Primus lights up Basslink, eyes NBN

James Riley
Thursday, 06 August 2009 14:29

Business IT - Technology

Internet service provider Primus Telecom has increased its backhaul capacity to Tasmania through the just-commissioned Basslink fibre cable and is cranking up its business and residential presence on the Apple Isle as a result.

Primus chief executive Ravi Bhatia said the Basslink pipe had dramatically reduced its backhaul costs, and the company had stepped up its investment in Tasmania.

The company was also monitoring NBN developments closely, and is keen to tender for backhaul blackspot contracts with government to build regional fibre connections.

The immediate impact of Basslink’s availability would be that Tasmanians would for the get access to broadband service levels and prices comparable to the mainland Australia.

“The (Basslink) connection finally brings some competition to table … it has been a monopoly route with ridiculous prices,” Bhatia said. “There’s no other way to put it.”

“The direct result of that is that residential customers and business customers will start to see a wider variety of services, with quality of service and prices that you would see on the mainland – for the first time.”

“But Basslink is just the start,” he said. As government’s backhaul blackspots program started to improve links around the country – and as the NBN Company initiated its own back-out roll-out – Bhatia said Primus would be able to extend its geographic reach to end users, just as it had through Basslink.

While Primus said it clearly intends being an access seeker in relation to the NBN, Bhatia said the company would also being looking for a direct role in construction and management as a principal contractor.

Having laid its own fibre assets in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Adelaide, the Primus chief says the company has both the technical and management expertise to take on large scale fibre projects – and it wants to the Federal Government to know.