jones of 30 mega-companies, including Boeing and Visa, was -0.2% to 52,552 points. The broader S&P 500, which covers 500 of the largest listed companies in the US, -0.5% to 7,533 points. The tech-heavy Nasdaq was -1.5% to 25,881 points. Our market is set to be marginally lower, with the ASX 200 futures index tipping a fall of -0.2% or 14 points to 8,785 points. There's lots to get to, all of it news, analysis and information and none of it financial advice. LoadingLet’s get started! [Image text:] ASX LAST VOL STOCK BID OFFER 0.255 0.000 HIGHTECH METAL 0.205 0.205 0.105 HIGHFIELDRESOU 0.185 0.035 0.035 0.036 HILLGROVE RESOI 0.970 0.970 0.965 000'0 GROUP 0.043 0.050 AGES 0.000