NBN Co's continued refusal to ensure regulatory oversight on contracts it offers to telcos is preventing them from reaching deals with the company tasked to manage the rollout of the $36 billion National Broadband Network.

According to The Australian, complaints have been aired by iiNet, Macquarie Telecom, Optus and Telstra, with all of them lamenting that NBN CEO Mike Quigley has been stonewalling on their request that the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission be given oversight functions on signed agreements.

The telcos insisted that such provisions would serve as their insurance policy against unforeseen events.

Australian telecommunication firms have little choice but to agree with NBN's legislated broadband monopoly, yet so-called deficiencies on contracts offered by the company prompted them to hold off on signing for now.

"We can't sign this agreement when there's no reciprocal risk to the NBN Co if it fails to deliver a service to us or it's negligent," iiNet's Steve Dalby told The Australian in expressing his company's serious reservation.

Representatives of Optus and Telstra also indicated that it would be prudent to study the matter before entering into any official agreement with NBN.

In a statement, Optus reminded Quigley that "a fundamental element of the NBN policy is that NBN Co be tightly regulated ... yet as it stands the WBA moves away from this commitment and seeks to limit the role of the ACCC."

The meat of the matter, according to Macquarie Telecom, is "why doesn't NBN Co want to agree to the full oversight of the ACCC in relation to dealings with the rest of the industry?"

In a reaction, however, Quigley maintained that many of the claims aired by dissenting telcos are fraught with inaccuracies as he informed The Australian that amidst the protestations coming from these key industry players, NBN Co is in the process of reaching agreement with small and independent firms.

One company, had in fact, signed the NBN contract and another batch will follow suit by next week, Quigley said.

The NBN chief also issued assurances that recourse will be provided for telcos that will come in agreement with the contract, which include clauses that give the ACCC sufficient regulatory role in the deal.

At the same time, Quigley urged these telcos to refrain from creating issues arrayed against NBN Co. and instead focus on delivering excellent broadband services to their customers.