Foxtel has dropped its plan to offer exclusive content to Telstra broadband subscribers. The pay TV provider informed the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission yesterday of its decision to forgo the content deal, effective July 9.

Foxtel, however, said it "still considers that the public benefits" resulting from offering the proposed service "outweigh any public detriment."

After abandoning the broadband deal, Foxtel announced yesterday it would provide 30 channels to Telstra's new Internet TV service T-Box on a non-exclusive basis.

''Foxtel is working with Telstra to provide Foxtel content on Telstra's T-Box with the intention of providing a comparable offering of channels as we will offer via [Microsoft's] XBox - which is up to 30 channels,'' the pay TV provider said yesterday.

''In view of this fact, and rapidly changing market conditions, we have decided to withdraw our application to the ACCC [Australian Competition and Consumer Commission] seeking approval to provide Foxtel through BigPond ... to your television set via Foxtel's broadband-enabled iQ boxes.''

The supplying of a web-based service over rival consoles will save the pay TV provider the costs of connecting its service to users and the provision of its iQ consolm, and gives it access to a wider audience.

''We think there's great potential. Foxtel already provides content on XBox, so we think there's great opportunity for both Foxtel and T-Box," said Telstra chief executive David Thodey at the launch of T-Box this week.

A Foxtel spokesman confirmed that the original plan to offer downloadable content via the Internet would now possibly be available to all broadband providers, not just Telstra BigPond.