Election 2013: Broadband Election 2013: Broadband

Of all the election issues watched by the tech sector, the national broadband network has enlivened the most debate.

The Coalition released its broadband policy ahead of many of its other policies, promising to deliver a fibre-to-the-node network for 25 percent less than Labor’s $44.1 billion fibre-to-the-home network.

Here’s how the policies stack up:

Labor

  • $44.1 billion fibre to the home network (to be delivered by June 2021), with 97 percent fibre coverage and the remainder a mix of satellite and fixed wireless.
  • Network to deliver download speeds of up to 1 Gbps and upload speeds of 400 Mbps, depending on the plan purchased.
  • Wholesale pricing structure fixed, with NBN Co remaining the monopoly provider.
  • Wholesale price capped at $24 per month for 12 Mbps download/1 Mbps upload speed, frozen for five years, and subsequent increases limited to less than the price of inflation.

    • Coalition

  • $29.5 billion mostly fibre-to-the-node premises (to be delivered by June 2015), with 71 percent FTTN and 22 percent FTTP on greenfields sites, and the remainder a mix of satellite and fixed wireless.
  • Network to deliver download speeds of up to 50 Mbps for the FTTN connections and 1 Gbps for FTTP connections. Upload speeds for FTTN connections of up to 10 Mbps and 400 Mbps for FTTP connections.
  • Wholesale pricing structure capped by the ACCC, with competing broadband access networks allowed.
  • Wholesale price forecast to be $38 per month in 2021, with a user pays policy for those wishing to connect the ‘last mile’ to their home with fibre.

    • Greens

  • Support Labor’s NBN policy.
  • Amended policy to ensure any future moves to privatise the NBN would be subject to a review to protect the public interest, requiring the approval of Parliament.

    • NBN Co offers new satellite service for remote users

    NBN Co offers new satellite service for remote users

    IPstar to wholesale broadband.
    Juha Saarinen Jul 22 2014 6:43AM Telco/ISP
    NBN Co loses $200m pricing dispute with Telstra

    NBN Co loses $200m pricing dispute with Telstra

    Supreme Court rules in favour of Telstra.
    Allie Coyne Jul 17 2014 11:00AM Telco/ISP
    Govt fails to win votes for NBN committee restructure

    Govt fails to win votes for NBN committee restructure

    Delays motion until next sitting session.
    Allie Coyne Jul 17 2014 6:39AM Telco/ISP
    Rein in ACCC, let NBN Co discriminate: Vertigan report

    Rein in ACCC, let NBN Co discriminate: Vertigan report

    Statutory review seeks change to competition law.
    Juha Saarinen Jul 17 2014 5:25AM Telco/ISP
    Coalition MPs kill FTTP bill for Tasmania

    Coalition MPs kill FTTP bill for Tasmania

    Committee split.
    Allie Coyne Jul 16 2014 6:34PM Telco/ISP
    Libs move to restructure NBN senate committee

    Libs move to restructure NBN senate committee

    Update: Want to overturn Labor, Greens majority.
    Allie Coyne Jul 16 2014 11:45AM Telco/ISP
    Slow progress in Turnbullistan

    Slow progress in Turnbullistan

    [Blog post] How has the NBN moved ahead since regime change?
    David Havyatt Jul 11 2014 6:22AM Telco/ISP
    NBN Co inks $150m Telstra FTTN deal

    NBN Co inks $150m Telstra FTTN deal

    Rents access to copper.
    Allie Coyne Jun 26 2014 9:06AM Telco/ISP
    NBN Co renews Service Stream field services delivery contract

    NBN Co renews Service Stream field services delivery contract

    Contractor expects revenue of $140 million.
    Allie Coyne Jun 12 2014 9:37AM Telco/ISP
    ACCC’s broadband monitoring plans put on ice

    ACCC’s broadband monitoring plans put on ice

    Updated: Model released regardless.
    Allie Coyne Jun 6 2014 11:13AM Telco/ISP
    NBN Co appoints new chief technology officer

    NBN Co appoints new chief technology officer

    New CTO, CFO replace ousted execs.
    Allie Coyne Jun 4 2014 11:33AM Telco/ISP
    Telstra staff still using wholesale data for retail gains

    Telstra staff still using wholesale data for retail gains

    Six more months until systems properly fenced.
    Allie Coyne May 26 2014 6:01PM Telco/ISP
    NBN Co prepares to switch off copper for 19,000 premises

    NBN Co prepares to switch off copper for 19,000 premises

    Milestone day tomorrow.
    Allie Coyne May 22 2014 12:10PM Telco/ISP
    Telstra yields to two-hour notice for NBN pull-through

    Telstra yields to two-hour notice for NBN pull-through

    ISPs win on notification timeframe.
    Allie Coyne May 22 2014 10:50AM Telco/ISP
    NBN Co extends Visionstream greenfields work

    NBN Co extends Visionstream greenfields work

    Tasmania added to contract.
    Allie Coyne May 20 2014 8:50AM Telco/ISP
    Service Stream wins NBN greenfields extension

    Service Stream wins NBN greenfields extension

    $70m for two more years.
    Allie Coyne May 19 2014 10:06AM Telco/ISP
    Faulty DHCP server downs iiNet NBN, IPTV services

    Faulty DHCP server downs iiNet NBN, IPTV services

    Outage affected users Australia-wide.
    Allie Coyne May 16 2014 5:28PM Telco/ISP
    Feros Care wins new funding for telehealth rollout

    Feros Care wins new funding for telehealth rollout

    Successful NBN pilot leads to ongoing deployment.
    Penny Wolf May 16 2014 12:17PM Networking
    Senate extends life of NBN committee

    Senate extends life of NBN committee

    ‘Robust’ and ‘ongoing’ oversight approved.
    Allie Coyne May 14 2014 5:36PM Telco/ISP
    Canberra’s tech projects handed expiry notice

    Canberra’s tech projects handed expiry notice

    NBN, NICTA to be cut off from the public purse.
    Brett Winterford May 13 2014 9:22PM Training & Development

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