Telstra grew out of the government’s old phone network and is now Australia’s biggest telecommunications company. Here’s how it makes its money, and why your mobile plan matters most.
Telstra is Australia’s largest telecommunications company and one of the biggest companies on the ASX.
It grew out of the government-run telephone network, which became Telecom Australia in 1975 and was renamed Telstra in the 1990s. The government sold it to the public in three stages, in 1997, 1999 and 2006, and millions of Australians bought shares. Its financial year ends on 30 June.
Mobile matters most
Mobile is Telstra’s biggest and most profitable business. It has the largest mobile network in Australia, covering more of the country than its rivals, Optus and TPG Telecom, which owns Vodafone. That coverage lets it charge more than its competitors.
It earns money from monthly phone plans, prepaid services, and wholesale deals with other brands that use its network. In recent years, it has raised the price of its mobile plans, which has lifted its earnings.
The NBN, businesses and infrastructure
Since the National Broadband Network took over the country’s fixed-line network, Telstra mostly resells NBN internet plans, which earn thin margins. It was paid billions of dollars by NBN Co for moving customers onto the new network and for access to its pits, pipes and exchanges.
Telstra also sells phone, internet, cloud and security services to businesses and governments, although this part of the business has struggled with competition.
It owns valuable infrastructure, including its InfraCo network of fibre and exchanges, and is building a new intercity fibre network. It sold a 49 per cent stake in its mobile towers business, Amplitel, in 2021. Telstra International runs its networks overseas, including Digicel Pacific, which it bought in 2022 with financial support from the federal government.
Connected Future 30 and the risks
Vicki Brady has been chief executive since 2022. Telstra’s current strategy, Connected Future 30, runs to 2030 and aims to grow earnings while keeping costs down, partly through technology such as AI. It has cut jobs as part of that.
The risks include competition from rivals, network outages that damage customer trust, the cost of maintaining a national network, and regulation. Telstra is one of the most widely held shares in Australia, and is popular for its fully franked dividends.
Latest results, as at 9 November 2026
Full year to June 2026, reported 13 August 2026: total revenue slipped 0.8 per cent to $22.9 billion, but underlying earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation rose 4 per cent to $8.3 billion, and underlying profit rose 4.9 per cent to $2.5 billion. Mobile services revenue rose 4.8 per cent, helped by higher prices.
Telstra paid total dividends of 21 cents a share, up 10.5 per cent, and announced a share buyback of up to $1 billion. For the 2027 financial year, it expects underlying earnings of $8.5 billion to $8.8 billion.
Next update: Telstra reports its half-year results, to December 2026, in February 2027.
