tag:theconversation.com,2011:/global/topics/nbn-network-6130/articlesNBN network – The Conversation2024-03-06T06:18:49Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2251682024-03-06T06:18:49Z2024-03-06T06:18:49ZNBN upgrade: what a free speed increase for fast broadband plans would mean for consumers and retailers<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580058/original/file-20240306-26-onsg4t.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C10%2C2396%2C1688&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">NBN Co</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The National Broadband Network may offer a significant speed boost to many users, if a <a href="https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/rowland/media-release/fibre-investment-unlocks-proposal-turbo-charge-speeds-nbn">plan from NBN Co</a>, the operator of the network, is implemented. NBN Co’s proposed upgrade would provide download speeds up to five times faster for users on its three fastest home services (Home Fast, Home Superfast and Home Ultrafast).</p>
<p>The speed boost would come at no extra wholesale cost to retailers. On its face, this is an exciting announcement that aims to meet consumer demand for higher speed broadband connections to the internet. </p>
<p>NBN Co has <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/media-centre/media-statements/nbn-plans-to-accelerate-highest-speed-tiers">highlighted</a> the rationale for this move. The average Australian household now has around 22 internet-connected devices, and this is expected to grow to 33 by 2026. Data usage per household has doubled in the past five years, and now averages 443 gigabytes per month.</p>
<p><iframe id="NmLBb" class="tc-infographic-datawrapper" src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/NmLBb/1/" height="400px" width="100%" style="border: none" frameborder="0"></iframe></p>
<h2>Why do people want more data?</h2>
<p>Higher data usage is being driven by new applications, entertainment and online gaming. For example, game updates can be as large as 30 or more gigabytes today. If games update regularly, the amount of data used each month increases quickly.</p>
<p>Entertainment too is using more data. Most streaming video today is provided in a 720p format, but newer televisions can display content at the higher-resolution 4K format. With faster broadband speeds becoming more common, consumers should anticipate more 4K content becoming available.</p>
<p>Likewise, virtual reality and augmented reality are relatively new technologies that are slowly becoming integrated with gaming and business systems. These high data usage technologies are likely to become more present in our daily lives over the next decade.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=338&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/580077/original/file-20240306-22-g3idi5.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=424&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/media-centre/media-statements/nbn-plans-to-accelerate-highest-speed-tiers">NBN Co</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>When would the upgrades happen?</h2>
<p>NBN Co has indicated it would like to start providing the new higher speed products later this year, or early next year. The upgrade would be achieved by increasing the overall capacity of the NBN, which could then be “shared out” to consumers. </p>
<p>The NBN Co announcement is something the service providers should have expected at some point soon.</p>
<p>NBN Co’s announcement, coming only months after the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) approved a proposal for <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/new-nbn-regulation-will-promote-competition-and-long-term-interests-of-australians">major annual price increases</a>, may not be welcomed by all broadband retailers. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/nbn-upgrades-explained-how-will-they-make-internet-speeds-faster-and-will-the-regions-miss-out-146749">NBN upgrades explained: how will they make internet speeds faster? And will the regions miss out?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>A spokesperson for the second largest broadband retailer, TPG Telecom, told <a href="https://www.commsday.com/">CommsDay</a> yesterday:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>It took more than two years to finalise [the new pricing approved by the ACCC] and only three months for NBN Co to undermine the certainty it was supposed to create. We will always welcome opportunities to deliver greater service and speed to our customers, but NBN’s monopolistic whims make genuine collaboration with them very difficult.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Retailers understandably want certainty in wholesale pricing. One difficulty in achieving this is the high cost of “backhaul” in Australia: this is an intermediate connection between service providers and the NBN itself. Larger retailers have their own backhaul infrastructure, but smaller retailers must pay a third party.</p>
<p>If the NBN offers higher speed broadband connections, smaller retailers may end up paying more for backhaul – and will be faced with a dilemma over whether to pass these extra costs to consumers. </p>
<p>Telstra and Optus have broadly supported the plan by NBN Co to move to new technologies that offer the higher speed capabilities.</p>
<h2>A faster network may entice consumers</h2>
<p>Aussie Broadband Group managing director Phillip Britt told <a href="https://gizmodo.com.au/2024/03/nbn-500-telstra-optus-tpg-aussie/">Gizmodo Australia</a>: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Aussie Broadband is still understanding the detail of NBN Co’s speed proposal, but on the face of it, it could represent one of the most exciting steps in technology adoption for Australian households and businesses.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>For NBN Co, the boost for the higher-speed plans may entice consumers to move from basic 50 Mbps plans to the upgraded Home Fast plan (which will offer download speeds of 500 Mbps, up from the current 100 Mbps).</p>
<p>NBN Co may also hope this encourages the remaining consumers with copper “fibre to the node” connections to move to “fibre to the premises” by taking advantage of one of the low or no cost upgrade offers available through retailers.</p>
<p>NBN Co has issued a consultation paper to retailers, asking for their feedback on the proposed changes to the high speed products by April 19 2024.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/225168/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark A Gregory does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Australia’s NBN Co wants to offer services up to five times as fast at no extra cost. What’s the catch?Mark A Gregory, Associate Professor, School of Engineering, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1467492020-09-23T08:03:32Z2020-09-23T08:03:32ZNBN upgrades explained: how will they make internet speeds faster? And will the regions miss out?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359501/original/file-20200923-24-1mjhi.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=86%2C51%2C3748%2C2103&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The federal government has announced a A$3.5 billion upgrade to the National Broadband Network (NBN) that will grant two million households on-demand access to faster fibre-to-the-node (FTTN) internet by 2023. </p>
<p><a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-23/nbn-to-be-extended-to-millions-under-$3.5bn-fttp-plan/12692082?nw=0">Reports from</a> <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-23/nbn-upgrade-is-your-internet-about-to-get-faster/12692854">the ABC</a> suggest the plan would go as far as to upgrade the FTTN services to fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) – although this wasn’t explicitly said in Minister for Communications Paul Fletcher’s <a href="https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/fletcher/media-release/45-billion-nbn-investment-bring-ultra-fast-broadband-millions-families-and-businesses-and-create-25000-jobs">announcement</a>.</p>
<p>The minister said the upgrade would involve expanding current FTTN connections to run along more streets across the country, giving people the option to connect to broadband speeds of up to one gigabit per second. Improvements have also <a href="https://www.paulfletcher.com.au/media-releases/joint-media-release-45-billion-nbn-investment-to-bring-ultra-fast-broadband-to">been promised</a> for the hybrid fibre coaxial (HFC) and fibre-to-the-curb (FTTC) systems.</p>
<p>Altogether the upgrade is <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-09-23/nbn-co-shake-up-upgrade-network-millions-more-access/12691782">expected to</a> give about six million households access to internet speeds of up to one gigabit per second. But how will the existing infrastructure be boosted? And who will miss out?</p>
<h2>Getting ahead of the terminology</h2>
<p>Let’s first understand the <a href="https://www.aussiebroadband.com.au/blog/fttp-vs-fttn-connections-national-broadband-network-explained/">various terms</a> used to describe aspects of the NBN network. </p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/learn/network-technology/fibre-to-the-premises-explained-fttp">Fibre to the Premises</a></strong> (FTTP)</p>
<p>FTTP refers to households with an optical fibre connection running from a device on a wall of the house directly to the network. This provides reliable high-speed internet.</p>
<p>The “network” simply refers to the exchange point from which households’ broadband connections are passed to service providers, such as Telstra, who help them get connected. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359514/original/file-20200923-20-vo71bm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In an FTTP network, fibre optic connectors in the back of distribution hub panels connect homes to broadband services.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/learn/network-technology/fibre-to-the-node-explained-fttn">Fibre to the Node</a></strong> (FTTN)</p>
<p><a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/2019/documents/media-centre/corporate-plan-report-2020-2023.pdf">The FTTN</a> system serves about 4.7 million premises in Australia, out of a total 11.5 million covered under the NBN.</p>
<p>With FTTN, households are connected via a copper line to a “node” in their neighbourhood. This node is further connected to the network with <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2010/10/21/3044463.htm">fibre optic cables</a> that transfer data much faster than copper cables can.</p>
<p>With FTTN systems, the quality of the broadband service depends on the length of the copper cable and the choice of technology used to support data transmission via this cable. </p>
<p>It’s <em>technically</em> possible to offer high internet speeds when copper cables are very short and <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/blog/the-nbn-project/nbn-co-plugs-in-first-gfast-units-across-Australia">the latest data transmission technologies</a> are used. </p>
<p>In reality, however, Australia’s FTTN speeds using a fibre/copper mix have <a href="https://www.speedtest.net/global-index">been slow</a>. An FTTN connection’s reliability also depends on network conditions, such as the age of the copper cabling and whether any of the signal is leaking due to degradation.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Illustration of fibre optic cables." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=399&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/359509/original/file-20200923-20-1kf94wy.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=502&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Fibre optic cables use pulses of light for high-speed data transmission across long distances.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/learn/network-technology/fibre-to-the-curb-explained-fttc">Fibre to the Curb</a></strong> (FTTC)</p>
<p>The limitations of FTTN mentioned above can be sidestepped by extending fibre cables from the network right up to a curbside “distribution point unit” nearer to households. This unit then becomes the “node” of the network. </p>
<p>FTTC allows significantly faster data transmission. This is because it services relatively fewer households (allowing better signal transmission to each one) and reduces the length of copper cable relied upon.</p>
<p><strong><a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/learn/network-technology/hybrid-fibre-coaxial-explained-hfc-3">Hybrid Fibre Coaxial</a></strong> (HFC)</p>
<p>In many areas, the NBN uses coaxial cables instead of copper cables. These were <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/blog/the-nbn-project/hfc-everything-you-need-to-know">first installed</a> by Optus and Telstra in the 1990s to deliver cable broadband and television. They’ve since been modernised for use in the NBN’s fibre network. </p>
<p>In theory, HFC systems should be able to offer internet speeds of more than 100 megabits per second. But many households have been <a href="https://www.itnews.com.au/news/telstra-stops-offering-100mbps-services-for-nbn-fttn-b-c-users-538601#:%7E:text=Telstra%20has%20stopped%20offering%20100Mbps,plan%20when%20connecting%20through%20Telstra.">unable to achieve</a> this due to the poor condition of cabling infrastructure in some parts, as well as large numbers of households sharing a single coaxial cable. </p>
<p>Coaxial cables are the most limiting part of the HFC system. So expanding the length of fibre cabling (and shortening the coaxial cables being used) would allow faster internet speeds. The NBN’s 2020 <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/2019/documents/media-centre/corporate-plan-report-2020-2023.pdf">corporate plan</a> identifies doing this as a priority.</p>
<p>Minister Fletcher today said the planned upgrades would ensure all customers serviced by HFC would have access to speeds of up to one gigabit per second. Currently, only <a href="https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-limits-gigabit-services-to-just-7-percent-of-hfc-footprint-548704">7%</a> of HFC customers do.</p>
<h2>Mixing things up isn’t always a good idea</h2>
<p>Under the <a href="https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id:%22media/pressrel/PS8T6%22">original NBN plan</a>, the Labor government in 2009 promised optical fibre connections for 93% of all Australian households. </p>
<p>Successive reviews led to the use of multiple technologies in the network, rather than the full-fibre network Labor envisioned. Many households are not able to upgrade their connection because of limitations to the technology available in their neighbourhood. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-nbn-how-a-national-infrastructure-dream-fell-short-77780">The NBN: how a national infrastructure dream fell short</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Also, many businesses currently served by FTTN can’t access internet speeds that meet their needs. To avoid internet speeds hindering their work, many <a href="https://www.business.org/services/internet/business-internet-speed/">businesses need</a> a minimum speed between <a href="https://www.business.org/services/internet/business-internet-speed/">100 megabits and 1 gigabit per second</a>, depending on their <a href="https://www.whistleout.com.au/Broadband/Guides/broadband-speeds-how-fast-do-you-need">scale</a>. </p>
<p>Currently, no <a href="https://www.whistleout.com.au/Broadband/Guides/broadband-speeds-how-fast-do-you-need">FTTN services</a> and <a href="https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-limits-gigabit-services-to-just-7-percent-of-hfc-footprint-548704">few HFC services</a> can support such speeds.</p>
<p>Moreover, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/system/files/MBA_Report%209.pdf">NBN monitoring report</a> published in May (during the pandemic) found in about 95% of cases, NBN plans only delivered 83-91% of the maximum advertised speed. </p>
<p>The report also showed 10% of the monitored services were underperforming – and 95% of these were FTTN services. This makes a strong case for the need to upgrade FTTN. </p>
<h2>Who will benefit?</h2>
<p>While the NBN’s most <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/2019/documents/media-centre/corporate-plan-report-2020-2023.pdf">recent corporate plan</a> identifies work to be done across its various offerings (FTTN, FTTC, HFC, fixed wireless), it’s unclear exactly how much each system stands to gain from today’s announcements.</p>
<p>Ideally, urban and regional households that can’t access 100 megabits per second speeds would be prioritised for fibre expansion. The expanded FTTN network should also cover those <a href="https://thenewdaily.com.au/life/tech/2020/05/12/nbn-regional-broadband-tax-gig-state/">struggling to access</a> reliable broadband in regional Australia. </p>
<p>Bringing fibre cabling to households in remote areas would be difficult. One option, however, could be to extend fibre connections to an expanded network of base stations in regional Australia, thereby improving the NBN’s <a href="https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-starts-testing-feasibility-of-mm-wave-for-future-fixed-wireless-546603">fixed wireless connectivity</a> capacity. </p>
<p>These base stations “beam” signals to nearby premises. Installing more stations would mean fewer premises covered by each (and therefore better connectivity for each). </p>
<p>Regardless, it’s important the upgrades happen quickly. Many NBN customers now working and studying from home will be waiting eagerly for a much-needed boost to their internet speed.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-boost-your-internet-speed-when-everyone-is-working-from-home-135313">How to boost your internet speed when everyone is working from home</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/146749/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas receives funding from the Australian Research Council through its competitive grant schemes (Discovery Projects, Linkage Projects, and Linkage Infrastructure and Equipment Facilities). He has also received funding from the State Government of Victoria for initiatives he has provided leadership. He has also collaborated with industry partners such as AT&T, Ericsson, Nokia, Google, NBN, InstaWireless, Digital Falcon, and Transurban and received industry research funding to research projects. </span></em></p>Millions of households are expected to gain access to upgraded internet connections, with speeds of up to one gigabit per second (if you’re willing to pay for the plan).Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas, Group Head - Electronic and Photonic Systems Group and Professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1337782020-03-24T05:12:37Z2020-03-24T05:12:37Z‘Click for urgent coronavirus update’: how working from home may be exposing us to cybercrime<p>Apart from the obvious health and economic impacts, the coronavirus also presents a major opportunity for cybercriminals. </p>
<p>As <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/life/coronavirus-covid-19-mental-health-working-from-home-advice/12062284">staff across sectors</a> and <a href="https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/uq-suspends-teaching-for-one-week-amid-escalating-coronavirus-concerns-20200316-p54ada.html">university students</a> shift to working and studying from home, large organisations are at increased risk of being targeted. With defences down, companies should go the extra mile to protect their business networks and employees at such a precarious time. </p>
<p>Reports suggest hackers are already exploiting remote workers, luring them into <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/science/2020-03-23/coronavirus-phishing-scams-emails-texts-australians-vulnerable/12079486">online scams</a> masquerading as important information related to the pandemic. </p>
<p>On Friday, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s <a href="https://www.scamwatch.gov.au/news/warning-on-covid-19-scams">Scamwatch reported</a> that since January 1 it had received 94 reports of coronavirus-related scams, and this figure could rise.</p>
<p>As COVID-19 causes a spike in telework, teleheath and online education, cybercriminals have fewer hurdles to jump in gaining access to networks.</p>
<h2>High-speed access theft</h2>
<p>The National Broadband Network’s infrastructure has afforded many Australians access to higher-speed internet, compared with <a href="https://computer.howstuffworks.com/dsl.htm">DSL connections</a>. Unfortunately this also gives cybercriminals high-speed access to Australian homes, letting them rapidly extract personal and financial details from victims. </p>
<p>The shift to working from home means many people are using home computers, instead of more secure corporate-supplied devices. This provides criminals relatively easy access to corporate documents, trade secrets and financial information.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/whats-your-it-departments-role-in-preventing-a-data-breach-25821">What's your IT department's role in preventing a data breach?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Instead of attacking a corporation’s network, which would likely be secured with advanced cybersecurity countermeasures and tracking, they now simply have to locate and attack the employee’s home network. This means less chance of discovery. </p>
<h2>Beware cryptolocker attacks</h2>
<p><a href="https://usa.kaspersky.com/resource-center/definitions/cryptolocker">Cryptolocker-based attacks</a> are an advanced cyberattack that can bypass many traditional countermeasures, including <a href="https://www.techradar.com/au/best/best-antivirus">antivirus software</a>. This is because they’re designed and built by advanced cybercriminals. </p>
<p>Most infections from a cryptolocker virus happen when people open unknown attachments, sent in malicious emails.</p>
<p>In some cases, the attack can be traced to nation state actors. One example is the infamous <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2019/05/12/wannacry-two-years-on/">WannaCry cyberattack</a>, which deployed <a href="https://www.avg.com/en/signal/what-is-malware">malware</a> (software designed to cause harm) that encrypted computers in more than 150 countries. The hackers, supposedly from North Korea, demanded cryptocurrency in exchange for unlocking them. </p>
<p>If an employee working from home accidentally activates cryptolocker malware while browsing the internet or reading an email, this could first take out the home network, then spread to the corporate network, and to other attached home networks. </p>
<p>This can happen if their device is connected to the workplace network via a <a href="https://computer.howstuffworks.com/vpn.htm">Virtual Private Network (VPN)</a>. This makes the home device an extension of the corporate network, and the virus can bypass any advanced barriers the corporate network may have. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/hackers-are-now-targeting-councils-and-governments-threatening-to-leak-citizen-data-126190">Hackers are now targeting councils and governments, threatening to leak citizen data</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>If devices are attached to a network that has been infected and not completely cleaned, the contaminant can rapidly spread again and again. In fact, a single device that isn’t cleaned properly can cause millions of dollars in damage. This happened during the <a href="https://www.csoonline.com/article/3233210/petya-ransomware-and-notpetya-malware-what-you-need-to-know-now.html">2016 Petya and NotPetya malware attack</a>. </p>
<h2>Encryption: not a cryptic concept</h2>
<p>On the bright side, there are some steps organisations and employees can take to protect their digital assets from opportunistic criminal activity.</p>
<p><a href="https://medium.com/searchencrypt/what-is-encryption-how-does-it-work-e8f20e340537">Encryption</a> is a key weapon in this fight. This security method protects files and network communications by methodically “scrambling” the contents using an algorithm. The receiving party is given a key to unscramble, or “decrypt”, the information. </p>
<p>With remote work booming, encryption should be enabled for files on <a href="https://www.pcworld.com/article/2858642/you-can-encrypt-your-hard-drive-but-the-protection-may-not-be-worth-the-hassle.html">hard drives</a> and <a href="https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-how-to-encrypt-a-flash-drive.html">USB sticks</a> that contain sensitive information. </p>
<p>Enabling encryption on a <a href="https://support.microsoft.com/en-au/help/4028713/windows-10-turn-on-device-encryption">Windows</a> or <a href="https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT204837">Apple</a> device is also simple. And don’t forget to backup your encryption keys when prompted onto a USB drive, and store them in a safe place such as a locked cabinet, or off site. </p>
<h2>VPNs help close the loop</h2>
<p>A <a href="https://us.norton.com/internetsecurity-privacy-safe-vpn.html">VPN should be used</a> at all times when connected to WiFi, even at home. This tool helps mask your online activity and location, by routing outgoing and incoming data through a secure “virtual tunnel” between your computer and the VPN server.</p>
<p>Existing WiFi access protocols (<a href="https://www.tutorialspoint.com/wi-fi/wifi_access_protocols.htm">WEP, WPA, WPA2</a>) are insecure when being used to transmit sensitive data. Without a VPN, cybercriminals can more easily intercept and retrieve data. </p>
<p>VPN is already functional in <a href="https://www.windowscentral.com/how-manually-configure-vpn-windows-10">Windows</a> and <a href="https://support.apple.com/en-au/guide/mac-help/mchlp2963/10.15/mac/10.15">Apple</a> devices. Most reputable antivirus internet protection suites incorporate them. </p>
<p>It’s also important that businesses and organisations encourage remote employees to use <a href="https://www.pcworld.com/article/3219792/best-antivirus-for-windows-pc.html">the best malware and antiviral protections</a> on their home systems, even if this comes at the organisation’s expense. </p>
<h2>Backup, backup, backup</h2>
<p>People often backup their files on a home computer, personal phone or tablet. There is significant risk in doing this with corporate documents and sensitive digital files.</p>
<p>When working from home, sensitive material can be stored in a location unknown to the organisation. This could be <a href="https://computer.howstuffworks.com/cloud-computing/cloud-storage.htm">a cloud location</a> (such as iCloud, Google Cloud, or Dropbox), or via backup software the user owns or uses. Files stored in these locations may not protected under Australian laws.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-we-can-each-fight-cybercrime-with-smarter-habits-36686">How we can each fight cybercrime with smarter habits</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Businesses choosing to save files on the cloud, on an external hard drive or on a home computer need to identify backup regimes that fit the risk profile of their business. Essentially, if you don’t allow files to be saved on a computer’s hard drive at work, and use the cloud exclusively, the same level of protection should apply when working from home. </p>
<p>Appropriate backups must observed by all remote workers, along with standard cybersecurity measures such as firewall, encryption, VPN and antivirus software. Only then can we rely on some level of protection at a time when cybercriminals are desperate to profit.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133778/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Craig Valli works for Edith Cowan University and Cyber Security CRC. He has received project funding from the European Union FP7 and H2020 programs and from Australian Government programs. Craig is also a Fellow of the Australian Computer Society and member of AISA, IEEE and HTCIA.</span></em></p>Instead of going after large corporate networks, which often have multiple defenses, cybercriminals can now simply target people’s home networks.Craig Valli, Director of ECU Security Research Institute, Edith Cowan UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1339052020-03-18T03:05:20Z2020-03-18T03:05:20ZCoronavirus: telcos are picking up where the NBN is failing. Here’s what it means for you<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/321204/original/file-20200318-37392-1yb6ry3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=105%2C81%2C5320%2C3538&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption"></span> </figcaption></figure><p>Telecommunication providers are taking positive steps to meet consumers’ demands in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, the National Broadband Network (NBN Co) is being urged to reduce its wholesale broadband charges for these providers. </p>
<p>Companies such as Telstra and Optus offer broadband plans over the NBN, purchasing broadband data from the NBN at wholesale prices, which they then distribute to customers. In this time of crisis, the NBN should slash its wholesale prices. This will enable providers to purchase the extra data needed to meet demand as the country adopts widespread social-distancing.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/nbn-urged-to-intervene-as-pandemic-tests-broadband-connections-20200316-p54ain.html">Several</a> <a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/unprecedented-demand-for-nbn/news-story/753610eb604595b878cd8880739d4618">media</a> <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/nbn-braces-for-increased-load-as-covid-19-keeps-people-at-home/12062128">outlets</a> have covered how data usage over the NBN is expected to boom as more people self-isolate, and start working and studying from home. </p>
<p>Unfortunately, at a time when Australians are depending on the NBN for high speeds and reliable connections for telework and remote education, many people may be let down. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1239366108450189312"}"></div></p>
<h2>Expect strain</h2>
<p>Communications representatives from <a href="https://www.paulfletcher.com.au/media-releases/media-release-telco-industry-roundtable-on-covid-19">both</a> <a href="https://www.michellerowland.com.au/news/media-releases-communications/media-release-temporary-capacity-relief-for-telcos-should-be-considered-if-nbn-becomes-congested-16-march-2020/">sides</a> of government have acknowledged the virus’s spread will lead to hordes of people becoming reliant on the web for work and study. </p>
<p>This will lead to increased online traffic, slower internet speeds and higher wholesale costs for providers serviced by the NBN, limiting the amount of extra data these providers can purchase.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/working-at-home-to-avoid-coronavirus-this-tech-lets-you-almost-replicate-the-office-133350">Working at home to avoid coronavirus? This tech lets you (almost) replicate the office</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>On Monday the <a href="https://www.paulfletcher.com.au/media-releases/media-release-telco-industry-roundtable-on-covid-19">federal government</a> reported the NBN had experienced a “modest increase of around 6% throughout the day and at peak times” in comparison to figures predating COVID-19’s spread.</p>
<p>Looking forward, the network expects busy-hour traffic, typically between 6pm and 9pm, to <a href="https://minister.infrastructure.gov.au/fletcher/media-release/telco-industry-roundtable-covid-19">increase by up to 40%</a>, in line with other countries’ experiences. In Italy, data shared with NBN by <a href="https://www.telecomitalia.com/tit/it.html">Telecom Italia</a> showed Italy’s busy-hour traffic had increased by about 26%.</p>
<h2>A second-rate system</h2>
<p>In Australia, the Coalition government’s 2013 decision to move to a copper-based multi-technology-mix NBN, instead of Labor’s all-fibre network with fibre to the premises (FTTP), has seen Australia fall down the global broadband rankings. Fibre to the premises is when fibre-optic lines run from the nearest available node directly to a premises.</p>
<p>Currently, low-quality streaming over the NBN occurs for two reasons. Firstly, because of the NBN’s high data charges for service providers, and also because of the second-rate multi-technology-mix infrastructure. And this will only worsen as more people adhere to social-distancing and isolation measures.</p>
<p>Entertainment and sport are often streamed over the NBN at a resolution of 576p rather than the high-definition 1080p or 4K. Frustrated viewers are left watching media at a quality similar to old analogue television, due to the NBN’s use of obsolete, slow and unreliable technology since 2014, under the Coalition government.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-could-spark-a-revolution-in-working-from-home-are-we-ready-133070">Coronavirus could spark a revolution in working from home. Are we ready?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Media streaming companies including <a href="https://www.foxtel.com.au/whats-on/foxtel-insider/foxtel/iq4k/satellite-vs-internet.html">Foxtel</a> have also complained their poor streaming quality is a result of this.</p>
<p>With COVID-19 causing mass disruptions, Comcast-owned media and entertainment company NBCUniversal recently <a href="https://corporate.comcast.com/press/releases/comcast-nbcuniversal-moves-to-make-current-movies-available-in-the-home">announced</a> it will end the practice of delaying online film releases to streaming companies like Netflix for several months after the film’s cinema release. </p>
<p>NBCUniversal said, in reference to social distancing and smaller audiences expected at cinemas: “Current circumstances have made it more challenging to view our films.”</p>
<p>Unfortunately for Australians, even if we can get new movies over the NBN the same day they’re released, we could be stuck with poor quality and congestion during peak times. </p>
<h2>Our neighbours set an example</h2>
<p>In New Zealand, an FTTP rollout has been progressing since 2012. Connections to Chorus <a href="https://www.chorus.co.nz/">UFB broadband</a> (New Zealand’s NBN equivalent) cost a flat monthly fee for service providers, don’t incur a data usage charge and have no data usage limits. </p>
<p>This has allowed companies to quickly respond to the pandemic, and they have begun offering extra content free of charge. For instance, <a href="http://itwire.com/entertainment/nz-s-spark-sport-channel-offers-free-viewing-until-may.html">Spark Sport</a> is providing its six sports channels and on-demand offerings at no charge for existing and new customers until May.</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/media-centre/media-statements/increase-in-residential-data-demand">statement</a>, NBN Co chief executive Stephen Rue said the company was working with retailers to “do everything possible to optimise the NBN to support the expected increase in residential use”.</p>
<p>On Tuesday, when asked if there would be cost subsidies for retailers or consumers, <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/breakfast/nbn-braces-for-increased-load-as-covid-19-keeps-people-at-home/12062128">Rue told the ABC</a> the NBN was working with retailers, to ensure they would be provided with “the capacity they need”.</p>
<p>The NBN published a guide on <a href="http://www.nbn.com.au/workingfromhome">working from home</a> during the pandemic. It highlights the need for broadband consumers to purchase an NBN plan that offers the right speed necessary for their internet activities. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1238794762318041089"}"></div></p>
<h2>NBN, now’s the time to show-up for Australians</h2>
<p>While the NBN is set to benefit from the extra data usage during the pandemic, Telstra and Optus have taken a <a href="https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/technology/telstra-optus-offer-free-internet-access-during-coronavirus-pandemic-calls-for-nbn-to-follow/news-story/06d4540a20b35a9ba358807dfa29c14e">positive step</a> by offering customers additional broadband data and internet access, free of charge.</p>
<p>During April, <a href="https://www.optus.com.au/for-you/support/answer?id=20065">Optus will provide an additional 20GB for postpaid mobile customers and 10GB for prepaid</a> customers. <a href="https://exchange.telstra.com.au/supporting-our-customers-during-covid-19/">Telstra has gone one step further to provide an extra 25GB for postpaid mobile customers</a>, if they apply for it through <a href="https://www.telstra.com.au/my-account/telstra-24x7-app">the Telstra 24x7 app</a>. </p>
<p>Moreover, Telstra home broadband users will have unlimited data from this Thursday until April 30. Telstra will be paying NBN a potentially huge amount for this extra data deployment. </p>
<p>For the sake of the public, the NBN should reduce its wholesale data charges during this pandemic. It could look to move to a flat monthly access fee with no data usage charges, similar to the approach taken in New Zealand.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/telecommuting-could-curb-the-coronavirus-epidemic-133308">Telecommuting could curb the coronavirus epidemic</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>The good news is the NBN will probably eventually heed calls to action and lower these charges. </p>
<p>The network is already a lemon, and it’s unlikely the NBN Co board will risk the public backlash it will receive if it’s seen trying to shore up its weak bottom line at a time of national crisis.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/133905/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Mark A Gregory does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Telstra and Optus have already made arrangements to support customers with extra, free data during the COVID-19 pandemic. But what is the NBN doing?Mark A Gregory, Associate professor, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1151312019-05-07T02:43:04Z2019-05-07T02:43:04ZAround 50% of homes in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane have the oldest NBN technology<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272734/original/file-20190506-103053-giewhj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Living in an urban centre is no guarantee for new NBN technology. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hobart-australia-2015-april-11-installation-269134058">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The NBN was touted as <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-nbn-how-a-national-infrastructure-dream-fell-short-77780">dream infrastructure</a>, and the Coalition says it is close to completing the <a href="https://www.mitchfifield.com/2019/04/nbn-marks-10-years-on-track-for-2020-completion/">A$50 billion national broadband network</a>. </p>
<p>But Australia recently slipped three spots to <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/federal-election-2019/australia-drops-to-62nd-in-global-broadband-speed-rankings-20190428-p51hz2.html">place 62nd in global broadband rankings</a>, with our average download speed of 35.11 Mbps far below the global average of 57.91 Mbps.</p>
<p>Labor has ruled-out a large scale upgrade of the NBN if it wins the 2019 federal election, saying flaws in the NBN are due to “<a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-04-23/what-happened-to-superfast-nbn/11037620?pfmredir=sm">six years of vandalism</a>” by the Coalition government. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/labor-will-prioritise-an-nbn-digital-inclusion-drive-heres-what-it-should-focus-on-115135">Labor will prioritise an NBN 'digital inclusion drive' – here's what it should focus on</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In reality it’s hard to get an accurate picture on the balance of NBN technologies that are already in place in Australia. To get around this opacity, we used the “<a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/connect-home-or-business/check-your-address">check your address</a>” tool on the NBN website as a way to collect data on the footprints of technologies currently or about to be in place in three Australian metropolitan cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. </p>
<p>The data suggests around half (40-60%) of homes in the three cities only have access to very old technology: hybrid fibre-coaxial (HFC). For people in these residences, access to the so-called “fibre network” remains only a fairy tale.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272670/original/file-20190506-103078-1ki8l6a.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Around 55% of homes have old NBN technology in Sydney. Green areas represents addresses with fibre technology (FTTX) and red areas represent addresses with older hybrid fibre-coaxial/satellite NBN (HFC/Sat).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/connect-home-or-business/check-your-address">Tooran Alizadeh</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Real data on the NBN</h2>
<p>Lack of data transparency is a vexing aspect of the NBN. In our experience, <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/">NBN Co</a> does not disclose meaningful information on service footprints in a single, usable dataset. This makes it difficult to evaluate outcomes and perform policy analysis associated with the service. </p>
<p>Nevertheless, our latest research has collected some data we believe was undisclosed previously. </p>
<p>Over December 2018 to February 2019, we used the “<a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/connect-home-or-business/check-your-address">check your address</a>” search function on the NBN Co website along with <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308596118300363">basic data mining techniques</a> to extract data from a representative sample of all addresses across the three metropolitan regions of Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. </p>
<p>We uncovered footprints of mixed-technology NBN, including current or planned fibre to the premises (FTTP), fibre to the node (FTTN), fibre to the building (FTTB), fibre to the curb (FTTC), hybrid fibre-coaxial (HFC), fixed wireless and satellite (Sky Muster). </p>
<p>Here we mainly focus on hybrid fibre-coaxial (HFC), which is the oldest technology component of the NBN. HFC is the cable network you might have connected to in the past to get Foxtel subscription TV. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272691/original/file-20190506-103053-1a3f2e9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Around 42% of homes have old NBN technology in Melbourne. Green areas represents addresses with fibre technology (FTTX) and red areas represent addresses with older hybrid fibre-coaxial/satellite NBN (HFC/Sat).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/connect-home-or-business/check-your-address">Tooran Alizadeh</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Major cities rely on HFC</h2>
<p>The three maps shown here represent the spatial presence of fibre infrastructure versus more inferior HFC/satellite NBN in three metropolitan regions of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane (In reality very few urban homes use satellite, as shown in bar graphs below). </p>
<p>The three maps suggest inferior NBN technology is in abundant use across all three metropolitan cities. 62% of all addresses in the greater Brisbane region, 42% of all addresses in Melbourne, and 55% of all addresses in Sydney are (or will soon be) connected to the NBN via HFC. </p>
<p>These figures are at odds with a recent claim by Minister for Communications Mitch Fifield that his government is rolling out “<a href="https://www.facebook.com/abcqanda/videos/418015455660247/?comment_id=10155958137691831&comment_tracking=%7B%22tn%22%3A%22R%22%7D">a new network</a>” to the whole nation. For about half of the addresses in three major Australian metropolitan regions, the NBN “rollout” looks like a re-branding exercise using an old cable network. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272692/original/file-20190506-103057-1k0iwn2.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Around 62% of homes have old NBN technology in Brisbane. Green areas represents addresses with fibre technology (FTTX) and red areas represent addresses with older hybrid fibre-coaxial/satellite NBN (HFC/Sat).</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/connect-home-or-business/check-your-address">Tooran Alizadeh</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Socioeconomic patterns of the NBN</h2>
<p>To look at socioeconomic patterns of the NBN rollout, we used the <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/2033.0.55.001">Australian Bureau of Statistics’ (ABS) socio-economic indexes for area (SEIFA)</a> and its index of Relative Socio-economic Advantage and Disadvantage (IRSAD) from 2016. We then cross examined the SEIFA data (divided into ten ranked groups known as “deciles”) with the NBN data extracted via the data mining exercise (described above).</p>
<p>It’s clear in the graphs below that a mix of both old and new technologies are in play across the three metropolitan regions of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. </p>
<p>The analysis did not find any clear socioeconomic patterns comparing better-off SEIFA deciles of 8-10 versus worse-off deciles of 1-3. Nevertheless, the size of HFC adoption across the socioeconomic spectrum in all three major cities is quite concerning.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272949/original/file-20190507-103057-jeqzts.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272949/original/file-20190507-103057-jeqzts.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=330&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272949/original/file-20190507-103057-jeqzts.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=330&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272949/original/file-20190507-103057-jeqzts.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=330&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272949/original/file-20190507-103057-jeqzts.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272949/original/file-20190507-103057-jeqzts.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272949/original/file-20190507-103057-jeqzts.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=414&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272947/original/file-20190507-103078-rngyi4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272947/original/file-20190507-103078-rngyi4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=333&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272947/original/file-20190507-103078-rngyi4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=333&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272947/original/file-20190507-103078-rngyi4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=333&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272947/original/file-20190507-103078-rngyi4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272947/original/file-20190507-103078-rngyi4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272947/original/file-20190507-103078-rngyi4.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=418&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272950/original/file-20190507-103063-3hwc3g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/272950/original/file-20190507-103063-3hwc3g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=331&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272950/original/file-20190507-103063-3hwc3g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=331&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272950/original/file-20190507-103063-3hwc3g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=331&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272950/original/file-20190507-103063-3hwc3g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272950/original/file-20190507-103063-3hwc3g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/272950/original/file-20190507-103063-3hwc3g.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=415&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Availabilities of different technologies across different socioeconomic deciles (1 = lowest socioeconomic status, 10 = highest) in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. NBN technologies are FTTP (fibre to the premises), FTTN (fibre to the node), FTTB (fibre to the building), FTTC (fibre to the curb) and the older HFC (hybrid fibre-coaxial) and Sat (satellite).</span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>The second most dominant technology in the three major cities is fibre to the curb (FTTC). This is a technology that <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-08/nbn-launches-fibre-to-the-curb-technology/9631262">was only added to the mix 12 months ago</a>, as a partial solution <a href="https://www.afr.com/technology/web/nbn/nbn-halts-hfc-rollout-effective-immediately-as-issues-mount-20171127-gztg2i">in response to the mounting issues related to the HFC network</a>. </p>
<p>If it was not for this late addition to the network, the NBN footprint may have had an even higher dominance of old HFC technology than currently. It’s also clear that the rate of FTTC adoption in greater Brisbane is well below that in Melbourne and Sydney. </p>
<h2>An NBN upgrade is inevitable</h2>
<p>Since the announcement of mixed-technology NBN, experts have <a href="https://delimiter.com.au/2015/11/30/budde-says-he-warned-turnbull-about-optus-hfc-cable-issue/">warned against</a> the serious shortcomings of the old HFC technology. </p>
<p>While these were mostly ignored initially, Bill Morrow (then CEO at NBN) later admitted that NBN speed was slowed by <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/apr/27/nbns-speed-slowed-by-reliance-on-copper-network-its-ceo-admits?CMP=share_btn_tw">reliance on copper network</a>. Supporting this, an analysis by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (<a href="https://www.acma.gov.au/">ACMA</a>) revealed that the average household on the HFC network was reporting between <a href="https://www.acma.gov.au/-/media/Consumer-Interests/Report/PDF/Migrating-to-the-NBN--The-consumer-experience--Key-findings-from-analy-pdf.pdf">2 to 3.6 times more faults than those on fibre, and making between 3 and 5 times more complaints</a>. </p>
<p>It’s also been reported that about <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/no-bells-or-whistles-labor-keeps-it-simple-with-its-nbn-plan-20190409-p51cce.html">40% of the NBN is fibre to the node (FTTN)</a> which has its own <a href="https://www.itnews.com.au/news/nbn-co-reveals-fttn-premises-that-never-hit-25mbps-peak-speeds-516849">fair share of issues</a>.</p>
<p>Interestingly, there have already been some partial upgrades within NBN Co’s plans, <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/no-bells-or-whistles-labor-keeps-it-simple-with-its-nbn-plan-20190409-p51cce.html">as FTTC reportedly accounts for about 12% of the national network</a>, to serve the areas that were previously assigned to receive HFC. </p>
<p>Having said this, Labor’s latest announcement seems to be focusing on what can be described as “improving consumer experience” <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/no-bells-or-whistles-labor-keeps-it-simple-with-its-nbn-plan-20190409-p51cce.html">without making any commitment for more fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP), or at least more fibre</a>. </p>
<p>We argue that for Australia and Australian major cities to be competitive on the global platform, an NBN update is inevitable.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/115131/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tooran Alizadeh receives funding from Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI), Department of Industry Innovation and Science/Smart Cities and Suburbs Programme, University of Sydney's Policy Lab, and also Global Engagement Office. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tony receives funding from the National Academies of Science, Department of Defense, National Science Foundation. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Edward Helderop does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Around half of homes in three major Australian cities only have access to very old technology: hybrid fibre-coaxial (HFC). For them, access to the NBN fibre network remains only a fairy tale.Tooran Alizadeh, Senior Lecturer in Urbanism, Sydney Research Accelerator (SOAR) Fellow, University of SydneyEdward Helderop, Postdoctoral researcher, Arizona State UniversityTony Grubesic, Professor, Arizona State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1151352019-04-10T02:08:47Z2019-04-10T02:08:47ZLabor will prioritise an NBN ‘digital inclusion drive’ – here’s what it should focus on<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/268500/original/file-20190410-2901-s8ixq7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">People with poor broadband services spend more time in queues at the bank and for other services that should easily be accessible online. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/march-6-2017-auckland-new-zealand-593951771?src=nFLlgVBNKLlA3hwiAAa8oQ-1-1">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The national broadband network (<a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/">NBN</a>) has been a major issue in federal election campaigns for close to a decade. </p>
<p>And the 2019 version of the NBN bears little resemblance to the futuristic, egalitarian earlier editions. </p>
<p>Despite years of controversy, cost over-runs, and delays, the coalition government says our <a href="http://mitchfifield.com/Media/MediaReleases/tabid/70/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/1688/NBN-marks-10-years-On-track-for-2020-completion.aspx">$50 billion national network</a> is finally nearing completion. </p>
<p>But Labor’s Shadow Communications Minister Michelle Rowland has <a href="http://www.michellerowland.com.au/media_release_labor_s_plan_to_improve_the_nbn_9_april_2019">set out some different priorities</a> should her party achieve government in the coming election. One of these is a “digital inclusion drive”, aimed at improving access to the internet for older Australians and low-income households. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/three-charts-on-the-nbn-and-australias-digital-divide-78911">Three charts on: the NBN and Australia’s digital divide</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In addition, Labor is making no immediate commitment to <a href="http://www.michellerowland.com.au/speech_address_to_commsday_summit_labor_s_responsible_plan_to_improve_the_nbn_9_april_2019">replacing copper connections with fibre</a>. </p>
<p>Instead, if elected, it will fund service and reliability fixes for those on the copper NBN, and impose service guarantees for small businesses and consumers. It will examine what has happened to the economics of the network, looking at its cash flow, pricing, capital structure, and future options for network upgrades. </p>
<p>Labor’s policy will disappoint those hoping for a fast-tracked return to <a href="http://ministers.treasury.gov.au/DisplayDocs.aspx?doc=pressreleases/2009/036.htm&pageID=003&min=wms&Year=&DocType">that party’s original (2009) vision</a> of high-speed fibre for (almost) everyone. But its 2019 plan is an important acknowledgement that network infrastructure is only one part of the NBN story. </p>
<h2>Affordability and digital inclusion</h2>
<p>The Australian Digital Inclusion Index (<a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">ADII</a>) provides data on the affordability of internet services for Australians since 2014. It shows that recent, modest improvements seen by some households have been matched by declines in affordability for a number of Australia’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/digital-inclusion-in-tasmania-has-improved-in-line-with-nbn-rollout-will-the-other-states-follow-102257">more digitally excluded groups</a>. </p>
<p>The results for low-income households, single parents, people outside the labour force, Indigenous Australians, and people with a disability remain poor. </p>
<p>The good news for Australian consumers is that the <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/publications/accc-telecommunications-report/accc-communications-market-report-2017-18">pricing of mobile services has improved</a>, reflecting competitive pressures and the reduced cost of delivery as a consequence of investment by network owners.</p>
<p>But when we look at fixed broadband services — the kinds of connections used by most households — recent price increases by NBN have led to a decline in the number of <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/speech/nbn-affordability-a-growing-issue">low-cost plans on the market</a>. This change post-dates the most recent ADII report (2018), and the effects are beginning to work their way into the market.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/digital-inclusion-in-tasmania-has-improved-in-line-with-nbn-rollout-will-the-other-states-follow-102257">Digital inclusion in Tasmania has improved in line with NBN rollout – will the other states follow?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Communications costs matter</h2>
<p>Communications services have a knock-on effect in many other areas of life and work. </p>
<p>Access to high-speed broadband can reduce <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/au/Documents/finance/deloitte-au-fas-benefits-highspeed-broadband-v2-240914.pdf">the costs of using other services considerably</a>. This makes critical activities like banking, seeking government information, looking for work, or studying much easier. </p>
<p>But when we speak of the cost savings linked with online services, we need also to bear in mind the flip-side of those savings: the much higher costs borne by those, often less well-off, citizens who must access services offline. </p>
<p>If an individual on a low income lacks electronic access to banking or government information, the cost of commuting to do these things in person can be prohibitive — and especially so for Australians living in <a href="https://www.communications.gov.au/publications/2018-regional-telecommunications-review-getting-it-right-out-there">remote or regional areas</a>.</p>
<p>For children at school and adults in education or training, a lack of access to the internet means many will <a href="https://apo.org.au/node/221806">fall behind their peers</a>, as access to educational materials and online content becomes a core part of the modern education experience. This has implications for Australia’s ability to take advantage of the next wave of digital transformation. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-digital-divide-is-not-going-away-91834">Australia's digital divide is not going away</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Expensive for everyone</h2>
<p>The costs of inequitable internet access are directly felt by many families, but the broader costs are borne by society. </p>
<p>And so digital exclusion now has the potential to be a drag on Australia’s economic growth and productive potential for decades to come. </p>
<p>For individuals, conducting activities offline may be time-consuming and expensive. But that’s also true for the government. It’s estimated that even taking half of government services online would <a href="https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/au/Documents/Economics/deloitte-au-economics-digital-government-transformation-230715.pdf">save around A$20 billion</a>. </p>
<p>Aside from the costs of lower productivity, economic growth and tax receipts, inequitable access means that the material savings from automated services may never be realised. </p>
<p>Affordable access to broadband also supports the cost effective delivery of core government and other services – such as <a href="https://www.who.int/goe/policies/countries/aus__support_tele.pdf">health</a> – to regional and remote locations.</p>
<p>Although addressing inequitable access will involve costs in the short term, effective policy measures to improve affordability are likely to generate considerable national benefits.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/infographic-budget-2019-at-a-glance-114289">Infographic: Budget 2019 at a glance</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>How to improve affordability</h2>
<p>At this stage Labor is not saying what it might do to improve internet affordability for low-income households. </p>
<p>The idea of writing down the NBN has been <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/business/companies/there-s-a-big-obstacle-to-an-nbn-write-down-and-it-s-in-the-billions-20190213-p50xhn.html">widely discussed</a>. It does, however, have serious implications: it will be very costly to taxpayers. </p>
<p>It will also limit the ability of the NBN to invest in future network upgrades and threaten the economics of uniform national pricing, the NBN’s key promise of equity for regional and remote Australia. </p>
<p>That could mean a return to the pre-NBN communications landscape, with regional and remote Australia relying on increasingly obsolete communications infrastructure while metropolitan Australia moves ahead. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/shorten-uses-budget-reply-speech-to-reframe-the-economic-debate-114607">Shorten uses budget reply speech to reframe the economic debate</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>A direct increase in cash payments is likely to improve living standards materially for those in poverty, but more money for low income households doesn’t necessarily mean that broadband will be within their reach. </p>
<p>The creation of a concession at a retail level would make the telecommunications companies responsible for selling products at a cheaper rate, which in an era of <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-14/telstra-profit-tumbles-as-nbn-continues-to-drain-revenue/10810552">reduced margins</a> appears unlikely to occur. </p>
<p>Also, a series of retail concessions can lead to consumer confusion, as the scope of each scheme and the discounts on offer vary wildly. We’ve seen these problems in the <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/publications/restoring-electricity-affordability-australias-competitive-advantage">energy sector</a>. </p>
<p>Another option is to create a wholesale concession, a measure that has been promoted by <a href="http://accan.org.au/no-australian-left-offline">consumer advocates</a>. This would involve the government paying NBN to put a wholesale product into the market that retailers could purchase and retail to low income households. </p>
<p>A nationally uniform concessional service would allow retailers to compete in offering affordable services to low-income households, boost NBN take-up and consequently its revenue and financial viability.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/government-advertising-may-be-legal-but-its-corrupting-our-electoral-process-115061">Government advertising may be legal, but it's corrupting our electoral process</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Focus on inclusion</h2>
<p>While the introduction of a concessional arrangement would involve government picking up a part of the tab for service delivery, it offers sizeable benefits. </p>
<p>By ensuring NBN access for low-income households, the government avoids forgoing a large proportion of the savings that should accrued from the digital transformation of government services (and the benefits to be gained from improving services). </p>
<p>It would also prevent a lower take-up of NBN services and revenues. Without such an arrangement, questions will continue to be raised about the financial viability of NBN, its repayment of outstanding debt to government and whether there needs to be a write-down. </p>
<p>The take up of broadband has <a href="https://doi.org/10.1787/5k9bcwkg3hwf-en">historically seen improvements</a> in average household income, productivity, and the creation of new kinds of work and services. </p>
<p>In order to maximise the benefits of the current wave of digital change, we’ll need a broader public debate, that goes beyond the relative merits of fibre and 5G. </p>
<p>Policy will need to address the challenge of affordability, invest in digital literacy, and ensure that all Australians can access the services that they need. </p>
<p>While there are many improvements that can and should be made to our national network infrastructure, a focus on the larger problem of digital inclusion is both welcome, and overdue.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/115135/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julian Thomas receives funding from Telstra for research on the Australian Digital Inclusion Index. He is a Board member of the Australian Communications Consumers Action Network. The author acknowledges the work of ACCAN and his collaborators in the Australian Digital Inclusion Index research team. However, the views expressed in this article are his own. </span></em></p>Labor’s 2019 NBN election policy will disappoint those hoping for a fast-tracked return to that party’s 2009 vision of high-speed fibre for (almost) everyone.Julian Thomas, Professor of Media and Communications; Director, Social Change Enabling Capability Platform, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1022572018-08-29T06:16:06Z2018-08-29T06:16:06ZDigital inclusion in Tasmania has improved in line with NBN rollout – will the other states follow?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/233996/original/file-20180829-86123-s7v9fo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Rollout of the NBN in Tasmania is well ahead of other states and territories in Australia. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/russelljsmith/5588052269/in/photolist-9vNefM-FeA4PD-bpmRaE-xakcir-qjNQdJ-qQP4M2-ZwdECc-WtzaZ4-aZ55Qi-c11crq-iu6viv-ccWzgW-7sfn8R-dsFSNQ-ikj5tg-cpuqwd-Me3vA-rG1KLC-dDCSk3-dJ8RXZ-7zkR3w-dFwNDa-RdtqGs-dqQeVc-dn5VCY-ivhq45-nvE7Jj-Fd2KgN-92VKav-4zD8Gm-ivYcLN-dFCfEY-doq788-6qnEPh-ecoMgz-5gRZJV-FdAre9-FZT6LL-G6KyH5-G6KFpm-TseVaU-bWC8Pj-in3PNK-5h5aT2-bJZ2CV-ecxY8T-Lw5iTv-bUcXJT-ivSzay-dSSif5">russelljsmith/flickr </a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/">CC BY-NC</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Released today, the third annual <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">Australian Digital Inclusion Index</a> report shows that digital inclusion – a measure of digital access, affordability and ability – has improved for Australians over the past 12 months. </p>
<p>While the gains were modest across the country (<a href="https://theconversation.com/lack-of-internet-affordability-may-worsen-australias-digital-divide-new-report-81823">reflecting the trend since 2014</a>), the digital inclusion score recorded by Tasmania rose substantially. This improvement is partly a result of the rapid and extensive uptake of NBN services across a state where the rollout is now <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/2018/documents/corporate-reports/corporate-plan-2018-2021.pdf">essentially complete</a>.</p>
<p>Overall, the NBN does not seem to have been hugely successful so far in convincing the more than 2.5 million Australians who are not online to <a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-digital-divide-is-not-going-away-91834">connect</a>. </p>
<p>But the <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/the-index-report/about-the-index/">ADII</a>, which comprises more than 100 indicators of personal internet access, expenditure, activity and attitudes, shows that the NBN can directly and indirectly enhance a range of aspects of digital inclusion.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/australias-digital-divide-is-not-going-away-91834">Australia's digital divide is not going away</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The Australian digital inclusion index: ADII</h2>
<p>The <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/the-index-report/about-the-index/">ADII</a> measures three critical dimensions of digital inclusion: access, affordability, and digital ability.</p>
<p>Each dimension registers a score out of 100, and together these form an overall digital inclusion index score. </p>
<p>An ADII score of 100 represents a hypothetically perfect level of access, affordability, and ability. A score of 70 or over is regarded as high; one below 50 as low.</p>
<p>The ADII is populated with data from around 16,000 respondents to Roy Morgan’s Single Source face-to-face interview and product poll survey collected weekly over the course of a year. </p>
<p>The 12 months of data used in ADII reporting is collected April to March – so 2018 data was collected between April 2017 and March 2018.</p>
<h2>The NBN and Tasmania’s rise in digital inclusion</h2>
<p>Tasmania’s <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">ADII score</a> for 2018 is 58.1. Although this is the second lowest score of any state or territory in Australia (just above South Australia), it represents a major improvement on Tasmania’s 2017 ADII result of 50.1.</p>
<p>The 8.0-point increase in digital inclusion in Tasmania greatly exceeded the 2.2-point rise recorded nationally, reducing the overall digital inclusion gap between Tasmania and the nation from 7.9 points in 2017 to 2.1 points in 2018.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/234024/original/file-20180829-195328-4qesub.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/234024/original/file-20180829-195328-4qesub.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234024/original/file-20180829-195328-4qesub.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234024/original/file-20180829-195328-4qesub.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=438&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234024/original/file-20180829-195328-4qesub.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=551&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234024/original/file-20180829-195328-4qesub.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=551&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234024/original/file-20180829-195328-4qesub.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=551&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Tasmania’s digital inclusion – measured by access, affordability, digital ability and overall ADII score – has improved beyond the national average since 2017.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Roy Morgan, ADII Dataset, March 2018</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Notably, the gap in the access dimension (which captures if, how, and where people access the internet and the data allowances they have at their disposal) has now all but disappeared.</p>
<p>Tasmania’s access improvement is underpinned by the uptake of NBN services. </p>
<p>Between 2017 and 2018 the percentage of Tasmanians with NBN connections more than doubled, from 29% to 60%. Over this period the NBN became accessible to almost all Tasmanian households. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/234027/original/file-20180829-195310-omc1ef.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/234027/original/file-20180829-195310-omc1ef.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234027/original/file-20180829-195310-omc1ef.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234027/original/file-20180829-195310-omc1ef.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=439&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234027/original/file-20180829-195310-omc1ef.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234027/original/file-20180829-195310-omc1ef.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/234027/original/file-20180829-195310-omc1ef.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=552&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The rollout of NBN in Tasmania is close to complete - and it’s having an impact on internet connectivity in that state.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Roy Morgan, ADII Dataset, March 2018</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Many of these households were required to make NBN decisions in the past year as the <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/residential/learn/device-compatibility/services-that-will-be-switched-off.html">shutdown of existing landline and internet networks</a> progressed across NBN-accessible areas.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/councils-help-with-affordable-housing-shows-how-local-government-can-make-a-difference-94739">Councils' help with affordable housing shows how local government can make a difference</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Why has NBN improved access?</h2>
<p>The uptake of the NBN has directly increased the access score for Tasmania because, based on <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/internet-phone/broadband-performance-data">speed and reliability </a>, the NBN is generally a superior fixed broadband technology than ADSL (notwithstanding some <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-17/nbn-complaint-melbourne-man-left-without-internet-six-weeks/9663648">consumer experiences</a>). </p>
<p>An analysis of other indicators contributing to access improvements in Tasmania reveal some secondary NBN effects.</p>
<h3>1. More people signed up for the NBN</h3>
<p>The NBN rollout seems to have encouraged those previously without fixed broadband to establish a connection. Around 11% of Tasmanian NBN subscribers indicate that they did not have fixed broadband a year earlier, while the corresponding “conversion rate” for ADSL connection technology was 6%. </p>
<p>Having fixed broadband of any type fundamentally improves access. So the NBN rollout’s impact on pushing up fixed broadband penetration in Tasmanian from 58.6% of the population in 2017 to 73.7% in 2018 is important.</p>
<h3>2. People signed up for more data</h3>
<p>The NBN rollout has contributed to a large increase in the internet data allowances Tasmanians have at their disposal. </p>
<p>A large number of Tasmanians have moved from ADSL where the average data allowance was 420GB in 2017, to the NBN where the 2018 average data allowance was 545GB. </p>
<h3>3. People are getting better value for money</h3>
<p>The increase in data allowances had a flow-on impact on affordability. In particular, it has improved value for money based on cost per gigabyte of data since the sharp rise in allowances has not been matched by an equivalent rise in expenditure. </p>
<p>Despite this improvement, Tasmania’s affordability score remains lower than the national average. This is largely due to a poor level of relative affordability - Tasmanians spend a <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">larger portion</a> of their household income on internet access than the national average.</p>
<p>It is essential that the speed, capacity, reliability and value for money improvements yielded by NBN connectivity be translated into more productive and rewarding online activity if digital inclusion is to be meaningfully realised.</p>
<p>Tasmania’s digital ability score, which measures people’s attitudes to technology and their capacity to engage in online tasks, rose substantially in the past year. This is reassuring, but the state still trails the national average by 2.9 points on this dimension of digital inclusion.</p>
<h2>Will the NBN fix digital inclusion nationally?</h2>
<p>The direct and secondary effects of the NBN rollout on digital inclusion seen in Tasmania may also be felt in other states as the NBN rollout <a href="https://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/2018/documents/corporate-reports/corporate-plan-2018-2021.pdf">nears completion</a>. </p>
<p>But the impact will be tempered by local factors. Tasmania registered a substantial improvement in digital inclusion across all three dimensions, but it did so from a <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">very low base</a>. Whether states with higher existing levels of digital inclusion will experience the same NBN step change remains to be seen. </p>
<p>The NBN may have improved the average level of digital inclusion across Tasmania, but <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">deep digital inequalities persist</a> in the state, as they do elsewhere, based on a range of geographic and socio-economic factors. </p>
<p>Low-income earners, those not in the labour force, those who did not complete secondary school, and people aged over 65 continue to record <a href="https://digitalinclusionindex.org.au/">low digital inclusion index scores in 2018</a>, and some of these groups are falling further behind. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/three-charts-on-the-nbn-and-australias-digital-divide-78911">Three charts on: the NBN and Australia’s digital divide</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>Some <a href="https://theconversation.com/three-charts-on-the-nbn-and-australias-digital-divide-78911">recent research</a> also suggests that the NBN may actually exacerbate digital inequality, since the rollout of lower speed and less upgradable NBN technologies is more prevalent in lower socio-economic areas. It will take many years to gauge the long-run social and economic consequences of NBN’s complex, evolving mix of technologies in creating a patchwork of new digital inequalities. </p>
<p>The ADII does not currently capture data on specific NBN technologies. This is an aspect of digital inclusion worthy of further investigation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/102257/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julian Thomas receives funding from Telstra to undertake research on the Australian Digital Inclusion Index. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Chris K Wilson receives funding from Telstra to undertake research on the Australian Digital Inclusion Index.</span></em></p>Tasmania’s digital inclusion increased dramatically and more than the national average from 2017 to 2018. This change is underpinned by a doubling of access to NBN in Tasmania in that period.Julian Thomas, Director, Social Change Enabling Capability Platform, RMIT UniversityChris K Wilson, Research Fellow, Technology, Communication and Policy Lab - Digital Ethnography Research Centre, RMIT UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/862212017-10-24T19:04:15Z2017-10-24T19:04:15ZTurnbull’s government must accept responsibility for delivering an equitable NBN for all Australians<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/191604/original/file-20171024-30605-ctcvsf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">NBN delivery is variable across different states, but also within the same local council areas. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/hobart-australia-2015-april-11-installation-269134148?src=vSMPh0s7Weau-C2OI-SBEw-1-7">from www.shutterstock.com </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>On Monday night Four Corners asked Australia to consider “<a href="http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/whats-wrong-with-the-nbn/9077900">What’s wrong with the NBN?</a>”. </p>
<p>Prior to the episode airing, a lot of the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/malcolm-turnbull-says-the-nbn-was-a-mistake-and-may-never-make-money-20171022-gz63yo.html">debate</a> focused on the NBN’s business model, and that it may not be profitable. </p>
<p>I, however, am not sure if the financial returns need be our biggest concern when referring to public service and critical infrastructure. My answer to the question “what’s wrong with the NBN?” is quite simple: the NBN is inequitable. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-nbn-how-a-national-infrastructure-dream-fell-short-77780">The NBN: how a national infrastructure dream fell short</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>A “train wreck”</h2>
<p>This week started with a <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/malcolm-turnbull-says-the-nbn-was-a-mistake-and-may-never-make-money-20171022-gz63yo.html">fiery speech</a> delivered by the Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull. He said the NBN was a mistake, blamed the former Labor government for the set up, and described the NBN’s business model as a “calamitous train wreck”. </p>
<p>Turnbull’s remarks triggered a number of responses, including one from former Labor Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd. He attached responsibility of NBN’s failure to the current government, as they “<a href="http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/kevin-rudd-blames-malcolm-turnbull-for-nbn-train/9078228">changed the model completely</a>” compared to the original design.</p>
<p>More broadly, the Four Corners <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/whats-wrong-with-the-nbn/9077900">program itself</a> created mixed reactions on social media. It was criticised for being “weak”, and not “challenging enough”, but also praised as “exceptional”.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"922408586780614657"}"></div></p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"922416465793265664"}"></div></p>
<p>I find it incredibly frustrating to see a <a href="https://theconversation.com/the-nbn-how-a-national-infrastructure-dream-fell-short-77780">national critical infrastructure project</a> diminished to political ping pong. In my opinion, bipartisan commitment is required in order to deliver an equitable NBN for all Australians. </p>
<h2>Inequity from the start</h2>
<p>Introduced by Labor, the original NBN was <a href="http://ministers.treasury.gov.au/DisplayDocs.aspx?doc=pressreleases/2009/036.htm&pageID=003&min=wms&Year=&DocType">announced in April 2009</a>. The plan was to provide terrestrial fibre network coverage for 93% of Australian premises by the end of 2020, with the remaining 7% served by fixed wireless and satellite coverage. In other words, Labor’s NBN was mainly equitable in terms of the advanced technology adopted across the board.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/three-charts-on-the-nbn-and-australias-digital-divide-78911">Three charts on: the NBN and Australia’s digital divide</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>However, <a href="http://www.inderscienceonline.com/doi/abs/10.1504/IJCIS.2015.072156">research on the early NBN rollout</a> pointed out the issue of timing. Even under the most optimistic estimations, it was going to take over a decade to build the nation-wide infrastructure. So, there were always questions about who was going to get the infrastructure first, and who had to wait over a decade for a similar service.</p>
<p>The results of the 2013 Federal election changed the fate of the NBN. The elected Coalition government decided the NBN rollout should transition from a primarily fibre-to-premises model to a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/10/malcolm-turnbull-directs-nbn-to-mixed-technology">mixed-technology model</a>.</p>
<hr>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175122/original/file-20170622-3031-jt1gt9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/175122/original/file-20170622-3031-jt1gt9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=806&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175122/original/file-20170622-3031-jt1gt9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=806&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175122/original/file-20170622-3031-jt1gt9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=806&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175122/original/file-20170622-3031-jt1gt9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1013&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175122/original/file-20170622-3031-jt1gt9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1013&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/175122/original/file-20170622-3031-jt1gt9.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1013&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption"></span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Various/The Conversation</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><em>FTTP = fibre to the premises; FTTN/FFTB = fibre to the node/basement;
HFC = Hybrid Fibre-Coaxial</em></p>
<hr>
<p>This added to the complexity of the NBN, and created new layers in the inequality concerns around the NBN. In the Coalition’s NBN, many could be waiting quite some years and yet still only receive a <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/technology/articles/2013/02/21/3695094.htm">lower quality level of access to the service</a>.</p>
<h2>Inequity in 2017</h2>
<p>Now we’re past the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/technology/technology-news/nbn-co-reaches-halfway-mark-early-thanks-to-shrinking-target-20170706-gx5r9t.html">halfway point of NBN delivery</a>, and inequality of the service is clear at two levels. </p>
<h3>Large scale</h3>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/three-charts-on-the-nbn-and-australias-digital-divide-78911">Recent research</a> shows there is a clear digital divide between urban versus regional Australia in terms of access to the NBN. Regional Australia is missing out, both in terms of pace and quality of delivery in the mixed-technology model. This pretty much means that <a href="https://thewest.com.au/news/wa/nbn-fail-a-threat-to-lives-economy-ng-b88538329z">WA</a> and <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-03/nt-government-warns-nbn-over-technically-inferior-satellite/8411308">NT</a> are the worst off parts of the nation, because of the spread and dominance of regional and remote communities within them.</p>
<h3>“Fine grain” scale</h3>
<p>As described on <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/4corners/whats-wrong-with-the-nbn/9077900">Four Corners</a>, mixed-technology NBN within local government areas and neighbourhoods means some people are better off than others. </p>
<p>Some receive fibre-to-premises service while others have fibre-to-node. The quality of the service also depends on how far someone lives and works from a node, which basically suggests even people on the same fibre-to-nodes service could have varied level of (dis)satisfaction with their internet and phone services. </p>
<p><a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07293682.2015.1019754">Research published in 2015</a> captured some of the frustrations on the ground at the local government level. Differing qualities of internet services available were perceived to have direct implications for local economic development, productivity, and sense of community at the local level.</p>
<p>The two layers of NBN inequality mean that while some customers may be happy with their NBN, many experience a frustrating downgrade of service after moving to the NBN. This may help explain the <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/worldtoday/nbn-complaints-to-ombudsman-soar/8808376">increase in the number of NBN complaints</a> across the nation.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/lack-of-internet-affordability-may-worsen-australias-digital-divide-new-report-81823">Lack of internet affordability may worsen Australia’s digital divide: new report</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Let’s start moving forwards</h2>
<p>Politicising the NBN and blaming one party over another has been part of the national misfortune around the NBN. But, I believe, the inequality of the NBN is part of <a href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/13563470903021100">a bigger trend in infrastructure decision making in Australia</a> that fails to fully account for the socioeconomic implications. Other examples of this trend are seen in major (controversial) transport projects around the nation (e.g. <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-05-18/government-adamant-on-east-west-link-revival-/7426330">East West Link</a> in Melbourne, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2016/apr/21/westconnex-sydney-tunnel-faces-growing-community-opposition">WestConnex</a> in Sydney).</p>
<p>Current and future Australian governments must accept responsibility, and find a way forward for the NBN that is built on the notion of equitable service. </p>
<p>We can start with questions such as who needs the service the most, and who can do the most with it. These two questions refer to the social inclusion and productivity implications of the NBN.</p>
<p>The NBN, as a publicly funded national infrastructure project, has to be equitable to be a truly nation building platform. As long as it is failing some, it is failing us all as a nation.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/86221/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Tooran Alizadeh does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The NBN has to be equitable to be a truly nation-building platform. As long as it is failing some, it is failing us all in Australia.Tooran Alizadeh, Senior Lecturer, Director of Urban Design, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/753812017-04-18T19:44:59Z2017-04-18T19:44:59ZInflight Wi-Fi highlights challenges of satellite broadband delivery on land and in the sky<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/165504/original/image-20170418-32716-4vg4vo.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Qantas is currently trialling its new satellite broadband inflight service. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/download/confirm/312677084?src=aU2iLJdYLunQfKIuuoTydw-1-0&size=huge_jpg">from www.shutterstock.com </a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Qantas switched on its <a href="http://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/media-releases/qantas-switches-on-fast-free-inflight-wifi/">free inflight internet service trial</a> on April 7, with Virgin <a href="http://newsroom.virginaustralia.com/release/virgin-australia-partners-gogo-and-optus-satellite-introduce-inflight-wi-fi">set to launch</a> its own similar program later this month.</p>
<p>It’s been one year since Qantas made its <a href="http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/qantas-celebrates-thumping-halfyear-profit-and-announces-rollout-of-wifi-for-passengers/news-story/1ccb9a2dd19618aa948acae362699d56">original announcement</a> of inflight Wi-Fi, and five months since the first trial period was <a href="http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/qantas-wifi-put-back-till-201718/news-story/70abae5a40a7da25f104c5be041474da">postponed</a>. Qantas and its service partners acted fast to bring <a href="http://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/media-releases/qantas-switches-on-fast-free-inflight-wifi/">its trial</a> to fruition.</p>
<p>Qantas’ inflight free internet trial across Australian domestic routes will be based on the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ViaSat">ViaSat</a> satellite broadband service, and will use <a href="https://theconversation.com/internet-in-space-nbns-plan-to-bring-broadband-to-rural-australia-46618">NBN Co’s SkyMuster satellites</a>. These are the same satellites that deliver broadband internet to remote Australia. </p>
<p>So what will the demand on this service mean for internet customers on land and in the air?</p>
<h2>Satellite broadband in a plane</h2>
<p>The Skymuster geostationary satellites (positioned about 36,000km above Earth) act as an internet bridge, connecting a ground-based internet gateway to broadband customers on the aircraft.</p>
<p>A specialised satellite receiver installed in the plane provides the link to the satellite, in much the same way that a residential broadband installation connects homes to satellites. An onboard network of Wi-Fi routers then provides a direct internet connection either to an entertainment system installed in the seat, or to a compatible device belonging to the passenger.</p>
<p>Compared to onground Wi-Fi, onboard service delivery involves a relatively large number of passengers sharing the same satellite link.</p>
<p>The satellite receiver on the aircraft therefore needs to meet stringent design and operational requirements and can be very expensive for airlines to install across their fleet. </p>
<p>Qantas’ <a href="http://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/media-releases/qantas-switches-on-fast-free-inflight-wifi/">own customer survey</a> cites accessing emails (52%), web surfing (46%), streaming music, TV or movies (31%), accessing social media (30%), and news (30%) as the most popular modes of expected use.</p>
<p>Qantas and other carriers are also seeking to gain more efficiency across their flight management by allowing crew to obtain real-time updates on flight details via in-flight internet.</p>
<p>Through a combination of new satellites with improved capacities, plus optimisation of the data flow from different services accessed by different passengers, service providers are promising better services.</p>
<h2>Movies, not videoconferencing</h2>
<p>Qantas’ <a href="http://www.qantasnewsroom.com.au/media-releases/qantas-switches-on-fast-free-inflight-wifi/">announcement</a> claims availability of ten times the speed of conventional onboard Wi-Fi using older satellites. But it remains shy in speculating on the actual speed of the connection that passengers can expect to experience.</p>
<p>Currently, outback residential customers accessing similar services through SkyMuster satellites experience peak speeds of 25Mb per second downstream and 5Mb per second upstream. </p>
<p>Broadband customers in urban areas can expect much higher data speeds. NBN Co recently started offering <a href="https://www.whistleout.com.au/Broadband/National-Broadband-Network-NBN-100Mbps-Plans">100Mb per second and 40Mb per second peak downstream and upstream rates</a>.</p>
<p>If you assume 30% of passengers use the service on a Boeing 737 (trial aircraft, 174 passengers), they can reasonably expect speeds of only a few Mb per second. With content being accessed on 9" seat-mounted displays/tablets or 4-5" mobile phone screens, passengers might be able to enjoy reasonable quality streaming services or watch their favourite footy game live, as has proved to be the case on <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/qantas-free-wifi-the-verdict/news-story/0c3b449915c5610a8ed059cf1927d933">a recent trial flight with Qantas inflight internet</a>.</p>
<p>But as the data streams need to travel long distances (from ground to satellite, and then satellite to aircraft), service can experience time delays, referred to as latency. This may affect the customer experience when real-time interactive communications such as video conferencing or online games are in use.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.viasat.com/products/high-capacity-satellites">ViaSat claims to offer more than 100Mb per second</a> to aircrafts with the use of specialised satellite transmitters and receivers installed on aircrafts. The company is already working with carriers such as <a href="http://fortune.com/2016/11/10/american-airlines-viasat-wifi/">American Airlines</a>. <a href="http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/business/technology/sdut-viasat-sas-finnair-wifi-airlines-eutelsat-2016sep09-story.html">Finnair, United Airlines and Virgin America</a> also signed up for the services over America and Europe. </p>
<p>Internet delivery company <a href="https://www.gogoair.com">gogo</a> also has a hold on this fast developing market, with other carriers as its partners.</p>
<h2>Delivering internet to a moving target</h2>
<p>Satellites provide broadband connectivity by dividing set geographic regions into smaller areas. Specific beams are set up to transmit and receive signals in an independent manner. This provides more capacity shared among fewer customers, and is designed to optimise service delivery to fixed residences and support applications with low-speed mobility.</p>
<p>For example, Skymuster satellites use a mix of small (135km radius) and wide (325km radius) beams over different regions.</p>
<p>When such service is delivered to aircraft traversing wide distances at very high speeds, handover between multiple beams must be addressed. Depending on the use of smaller or wider beams, such issues could be tackled by networking techniques at the expense of some bandwidth.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/165541/original/image-20170418-32693-n5hj1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/165541/original/image-20170418-32693-n5hj1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165541/original/image-20170418-32693-n5hj1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165541/original/image-20170418-32693-n5hj1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165541/original/image-20170418-32693-n5hj1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165541/original/image-20170418-32693-n5hj1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/165541/original/image-20170418-32693-n5hj1r.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Wolumla ground station that communicates with the Sky Muster satellites.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/media-centre/image-gallery/satellite-ground-stations.html">NBN Co</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Techniques currently in play to improve delivery of satellite broadband include compression (to reduce the amount of data to be transferred), buffering (by caching every byte of information transmitted) and acceleration (techniques relating to how packets of information are handled and how connections are managed).</p>
<p>The fundamental limitation caused by internet signals traversing back and forth between the earth and space remains a major issue. Also, satellite broadband service depends on wireless transmission over a medium prone to weather effects and volatility.</p>
<p>Any minor drop outs in services are exacerbated by the long round trip delay involved in satellite transmission, as it takes longer to repair and restore connectivity.</p>
<p>Also, when multiple people connect and reconnect via such platforms with significant delays, the resilience of satellite-based connectivity might face challenging stability issues (<a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/rural-nbn-satellite-service-users-far-from-impressed-by-outages/news-story/5af6d8003afc8d6f80aa0d534989e2f8">like those experienced by NBN customers in 2016</a>).</p>
<p>Problems linked to pricing and capping of in-flight data packages also need to be considered.</p>
<h2>Competing interests</h2>
<p>A spokeperson for NBN said that despite the launch of new onboard services, <a href="http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/ed-gannon-qantas-wifi-trial-to-leave-country-users-buffering/news-story/68c0eab7c39d0f935b6bb4a5e42f7814">satellite broadband provision to the outback will be prioritised</a>.</p>
<p>But many in the <a href="https://theconversation.com/regional-australia-is-crying-out-for-equitable-access-to-broadband-69711">bush are worried</a> about their state of broadband connectivity. It’s an issue that will likely be exacerbated by expanding demand with growing numbers of broadband-using passengers on domestic air routes. </p>
<p>Broadband use in remote Australia is also increasing, and not just for communication. Many applications based on the “<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-the-internet-of-things-16542">Internet of Things</a>” require internet connectivity. </p>
<p>In regional Australia, these range from logistics management, smart farming to facility management in the resources sector. All these services will place growing demand on satellite broadband.</p>
<p>Planning for the time when Skymuster satellites approach capacity limits should be considered. As <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-10-06/skymuster-launch-successful-better-internet-within-months/7907794">SkyMuster II</a> starts to deliver services, this might relieve the bandwidth demand. </p>
<p>Unlike the case with its <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/media-centre/media-releases/First-demonstration-of-Sky-Muster-service.html">Skymuster I launch</a>, NBN has not yet provided time lines on SkyMuster II in terms of its testing phase or when it will be ready to offer services. Given its successful launch in October 2016, one would expect it should be offering services by now.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/FfvrW7Vk-bo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">The Skymuster II satellite was launched in October 2016.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Another satellite launch</h2>
<p>If there is sufficient demand for in-flight broadband services, it might make it more attractive for the <a href="http://www.farmweekly.com.au/news/agriculture/general/news/nbn-co-moots-need-for-third-satellite/2696049.aspx">NBN</a> to launch a <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/business-spectator/does-nbn-need-a-third-satellite/news-story/16b1bc3d5aeeb7c5fffee73a0212821b">third satellite</a> to meet the growing demand.</p>
<p>In addition, NBN could look at expanding the roll-out of fixed wireless services. This would migrate some customers out of satellite, and relieve the satellite bandwidth for in-flight and other applications.</p>
<p>ViaSat is also <a href="http://spacenews.com/viasat-wants-to-go-small-on-gateways-not-on-satellites/">building its own satellite constellation</a> to offer high speed inflight internet across major international flight routes. The company seeks to cover 90% of the routes.</p>
<p>Qantas hopes to complete onboard Wi-Fi infrastructure installation across its fleet of around 80 aircraft (737s and A330s) by 2018. It is not clear how the fleet would be split across domestic and international routes.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/75381/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Nokia Australia, Google and Digital Falcon. In addition, he leads an interdisciplinary research institute - Melbourne Networked Society Institute which has received funding from the Victorian State Government as well as Federal Government and a number of industry partners.</span></em></p>Customers on land and in the sky are placing increasing demands on Skymuster satellites for broadband Wi-Fi delivery - can NBC Co deliver?Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas, Director - Melbourne Networked Society Institute, Professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Co-Founder/Academic Director - Melbourne Accelerator Program, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/757802017-04-11T00:59:22Z2017-04-11T00:59:22ZThree charts on Australia’s growing appetite for fast broadband<p><em>This piece is part of our new Three Charts series, in which we aim to highlight interesting trends in three simple charts.</em></p>
<p>The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ latest figures on <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/8153.0Main+Features1December%202016?OpenDocument">internet activity in Australia</a> show a huge jump in the number of people with advertised speeds of greater than 24 Mbps (that’s megabits per second, a measure of data transfer speed).</p>
<p>That trend is significant because it suggests that Australia’s appetite for faster broadband is growing apace, and that the NBN may be helping to drive adoption of higher speed internet.</p>
<p>Starting from Dec 2014, the number of subscribers in Australia with internet advertised as being capable of 24 Mbps or greater <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/subscriber.nsf/log?openagent&81530do001_201612.xls&8153.0&Data%20Cubes&C835E0DF404B850ECA2580F8001DEB95&0&December%202016&05.04.2017&Latest">rose from 2.3 million to 7.8 million.</a> Or, expressed another way, from 19% of all internet subscribers to 58% of all subscribers. </p>
<p>(It’s worth noting that the growth is in people who have signed up to packages that advertised internet speeds <em>capable</em> of reaching 24 Mbps. That’s not to say that speed is <em>actually</em> delivered all of the time; there is variation and one doesn’t always get the advertised speeds.)</p>
<iframe src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/XPR45/4/" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" width="100%" height="582"></iframe>
<p>This increase is due, in part, to the roll-out of the national broadband network (NBN) and access to broadband at higher speeds – but that’s not the whole story.</p>
<p>True, the number of NBN subscribers over the same period rose rapidly from 322,000 to 1.7 million but that doesn’t explain the other 5.5 million subscribers who moved to faster broadband in that time. </p>
<p>Looking at the types of connection, there was an increase in the number of subscribers using internet delivered by fibre and fixed wireless. This tallies with what NBN data show.</p>
<iframe src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/dEIOw/6/" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" width="100%" height="500"></iframe>
<p>It’s likely that with the advent of the NBN and its standardised speed tiers, internet service providers started offering services that were on a par or better than those being offered on the NBN. Competition may be at work, and the technology itself is improving. </p>
<p>However, data reported by cloud computing services firm Akamai in their <a href="https://www.akamai.com/us/en/about/our-thinking/state-of-the-internet-report/">State of the Internet</a> reports – frequently <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-06-21/fact-check-australias-internet-speed-rank/7509352">cited</a> by the press – showed Australia’s broadband to be woefully behind most other developed countries. </p>
<p>Indeed, in the same time that Australia saw a huge increase in subscribers on internet speeds of 24 Mbps and above, Akamai was reporting that average internet download speeds had increased by a mere 27%, an increase to an underwhelming 10.1 Mbps. That puts Australia down the list in terms of average speeds.</p>
<p>With ABS data showing that 58% of the population is now on plans capable of delivering speeds of 24 Mbps and above, such a paltry rise in the average internet speed is somewhat surprising. </p>
<iframe src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/Lziw4/4/" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" width="100%" height="535"></iframe>
<p>It is, of course, possible that the advertised speeds of Australian internet plans are, too often, misrepresenting the true speeds available.</p>
<p>The way that Akamai calculates its figures is not spelled out in its report – it <a href="https://www.akamai.com/us/en/multimedia/documents/state-of-the-internet/q4-2016-state-of-the-internet-connectivity-report.pdf">says</a> that it “includes data gathered from across the Akamai Intelligent Platform”. So perhaps it would be wise to take claims about Australia’s rank in the world on internet speeds with a hefty grain of salt. Things may be better than we are being told. </p>
<p>More data is needed to make sense of the impact of the shift of subscribers to higher speed internet. Projects like the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/accc-to-monitor-australias-broadband-performance">plan</a> to “test and report on the typical speed and performance of broadband plans provided over the NBN” will help build a more accurate picture.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/75780/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>David Glance does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>ABS figures show that Australia’s appetite for faster broadband is growing apace.David Glance, Director of UWA Centre for Software Practice, The University of Western AustraliaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/684242016-12-16T00:30:18Z2016-12-16T00:30:18ZHow to choose the best NBN plan for your needs<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/149611/original/image-20161212-31402-1hpkqvt.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Which NBN plan should you use to connect to the internet?</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/mawari/8743553373/">Flickr/Hideya HAMANO</a>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/">CC BY-NC-ND</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As the National Broadband Network (<a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/nbn-127">NBN</a>) <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/learn-about-the-nbn/rollout-map.html">roll out continues</a>, those privileged to have access to the network will be hunting for bargains when it comes to choosing a broadband plan.</p>
<p>Currently there are large number of broadband plans from 69 registered internet service providers (ISPs) along with a number of re-sellers for consideration. </p>
<p>With so many players, and recent additions such as <a href="https://myrepublic.net/au/?gclid=CjwKEAiAvZTCBRDvnoOaoa2j3xISJABxPjN9tl03Q47wTC0zeXPIfQqfD6VjgIy32KpdtbxttLqBEBoC2Mfw_wcB">MyRepublic</a> from Singapore, picking the right deal can be exhausting and confusing.</p>
<p>There are online sites such as <a href="https://www.whistleout.com.au/Broadband/National-Broadband-Network-NBN-Plans">whistleout</a>, <a href="https://www.finder.com.au/broadband-plans">Finder</a> and others that help you to investigate the various broadband packages, without having to reveal your location or identity. </p>
<p>Your choice has to be made based on matching a plan to your needs, desired speed of internet connection, cost of contract, quality of service and customer satisfaction ratings of your short-listed service providers. </p>
<p>Unlike countries such as the UK, where industry regulator <a href="https://www.ofcom.org.uk/about-ofcom/latest/media/media-releases/2015/broadband-speeds-november2014">Ofcom</a> checks the offerings by ISPs, in Australia we do not have a good mechanism to keep ISPs honest about the data speeds and quality of experience customers can expect.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/TOzxvcHm-HI?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
</figure>
<h2>Know thyself</h2>
<p>Your journey into selecting a broadband plan has to start with knowing your internet consumption and associated <a href="https://www.whistleout.com.au/Broadband/Guides/Broadband-Usage-Guide">data requirements</a>.</p>
<p>The demographics of who lives in your household and the differences in their usage patterns will affect the data and bandwidth requirements. </p>
<p>Crunching the <a href="http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/mf/8146.0">latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics</a>, Australians aged 45-65+ spend on average about 32 hours per month online, while for 25-44 year olds it is 40 hours and 70 hours for 15-24 year olds.</p>
<p>How does internet usage translate to data requirements? Data requirements can vary hugely depending on the type of internet usage. So let’s look at some categories of internet users based on how they use the internet.</p>
<p>While many classifications categorise users by generation, here we group people based on how they use the internet, as this is more relevant to determining your data needs.</p>
<p><strong>Web Surfer</strong> – if you just use the internet to access emails, surf the web and make voice calls, and possibly low levels of social media access or the occasional YouTube video, you will consume about 150-300MB per hour.</p>
<p><strong>Online Gamer</strong> – Games typically require around 40MB per hour, but this could increase with the rise of virtual reality games. In fact, most gaming data usage comes from downloading new games or large updates. When you factor this, you will need about 100-200GB per person for a month, but that could vary widely.</p>
<p><strong>Social Networker</strong> – in addition to casual use, you might be a heavy user of social networking, both posting and downloading images and videos. Your social network use could consume about 120MB per hour, with video adding another 3.5GB per hour. If you’re in this category, you would consume around 1.8GB per hour.</p>
<p><strong>Video Frenzy</strong> – if you stream a lot of video and audio via services like Netflix, Presto, Stan or YouTube, then depending on the quality, you could use around 3.5GB per hour on average. </p>
<p>If you consider a household of one casual Web Surfer (32 hours on internet per month), one Social Networker (40 hours/month) and one Video Frenzy (60 hours/month), the household would need up to 320GB/month data package . </p>
<h2>Speed and latency</h2>
<p>NBN plans are structured around a <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/learn-about-the-nbn/speed.html">five tiers</a> of connectivity offered by nbn co, with a range of download/upload speeds:</p>
<iframe src="https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/HILfb/1/" frameborder="0" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" webkitallowfullscreen="webkitallowfullscreen" mozallowfullscreen="mozallowfullscreen" oallowfullscreen="oallowfullscreen" msallowfullscreen="msallowfullscreen" width="100%" height="300"></iframe>
<p>As a rough guide, Tier 1 may be sufficient if you’re a Web Surfer, while Tiers 2 and 3 may be well suited for households with multiple Social Networkers.</p>
<p>When using bandwidth-intensive applications, such as video streaming, and interactive applications, such as online gaming, your experience will largely depend on the speed of the connection and how much delay or latency there is in the network.</p>
<p>Tier 4 connectivity would be ideal if you’re a Video Frenzy user and possibly for an Online Gamer, depending on the games you play.</p>
<p>A household with serious Online Gamers and multiple Video Frenzy users might be better off going for a Tier 5 service. Similarly, business users with video conferencing facilities might be better off with a Tier 4 or 5 service. </p>
<p>The speed of access might depend on many other factors: number of users, type and location of services you access and how they are configured and your dominant usage time in the day (peak hours or not for example). </p>
<p>One metric – speed of connection during peak hours – has become an important measure. This has been <a href="https://www.ofcom.org.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0017/71540/fixed-bb-speeds-nov15-report.pdf">published by OFCOM</a>, the telecommunications regulator in the United Kingdom to gauge the quality of service offering from ISPs. </p>
<p>Australians can only hope this could be tackled by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/regulated-infrastructure/communications/monitoring-reporting/broadband-performance-monitoring-reporting-program">broadband monitoring proposals</a> with data made public for consumers to educate themselves about better ways to differentiate between broadband services. </p>
<p>At this point, broadband speed testing and customer reviews can only provide a rough guide for you in this selection. </p>
<h2>Pricing of NBN services</h2>
<p>NBN broadband plans on offer have various cost elements such as monthly fee, upfront cost, minimum contract period and associated minimum costs (with contract terms varying from one month to 24 months), and variable cost for the remaining subscription period. </p>
<p>Even for a base level <a href="https://www.whistleout.com.au/Broadband/National-Broadband-Network-NBN-12Mbps-Plans">Tier 1 service</a>, the median monthly fee is around A$50, with a range of prices between A$29 and A$60 depending on the data allowance and other factors. The minimum contract period can vary from one month to 24 months and the upfront cost can be anywhere from nothing to A$230. </p>
<p>The best way to compare plans would be to determine the total cost for a 24 month subscription. Total contract price for a Tier 1 service now vary from A$940 to A$2,190 with a median contract price of A$1,355. </p>
<p>Similarly, a comparison of available offerings under various Tier 5 plans can be scanned via <a href="https://www.whistleout.com.au/Broadband/National-Broadband-Network-NBN-100Mbps-Plans">Whistleout</a>. Packages can start at a monthly fee of around A$60 and a contract price of A$1,444. The monthly fee can be as high as A$100 and 24 month subscriptions can be as high as A$2,500.</p>
<p>It may be that you start on a lower plan will find yourself needing to upgrade to higher Tier services. The market, is starting to extract more value and getting people onto higher tier services. </p>
<p>You should consider what will be the cost implications and contract condition limitations of upgrading your package. A higher Tier service right from the start might be a better option if you anticipate your usage is likely to be different within the contract period. </p>
<h2>Customer satisfaction of ISPs</h2>
<p>ISP performance is the biggest factor to consider when selecting a broadband plan, yet in Australia there is not enough transparency or reporting requirements on ISPs to publish their performance data. </p>
<p>While you may subscribe to a particular speed of connection, ISP performance might vary, and at peak times connection speeds could plummet affecting your experience.</p>
<p>The consumer group <a href="https://www.choice.com.au/">Choice</a> publishes <a href="https://www.choice.com.au/electronics-and-technology/internet/connecting-to-the-internet/articles/isp-satisfaction-survey-2015">customer satisfaction ratings</a> and it could be the starting point when it comes to how ISPs are perceived to be meeting expectations. </p>
<p>You can also find reviews on sites such as <a href="http://www.productreview.com.au/c/internet-service-providers.html">Product Review</a>, <a href="http://www.ozbroadbandreview.com/">Ozbroadbandreview</a> and <a href="http://whirlpool.net.au/">Whirlpool</a>. </p>
<p>Australia is seriously lacking a systematic reporting of ISP performance and needs a better performance reporting framework to educate broadband users, to drive effective competition and proper service differentiation. </p>
<p>As the NBN deployment accelerates, there is an urgent need to improve the performance of broadband service and service differentiation as well as delivering a better quality of experience. </p>
<p>The ISP industry, nbn Co as well as competition watchdogs such as the ACCC need to develop a better performance reporting framework if we are to reap the better experience from the public investment in building the national broadband network.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>Adam Lodders, executive officer of the Melbourne Networked Society Institute, co-authored this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/68424/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas receives funding from the Australian Research Council as well as industry partners such as Nokia and Google and leads the interdisciplinary research institute - Melbourne Networked Society Institute which has received funding from the Victorian State Government, Federal Government as well as a range of industry partners.</span></em></p>As more people gain access to the National Broadband Network, so more plans are on offer. Here’s how to pick the best plan for your needs.Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas, Director - Melbourne Networked Society Institute, Professor of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Co-Founder/Academic Director - Melbourne Accelerator Program, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/704142016-12-15T02:29:36Z2016-12-15T02:29:36ZPBO report shows blowout in cost of the government’s loans to the NBN<p>The NBN is bleeding the Federal Budget to the tune of A$580 million in 2016-17, increasing to A$730 million in 2019-20 and A$2.1 billion in 2026-27, according to the recently released Parliamentary Budget Office (PBO) <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/About_Parliament/Parliamentary_Departments/Parliamentary_Budget_Office/Reports/Research_reports/Report_042016">report</a>. However the ultimate cost to the taxpayer will be many times this amount.</p>
<p>The current budget cost of A$580 million consists of the interest payments on the funds that the government borrowed to buy its equity stake in the NBN (currently A$20.3 billion and due to rise to A$29.5 billion next year), minus a small offset due to the net interest receipts the government receives from its loans to the NBN (which will be $19 billion by 2020). The government is charging the NBN more than it costs the government to borrow the money.</p>
<p>But the real cost to the taxpayer is much more than this because the NBN has accumulated operating losses of A$8.2 billion as of 30 June 2016. If we subtract A$1 million from that due to asset revaluations and include other adjustments, the government’s investment in the NBN has deteriorated by A$8.8 billion according to the PBO. This is the real cost to the taxpayer.</p>
<p>These operating losses are projected to continue for at least another two years, even under the optimistic revenue forecasts of nbn co.’s <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/documents/nbn-corporate-plan-2017.pdf">Corporate Plan</a>. These losses are not recorded in the budget but they are still a cost to the taxpayer because the government had to borrow the money to inject funds into the NBN. This loan has to be repaid. The plan was that this loan would be repaid from the sale of the government’s equity stake in the NBN in 2020.</p>
<p>This is why the final sale price of the NBN will be crucial to determining the ultimate funding cost to the taxpayer. Unless the sale price covers the accumulated interest cost plus the Commonwealth’s equity injection, taxpayers will be out of pocket. </p>
<p>The sale price is very hard to estimate but the current estimates of the internal rate of return (IRR) are of 3.2 to 3.7% (which is low) is based on the government’s current equity value. An acceptable IRR for social infrastructure with low risk is usually <a href="http://www.ampcapital.com/ampcapitalglobal/media/contents/campaign/real/understanding_infrastructure_a_reference_guide.pdf">around 10%</a>. In order for the government to get a higher IRR, the sale price would need to be much lower, with the taxpayer picking up the loss on sale.</p>
<p>Also weighing on the sale price are the several guarantees provided by the government, liabilities that would be ultimately borne by the taxpayer should they materialise. These include:</p>
<ul>
<li>a guarantee to the company, nbn co., that it would pay any outstanding costs in the event that the NBN rollout is terminated for whatever reason</li>
<li>guarantees to both Telstra and Optus in relation to nbn co.’s financial obligations to both telcos.</li>
</ul>
<p>These contingent liabilities are collectively worth A$15.5 billion at current valuations – a very substantial dollar risk to the taxpayer even though the probability of this materialising is estimated by the government to be very low.</p>
<p>On the bright side, the risks and costs would have been much worse under the original plan in 2011. The costs of the original plan for fibre to the premises (FTTP) rollout had blown out to A$72.6 billion by December 2013 according to government forecasts, with completion not occurring before 2024. This compares with A$44.1 billion in the NBN’s estimate at August 2012. </p>
<p>The original estimated IRR of 7.1% was pie in the sky. The <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco/documents/NBN-Co-Strategic-Review-Report.pdf">government’s NBN Review in 2013</a> found that in order to achieve the 7.1% modest return, it would require price increases of 50 to 80% to customers or a government subsidy of up to A$2.5 billion every year to 2039-40.</p>
<p>Either the price rises or the subsidy would have been absurd and unaffordable. This is why the government’s new NBN model includes a range of technologies at a substantially lower cost although still, it must be said, leaving a very low IRR.</p>
<p>The bottom line is that the NBN is a drag on the government’s budget at a time when its credit rating is under <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-11-22/standard-and-poors-reiterates-australian-credit-rating-warning/8045466">increasing threat</a>. But there are much larger costs yet to come when the government sells its equity at a substantial loss which of course will ultimately be borne by the taxpayer. </p>
<p>We won’t see any sign of these impending costs in the government’s Mid-Year Economic and Financial Outlook (MYEFO) because the effect of the accumulated NBN losses on the government’s equity investment are off-budget. This is of course one reason why governments are attracted to commercial infrastructure arrangements in partnership with the private sector.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/70414/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ross Guest does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A Parliamentary Budget Office report shows just how much the NBN might cost the taxpayer.Ross Guest, Professor of Economics and National Senior Teaching Fellow, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/609252016-06-13T08:02:42Z2016-06-13T08:02:42ZHow do Labor and the Coalition differ on NBN policy?<p>As hinted in earlier announcements by Shadow Communications Minister, Jason Clare, Labor’s much-anticipated <a href="https://11217-presscdn-0-50-pagely.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/ALPF133-NBN-Brochure-Factsheet_A4.pdf">policy for the National Broadband Network</a> released Monday commits the party – if elected – to move away from the Coalition’s fibre to the node (FTTN) network and transition back to a roll-out of fibre to the premises (FTTP). This was the central pillar of Labor’s original NBN. </p>
<p>The FTTN roll-out will be phased out as soon as current design and construction contracts are completed.</p>
<p>This is a major shift away from the Coalition’s focus on FTTN technologies, which was a key part of their election platform in 2013. After a number of delays, FTTN equipment is now being <a href="https://theconversation.com/election-factcheck-qanda-has-the-nbn-been-delayed-59906">rolled out around Australia</a>.</p>
<p>Labor will continue with the Coalition’s plans to deliver NBN services on upgraded versions of Telstra and Optus’ hybrid fibre coax (HFC) infrastructure. No doubt Labor would like to move away from HFC, but the contracts for the HFC network are already signed, and it is probably too late to remove HFC from the NBN.</p>
<p>Apart from a commitment to deliver FTTP rather than satellite services to western Tasmania, there are no significant changes to the fixed wireless and satellite parts of the network.</p>
<p>Labor forecasts that its revamped NBN will be completed by June 2022, with FTTP being available to 2 million more homes and businesses than would have been the case under the Coalition’s current plans. At the completion of Labor’s NBN rollout, approximately 39% or around 5 million homes and businesses will have access to FTTP, compared to 20%, or 2.5 million, under the Coalition.</p>
<p>A 39% FTTP coverage is considerably less than the 93% target in Labor’s original NBN plan. But in a significant longer-term policy initiative, Labor has promised to commission Infrastructure Australia to develop a plan to upgrade the 2.5 million premises served by FTTN to FTTP. This will mean that all fixed-line connections in Australia will eventually be either FTTP or HFC.</p>
<p>Labor’s new policy recognises the possibility that new fibre-to-the-distribution-point (FTTdP) technologies might become attractive in the future, but has reserved judgement on FTTdP until the technology is more mature. NBN Co is already looking at this <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/blog/the-nbn-project/fttdp-could-provide-a-vital-new-tool-for-building-the-nbn-network.html">technology</a>.</p>
<p>Significantly, FTTdP is compatible with FTTP and offers a straightforward upgrade path to FTTP.</p>
<h2>Can NBN Co deliver Labor’s new network?</h2>
<p>Labor has pointed out that NBN Co has an in-house FTTP design and construction capability as well as the IT systems necessary to manage FTTP. In addition, legal agreements in place with Telstra to provide access to Telstra’s ducts and pits. </p>
<p>In fact, in recent months, NBN Co has been rolling out FTTP (including fibre to the basement in multi-dwelling units) at a rate of about 10,000 premises per week. This has been underway at a time when NBN Co has been focusing on ramping up its FTTN and HFC rollout.</p>
<p>With a shift away from FTTN construction, and a shift of resources to FTTP design and installation, it is entirely feasible that NBN Co could double the rollout rate to around 20,000 premises per week. This would be more than enough to serve the 5 million premises targeted over the five-year time-frame of Labor’s roll-out plan. </p>
<h2>Are Labor’s costings sound?</h2>
<p>Labor has not published a detailed budget for its NBN plan. But the total estimated cost ($49 billion to $57 billion compared to the Coalition’s budget of $46 billion to $56 billion) appears to be plausible.</p>
<p>There are a few key factors that support this:</p>
<ul>
<li>The <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/business-spectator/how-much-do-fttp-nbn-connections-really-cost/news-story/74dadb937448c9efefecde5e7d6f56b2">cost of installing FTTP</a> has decreased significantly over recent years, aided by new efficient construction techniques and new fibre cables with smaller diameter. </li>
<li>The ongoing operational expenditure needed to keep an FTTP running is considerably lower than for FTTN.</li>
<li>FTTP will remove the need to be repair and maintain <a href="https://delimiter.com.au/2015/12/21/nbn-co-to-pay-telstra-to-fix-its-own-copper-network/">Telstra’s ageing copper network</a>, a cost that NBN Co currently bears. </li>
<li>As the demand for higher-speed services over FTTP grows, NBN Co will receive higher revenues from its FTTP network than its FTTN network. Labor claims this will increase the rate of return on the NBN investment from 2.7% under the Coalition to 3.9% under Labor.</li>
</ul>
<h2>What will be the impact of Labor’s policy?</h2>
<p>Many critics have highlighted the severe limitations of the Coalition’s <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/opinion/mark-day/secondclass-nbn-at-odds-with-agile-agenda/news-story/27774679520d33ceec1ceac8f193db6a">slow-speed FTTN network</a> and its relative inability to <a href="https://www.internet.org.au/docs/media/451-18-april-2016-news-release-internet-australia-issues-a-revised-nbn-policy-calls-for-a-strategic-rethink-and-an-end-to-copper/file">drive digital innovation</a>. </p>
<p>The pace of FTTP roll-outs around the globe is increasing as other countries recognise the critical <a href="https://theconversation.com/broadband-is-the-key-infrastructure-for-the-21st-century-47946">importance of super-fast broadband</a> to economic growth.</p>
<p>AT&T, a major United States telco has essentially stopped constructing FTTN networks, and has announced <a href="http://www.lightreading.com/gigabit/fttx/atandt-preps-for-big-fiber-build-/a/d-id/723695">a major increase in FTTP deployments</a> in response to customer demands for higher speed. </p>
<p>In Australia, the Coalition’s FTTN exacerbates the “<a href="https://theconversation.com/the-digital-divide-is-narrowing-but-more-needs-to-be-done-25994">digital divide</a>”, the gap between broadband haves and have-nots. Here’s how.</p>
<ul>
<li>Those homes and businesses lucky enough to be served by FTTP can access very-high-speed internet now and even higher speeds in the future. Meanwhile, those premises stuck with FTTN will struggle with lower speeds and find that their connection is obsolete within a few years.</li>
<li>For those customers with FTTN connections, the speed of their service will be affected by their distance from the node. The greater the distance, the lower the speed.</li>
<li>The Coalition’s technology choice program enables FTTN customers to pay for an upgrade to FTTP, but at a cost depending on the distance from the node. A business that needs FTTP and is some distance from the node may have to pay $5,000 or more for an upgrade, while another business close to the node would pay considerably less.<br></li>
</ul>
<p>The NBN has been a key issue in the past two elections, so will Labor’s new policy be a vote winner? The policy to move back to FTTP provides a clear differentiation from the Coalition’s FTTN-centric strategy. </p>
<p>Many Australians recognise the importance of super-fast broadband as a driver of innovation in the digital economy, and will no doubt think of this on July 2.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/60925/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rod Tucker has received funding from the ARC and a number of telecommunications companies. He was a member of the Panel of Experts that advised the Labor Government on the establishment of the original FTTP-based NBN.</span></em></p>Now the ALP has released its much-anticipated National Broadband Network policy, it gives voters a chance to see how the Coalition and the Opposition’s plans compare.Rod Tucker, Laureate Emeritus Professor, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/599062016-05-30T04:18:48Z2016-05-30T04:18:48ZElection FactCheck Q&A: has the NBN been delayed?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/124254/original/image-20160527-22060-1bhju09.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Was Christopher Pyne right about the NBN?</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Q&A</span></span></figcaption></figure><p><strong>The Conversation is fact-checking claims made on Q&A, broadcast Mondays on the ABC at 9:35pm. Thank you to everyone who sent us quotes for checking via <a href="http://www.twitter.com/conversationEDU">Twitter</a> using hashtags #FactCheck and #QandA, on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/conversationEDU">Facebook</a> or by <a href="mailto:checkit@theconversation.edu.au">email</a>.</strong></p>
<hr>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ORmCk6OEOn4?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Excerpt from Q&A, May 23, 2016.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<blockquote>
<p>And there has not been a delay of the NBN … Because of Malcolm Turnbull’s management of the NBN, it will all be finished by 2020, not 2024 as Labor was promising, with speeds that people want and need. – Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Christopher Pyne, <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/tv/qanda/txt/s4445605.htm">speaking on Q&A</a>, May 23, 2016.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The election campaign has brought national broadband network (NBN) policy back into the spotlight, particularly as the incumbent prime minister was responsible for the NBN in his previous role as communications minister. </p>
<p>Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science Christopher Pyne told Q&A there has not been a delay of the NBN. Is that right?</p>
<h2>2013: the year of election promises and reviews</h2>
<p>The Conversation contacted a spokesperson for Christopher Pyne seeking comment and sources to support his statement, but did not hear back before deadline. </p>
<p>Nevertheless, most of the documents on the recent history of the NBN can be found online. </p>
<p>As acknowledged in <a href="https://www.communications.gov.au/file/315/download?token=8OjaNaNc">this Coalition document</a>, the previous Labor government promised to deliver an NBN by a deadline of 2021 (not 2024 as Pyne stated on Q&A).</p>
<p>Prior to the 2013 federal election, the nbn co under the then-Labor government <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco/documents/nbn-co-3-year-gbe-corporate-plan-final-17-dec-10.pdf">said</a> it planned to deliver a predominantly fibre-to-the-premises (FTTP) network by 2021. </p>
<p>But there were <a href="http://www.afr.com/business/telecommunications/telstra-boss-says-nbn-deal-delayed-to-2015-20141014-11cpmp">delays in negotiating with Telstra</a> for access to ducts and pits, the discovery of asbestos in some of Telstra’s network and other <a href="https://theconversation.com/factcheck-will-the-nbn-take-another-20-years-to-complete-16962">teething problems</a>.</p>
<p>In its 2013 pre-election promises, the Coalition said its <a href="http://lpa.webcontent.s3.amazonaws.com/NBN/The%20Coalition%E2%80%99s%20Plan%20for%20Fast%20Broadband%20and%20an%20Affordable%20NBN.pdf">goal</a> was to provide everyone in the nation with access to broadband with download data rates of between 25 and 100 megabits per second by 2016. The Coalition also planned to deliver between <a href="http://lpa.webcontent.s3.amazonaws.com/NBN/The%20Coalition%E2%80%99s%20Plan%20for%20Fast%20Broadband%20and%20an%20Affordable%20NBN.pdf">50 and 100 megabits per second</a> to 90% of the fixed-line footprint by the end of 2019. That election commitment, the Coalition said, “assumes the current NBN Co satellite and fixed wireless networks are deployed on schedule”.</p>
<p>But after the election, the Coalition <a href="http://www.minister.communications.gov.au/malcolm_turnbull/news/strategic_review_of_the_national_broadband_network#.V0UKJPl96Wi">dropped</a> its promise to deliver 25 to 100 megabits per second to everyone in the nation by 2016. </p>
<p>Then communications minister Malcolm Turnbull <a href="http://www.financeminister.gov.au/media-release/2013/12/12/strategic-review-national-broadband-network">said</a> that a December 2013 <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco/documents/NBN-Co-Strategic-Review-Report.pdf">Strategic Review</a> of the NBN commissioned by the new government had found that: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>the NBN is in a fundamentally worse position than the Labor Government at any time disclosed to Parliament or the Australian public.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The strategic review also said that Labor’s NBN would not have been completed until 2024.</p>
<h2>2015: New plans</h2>
<p>In 2015, nbn co issued its 2016 <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco2/documents/nbn-corporate-plan-2016.pdf">corporate plan</a>.</p>
<p>In this document, the company now estimated that Labor’s plan for </p>
<blockquote>
<p>an all-FTTP fixed-line rollout could be completed by 2026 but possibly as late as 2028.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>However, former nbn co CEO Mike Quigley has <a href="http://www.zdnet.com/article/quigley-pins-turnbull-nbn-cost-blowout-on-mtm-delays-report/">challenged</a> this revised estimate. <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/cm/lb/6907464/data/mike-quigley-article-data.pdf">In a 2015 article</a>, he wrote:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>For that to be correct, one has to assume that, for the next 13 years, nbn co will roll out just 12,300 premises per week on average. Fewer premises than it regularly passes each week today. It is almost certainly true that an all-FTTP NBN would take longer to complete than its inferior MTM counterpart [the Multi-Technology Mix proposed by the Coalition]. But it would likely only be longer by one to three years…</p>
</blockquote>
<p>In late 2015, an nbn co spokesman was <a href="https://delimiter.com.au/2015/08/24/nbn-co-delays-fttn-rollout-for-further-testing/">reported as</a> saying that the company had </p>
<blockquote>
<p>deliberately chosen to take a more gradual approach to [fibre to the node or FTTN] activations than was originally flagged.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>The 2016 leaks</h2>
<p>Early in 2016, internal nbn co <a href="https://11217-presscdn-0-50-pagely.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Scale-the-Deployment-Weekly-Sponsor-Meeting_19Feb2016.pdf">documents</a> were leaked to the <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/nbn-malcolm-turnbulls-faster-cheaper-rollout-falters-20160228-gn5l0s.html">media</a>. </p>
<p>These and other leaked documents – which were at the centre of a recent <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-05-20/election-2016-why-did-australian-federal-police-raided-labor/7432210">Australian Federal Police raid on Labor offices</a> and a staffer’s home in an effort to find the leaker – were reported as showing bottlenecks and delays in the fibre to the node (FTTN) and hybrid fibre coax (HFC) components of the rollout.</p>
<p>In <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/corporate-information/media-centre/media-releases/response-to-media-reports-today-monday-29-February-2016.html">response</a>, nbn co said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>NBN has met or exceeded every key target for six quarters in a row.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Current nbn co chair Ziggy Switkowski <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/comment/nbn-co-makes-no-apologies-for-reporting-document-theft-to-the-afp-20160527-gp5g2g.html">wrote</a> on May 28, 2016, that: </p>
<blockquote>
<p>The company will meet its targets for the ninth quarter in a row … There are no “cost blowouts” or “rollout delays” to the publicly released plans.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>It’s beyond the scope of FactCheck to say with any certainty whether the leaked documents accurately reflect the full picture. </p>
<p>It’s important to note that as any technical and other teething problems are resolved, nbn co should be able to ramp up the roll-out rate to improve its chances of meeting a 2020 project completion date.</p>
<p>Internet access speeds around the world are <a href="https://content.akamai.com/PG5679-Q4-2015-SOTI-Connectivity-Report.html?gclid=CJqs-fOr9MwCFQGbvAodRUQI0Q">growing rapidly</a> and this growth is <a href="http://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/solutions/collateral/service-provider/ip-ngn-ip-next-generation-network/white_paper_c11-481360.html">expected to continue</a> for the foreseeable future. Australia’s internet speeds are <a href="http://www.news.com.au/technology/online/nbn/as-australias-global-internet-ranking-slips-critics-of-fttn-grow-louder/news-story/179031f43ad8053b959ca92177996ee8">slow</a> compared to other developed countries.</p>
<p><em>Infographic: <a href="https://theconversation.com/infographic-how-fast-is-the-nbn-54392">How fast is the NBN?</a></em></p>
<h2>Verdict</h2>
<p>Christopher Pyne’s assertion that there have been “no delays” in the implementation of the NBN is inaccurate. Some delays occurred under the Labor government, and the early stages of the FTTN rollout under the current government have been slower than the Coalition originally envisaged. </p>
<p>Leaked documents and reported statements by an nbn co spokesperson also suggest delays occurred under the Coalition government. However, nbn co rejects that, saying it has met or exceeded its key targets.</p>
<p>Labor promised a completion date of 2021, not 2024 as Pyne said. It was the December 2013 <a href="http://www.nbnco.com.au/content/dam/nbnco/documents/NBN-Co-Strategic-Review-Report.pdf">strategic review</a> of the NBN commissioned by the Coalition government that said Labor’s NBN would not have been completed until 2024. <strong>– Rod Tucker</strong></p>
<hr>
<h2>Review</h2>
<p>This article is factual and correct. As stated in the article, delays in nbn co’s rollout is also self-evident by comparing the original deployment date promises made before the 2013 federal election with the revised schedule outlined in the December 2013 strategic review of the NBN, initiated by the Coalition government. <strong>– Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas</strong></p>
<hr>
<p><div class="callout"> Have you ever seen a “fact” worth checking? The Conversation’s FactCheck asks academic experts to test claims and see how true they are. We then ask a second academic to review an anonymous copy of the article. You can request a check at checkit@theconversation.edu.au. Please include the statement you would like us to check, the date it was made, and a link if possible.</div></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/59906/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rod Tucker has received funding from the ARC and a number of telecommunications companies. He was a member of the Panel of Experts that advised the Labor Government on the establishment of the original FTTP-based NBN.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Thas Ampalavanapillai Nirmalathas receives funding from the Australian Research Council, Nokia Bell Labs, Google and the Victorian State Government and leads an interdisciplinary institute - Melbourne Networked Society Institute which has received funding from both state and federal governments as well as a range of industry partners. </span></em></p>Was Christopher Pyne right to say that “there has not been a delay of the NBN”?Rod Tucker, Laureate Emeritus Professor, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/454832015-08-05T20:16:56Z2015-08-05T20:16:56ZTurnbull’s plan to speed up the delivery of Australia’s broadband network<p>The number of people involved in Australia’s national broadband network (nbn) is set to double to about 9,000 after Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull this week <a href="http://www.minister.communications.gov.au/malcolm_turnbull/news/nbn_construction_workforce_to_double_as_rollout_accelerates">announced plans</a> to recruit and train an extra 4,500 workers.</p>
<p>This will make it even faster to roll out the rest of the national broadband network, and no doubt symbolises the Coalition’s leaner, quicker-to-roll-out version of the original NBN – re-branded earlier this year as a lower-case nbn for a <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/business/nbn-co-spends-700000-to-drop-co-20150424-1msqpx">reported A$700,000</a>.</p>
<p>But why the rush?</p>
<p>Let’s have a look at what has been achieved in the past six years.</p>
<h2>In the beginning…</h2>
<p>The Howard Government <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/national/heffernan-attacks-broadband-plan-20070323-3u2.html">struggled</a> with all things internet. Australia had “<a href="http://www.smh.com.au/news/technology/fairfax-boss-denounces-fraudband/2007/03/07/1173166799046.html">fraudband</a>” because it was too expensive and slow. </p>
<p>Then Opposition leader, Kevin Rudd, <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/news/wireless--broadband/labors-47-billion-broadband-plan/2007/03/21/1174153131586.html">said a national broadband network</a> was “nation-building for the 21st century”. And after Labor’s election, NBN Co was born on April 9, 2009. </p>
<p>However, the NBN took a back seat due to Labor’s leadership turmoil. Except when the <a href="http://www.itnews.com.au/News/316706,turnbull-attacks-quigley-over-nbn-management.aspx">Coalition poked fun at the NBN</a> for taking too long. <a href="http://www.afr.com/business/telecommunications/nbn-blames-partners-for-shortfall-in-rollout-20130322-ji01w">NBN Co blamed its partners</a> and then its <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/nbn-chief-quigley-calls-it-quits-20130712-2pu5w.html">boss quit</a>. </p>
<p>Things were going downhill.</p>
<h2>From NBN to nbn</h2>
<p>The Coalition’s <a href="https://theconversation.com/nbn-cost-benefit-analysis-signals-the-end-of-an-era-30909">cost-benefit analysis</a>, released almost a year ago, found Labor’s NBN was extravagant. NBN was stripped back by changing Labor’s fibre-to-the-home model to a multi-technology mix (MTM) model. Slower speeds but rolled out faster – that was the plan.</p>
<p>Now Turnbull is having a <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/nbn-accelerates-household-access-figures-but-critics-fault-multitechnology-mix-20150326-1m8v24.html">bob each way with the broadband network</a>. Finish the bits already started with fibre, then finish the bits that haven’t been started yet using multiple and ultimately cheaper technologies. Makes sense.</p>
<p>Although he would probably prefer to <a href="https://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2012/april/1337744204/robert-manne/one-morning-malcolm">let the market sort it all out</a>. If people want broadband, then somebody will sell it to them. Except maybe in the bush. Then the government should help make it work. Kevin07 thought <a href="https://www.themonthly.com.au/issue/2009/february/1319602475/kevin-rudd/global-financial-crisis">government could do it all better</a> – that’s why he set up NBN.</p>
<p>So Turnbull had little choice but to continue with the contracts set up by Labor. That’s the trouble with building things: it’s expensive to change your mind once the building starts.</p>
<p>It’s also hard to tear up contracts once they’ve started. Do this too many times and big business might stop building things for you. And when you are a politician, this <a href="http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/daniel-andrews-east-west-link-compensation-shame/story-fni0ffsx-1227305414277">makes you look bad</a>.</p>
<p>The whole point of NBN was to fix the “fraudband”. Now we have nbn with a MTM. Occasionally the Coalition still <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/digital-life-news/george-brandis-in-car-crash-interview-over-controversial-data-retention-regime-20140806-101849.html">struggles with internet things</a>, but <a href="http://www.crikey.com.au/2008/09/16/tech-savvy-tough-and-sleepless-the-turmbull-i-know/?wpmp_switcher=mobile">not Turnbull</a>. He wants to ensure Australia gets the nbn sooner rather than later.</p>
<h2>How are we travelling?</h2>
<p>Well, it depends. The whole point of spending billions of dollars on NBN (nbn) was to give Australians better access to faster broadband. Since last election, NBN was available to 1 in 50 households. Now nbn is available to 1 in 10. Things are looking up.</p>
<p>But how do we stack up against other countries?</p>
<p>I usually compare Australia with Canada, but it can be helpful to compare Australia with other countries in the <a href="http://www.oecd.org/">OECD</a> too. This is how Australia fared before Kevin07:</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=287&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=287&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=287&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=361&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=361&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90595/original/image-20150803-6016-hpxsru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=361&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Broadband Subscribers per 100 People, June 2007.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">OECD Broadband Growth and Policies in OECD Countries 2008</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Then, just before NBN Co was born, Australians appear to have stopped subscribing while they waited patiently for better broadband. Compared with other OECD member countries, this meant that Australian broadband was worse than before the 2007 election:</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=300&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90597/original/image-20150803-6019-iifpuf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=377&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Broadband Subscribers per 100 People, December 2008.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">OECD Broadband Portal (Accessed 29 July 2012)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The trouble is, after six years of NBN (nbn), things are still heading south:</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=267&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=267&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=267&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90604/original/image-20150803-6013-4f84e3.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=335&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">OECD Fixed broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, by technology, December 2014.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">OECD Broadband Portal (Accessed 3 August 2015)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Now let’s look at broadband speeds. To make it easier to read the graph, I have chosen to compare Australia with New Zealand, Canada, the United Kingdom, the United States and Greece. I chose the last one because <a href="http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-32332221">Greece is having problems at the moment</a> and it might help put things in perspective.</p>
<p>The graph below shows the fraction of subscribers with connection speeds of greater than 15mbps. Remember, <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/it-pro/government-it/nbn-the-difference-between-the-two-plans-20130814-hv1dl">NBN was meant to provide up to 100mbps and nbn at least 25mbps</a>:</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=232&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=232&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=232&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90603/original/image-20150803-5986-8nkb1z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=292&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Akamai State of the Internet Report: Speeds greater than 15mbps.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Akamai State of the Internet Connectivity Visualizations</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>What does it all mean? I’ve <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2010-05-06/33968">argued for many years</a> that government control of the market stifles industry. That’s not to say that smarter ways of privatising Telstra or deploying NBN couldn’t have made a difference. We can hypothesise until the cows come home. </p>
<p>But one of the richest OECD countries – <a href="https://www.google.com.au/search?q=australia+gdp+per+capita&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&gws_rd=cr&ei=B32_VbL-LOa7mAW40obYDw">Australia</a> – has broadband speeds closer to one of the poorest – <a href="https://www.google.com.au/search?q=australia+gdp+per+capita&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&gws_rd=cr&ei=B32_VbL-LOa7mAW40obYDw#newwindow=1&q=greece+gdp+per+capita">Greece</a>. </p>
<h2>Has it been worth it?</h2>
<p>Streaming services such as <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/business/what-netflixs-meteoric-rise-means-for-australia-20150717-giedtk.html">Netflix</a> should boost fixed-line broadband demand. This might prove to be a <a href="http://www.arnnet.com.au/article/366036/turnbull_why_should_taxpayers_fund_43b_nbn_better_hd_video_streaming_/">self-fulfilling prophecy for the Coalition</a>.</p>
<p>But when the next new technology comes along, government shouldn’t try to second-guess the market. Indeed, where government wasn’t meddling, the market has worked. Australia is a world leader in mobile broadband, for example:</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=309&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=309&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=309&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/90614/original/image-20150803-6022-41r1ev.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=388&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">OECD Mobile broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, by technology, December 2014.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">OECD Broadband Portal (Accessed 3 August 2015)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>It’s getting harder to see the public value in nbn. But it’s too late to stop it now. Better to double the workforce and finish it quickly and quietly. That seems to be Turnbull’s way out of this mess.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/45483/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michael de Percy does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>An extra 4,500 workers will be recruited to help in the roll out of Australia’s national broadband network. But there’s still the problem of the actual speed of the network.Michael de Percy, Senior Lecturer in Political Science, University of CanberraLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/301472014-08-06T04:18:08Z2014-08-06T04:18:08ZCost benefit analysis can help or hinder good policy<p>Big infrastructure projects, such as the National Broadband Network, cost big money. So, how do we use public money wisely? For communications minister Malcolm Turnbull and the Coalition government, a <a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/%7E/media/02%20Parliamentary%20Business/22%20Chamber%20Documents/223%20Tabled%20Papers/Documents%20Presented/Out%20of%20session/040814_audit_report">cost benefit analysis provides the answer</a>. </p>
<p>Indeed, Turnbull supports <a href="http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/politics-news/turnbull-wants-public-scrutiny-of-big-projects-after-nbn-audit/story-fn59nqld-1227013724434?nk=a5afc03985b052b8aac34836151b2d8f">a proposal</a> that all infrastructure decisions over $1 billion should be accompanied by a cost benefit analysis. This will inform us whether the infrastructure upgrade is warranted and which the most cost effective model. </p>
<p>Is this faith justified? Cost benefit analysis, as its name suggests, requires calculation of the costs of a particular project or policy and its benefits. <a href="http://benefitcostanalysis.org/about-sbca">For proponents</a>, the optimal policy is the one suggested by the analysis to provide the highest benefit for the least cost most, often - but not always - expressed in dollar terms. </p>
<p>This simple premise is met by a difficult and complex calculation. Diligence is needed to ensure all costs are identified, and skill required to ensure cost estimates are realistic. The calculation of benefits are equally if not more challenging. It is generally more difficult to quantify benefits, while economic benefits are more accessible and quantifiable than social benefits. Skill, diligence and integrity also requires good data. A rigorous cost benefit analysis, then, depends on a robust research base. </p>
<p>Critical decisions lie at the heart of a cost benefit analysis. In the calculation of costs, for example, who bears the cost, and based on that decision, whether it should be included as a cost for the purposes of the final calculation is one contentious point. </p>
<p>In terms of benefits, the problem of “we don’t know what we don’t know” is highlighted. For the NBN, we do not know what technological innovation may arise during its lifetime. Whatever model ends up being implemented, we don’t have the luxury of trying different models to see which yields a better outcome before we make a decision. </p>
<p>Economists sometimes deal with this uncertainty by including in their analysis a calculation of “Net Present Value” accompanied by a discount applied to the economic estimate of benefits. The size of the discount rate also alters the value placed on the assumed benefits of a policy to future generations. Techniques such as these are based on assumptions that help tame the inevitable uncertainty that accompanies cost benefit analysis calculations.</p>
<p>To have policy impact, a cost benefit analysis requires political support. Even the most well-credentialed calculation can be discredited and dismissed. To see this at work one need only to look at the fate of the carbon tax. The tax was heavily supported by a similar form of economic reasoning that underpins cost benefit analysis, one that <a href="http://grattan.edu.au/home/energy/mechanisms-to-reduce-pollution/">weighed economic cost and benefit</a>. </p>
<p>This reasoning was rejected by the current government since the analysis did not fit with their stated policy. In contrast, calculations based on thin or selective evidence can be cited to justify policy. With cost benefit analysis, this can be easier, rather than more difficult, to achieve. A small change in assumption can make a big difference to the outcome. A strategic use of a cost benefit analysis can contribute to the problem of policy driving evidence or “<a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC390150/">policy-based evidence</a>” as opposed to its more respected cousin, evidence-based policy. </p>
<p>Can a cost benefit analysis assist, then, in ensuring good policy? Interesting evidence comes from a <a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/rego.2009.3.issue-2/issuetoc">2009 debate</a> about the merits or otherwise to policymaking of utilising a costing technique for human life incorporating the risk trade-offs people are prepared to make to achieve improvements, known as the value of a statistical life (VSL). VSL is commonly used in cost benefit analysis calculations, particularly in the United States.</p>
<p><a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1748-5991.2009.01052.x/abstract">Proponents</a> argue that such quantification is critical to assessing the merits of proposed policies, not only does it provide a rational base for decisions but the very process of calculation allows for necessary reflection. It takes a heated political issue into a reflective realm and allows us to test our assumptions and beliefs. But, they also point to a pre-requisite for this to occur, namely a strong boundary separating the science (in this case those undertaking the technical analysis) and politics. </p>
<p>Critics of cost benefit analysis are more sceptical of its benefits. They argue its calculations are inevitably premised on particular values (for instance, the benefit of economic competition to human wellbeing) since neither science nor economics are value free. Further, cost benefit analysis reassures us that our policies are rational only under certain cultural conditions, namely where quantification itself confers legitimacy and signals rationality. </p>
<p>Yet, we are adept at building our rationality around our values, selecting numbers consistent with those values. Under polarised political conditions, expecting a cost benefit analysis to generate a rational basis to bridge disparate values and so enhance our collective future may be a tall order indeed. </p>
<p>Ulitmately, the role that can be assigned to a cost benefit analysis is limited. Done well, it can enhance public debate as well as inform political decisions. Done poorly, it merely masks a pre-determined political position.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/30147/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Fiona Haines does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Big infrastructure projects, such as the National Broadband Network, cost big money. So, how do we use public money wisely? For communications minister Malcolm Turnbull and the Coalition government, a…Fiona Haines, Professor of Criminology, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.