More soccer investment

Optus' $63 million a year move to take the EPL rights from Foxtel in 2016, hasn't always provided a smooth public relations run for the telco. Its early performance was marred by technical troubles as viewers grappled with the new world of live online sports streaming.

However, Mr Lew said its ability to broadcast multiple matches live had improved immeasurably over the last 18 months and its expensive gamble had paid off from the perspective of customer acquisition and retention. He had now committed "multiple millions" to its coverage of the 2018 World Cup in Russia, where it is the only outlet, which will show every match (SBS also has some games.)

It will employ 80 dedicated staff in Australia and on the ground in Russia, creating its own shows, rather than relying on international feeds to fill two 24-hour dedicated World Cup channels.

"This is not just about taking market share from my competitors, or profits, it is about how we are changing the face of Optus in the mind of the average consumer," Mr Lew said.

Optus says its coverage of the English Premier League has been successful in attracting and retaining customers, but does not declare how many people are watching matches. Anthony Devlin

"If I want to keep on bidding for EPL in the next three seasons, bid for the Champions League and the European Nations Cup that we got recently, then Australians must feel that we have the credibility to be a content provider, not just someone who connects them to the internet."

He said he believed Optus was setting itself apart from other internet and mobile providers by competing clearly on the quality of content provided with its subscriptions as opposed to running ads with different arrays of dollar amounts and data allowances.


He said that, rather than shying away from the kind of bid that many were shocked by for the EPL, he was steeling himself to battle others to retain the rights, which expire at the end of next season.

"We are never confident, because competitors are always nipping at our heels, so I am certainly very paranoid about that. We will be bidding for the next round of EPL and we will be bidding very aggressively for it," Mr Lew said.

Telstra chief executive Andy Penn is also trying to broaden the focus of his company, but is following a different plan to Optus. Louise Kennerley

Taking on Telstra in 5G

In the traditional telecommunications realm, it is no doubt that the battleground for the next couple of years will centre around the emergence and adoption of 5G.

In previous generations of mobile technology, Telstra has enjoyed commercial success by virtue of being able to boast the superior network in the early days. Mr Lew said this would not be the case with 5G and said Optus already had a lead, through being the only telco to currently have the relevant spectrum available to demonstrate how 5G will perform, and plans to have the first product – fixed wireless internet – available from next January.

Optus is the official partner of April's Commonwealth Games on the Gold Coast and will use the event to demonstrate the differences customers can expect on their devices when 5G becomes available.

"We will be showing things like soccer, robotics and cycling where people can experience how the latency on 5G compares with 4G. This is one of the biggest advantages of 5G," Mr Lew said.


5G is set to become the next battleground between Optus and Telstra. Mr Lew says Optus has a jumpstart. Shutterstock.com

"People will notice when they are playing games or interacting with a machine with robotics will be less lagginess. The response time of the machine or the game app will be significantly faster than 4G. The latency is significantly reduced, from double-digit milliseconds to one or two milliseconds."

Mr Lew said he expected mobile devices, equipped to work on 5G to start emerging in mid-2019, and said Optus expected to be able to offer the best network in Australia. Pointing to benchmark tests by global telecommunications publisher P3 in December, which rated Optus' 4G network ahead of Telstra and Vodafone, he said convincing Australians it was winning the technical battle would be crucial.

"Until the auction will come up in the second half of the year, we believe we are the only telco that has the 5G Spectrum today, so that means we have the ability to demonstrate to the public that we are well on the way to delivering 5G," Mr Lew said.

"I certainly believe that with 4G we have taken that mantle away from Telstra and we will defend that mantle vigorously, regardless of technology, whether that is 4G or 5G."