Telstra has revealed the addition of almost one million new mobile services in the six months to December 2011, but Sensis revenues plummeted 24 percent in 12 months.
Telstra’s Group Managing Director of Public Policy and Communications, David Quilty, said a Fibre-to-the-Node National Broadband Network will not cover 100 per cent of the population, so it is critical to find the very best alternatives that provide practical, lasting solutions for rural and remote communities.
Quilty not so quietly noted that: “It must be horses for courses. In some communities, wireless solutions with optical fibre transmission will be the most cost-effective solution. In very remote areas, satellite may be the only viable solution.
“We also must understand what not to do. Subsidising duplicate fibre transmission links where it is not economical to have one of these links is a road to nowhere.
“Both sides of politics recognise that the Universal Service Obligation is grossly underfunded and inefficient, discouraging investment in regional Australia,” concluded Quilty.
Booth said of the 800km fibre optic transmission link that: “Through a partnership with the NT Government, [mining company] Rio Tinto Alcan and the Northern Land Council, Telstra will be able to bring broadband speeds to remote Indigenous communities that are on a par with our largest capital cities.
“The way forward is clear. Government support is required to make it economical to drive out critical, open access transmission links into rural and remote areas. Customer-based subsidies can then be used to encourage a variety of ‘last mile’ solutions into homes and businesses in a competitive way.
“The recent Regional Telecommunications Independent Review Committee makes reference to this.
“While the report could best be described as containing the good, the bad and the ugly, the positive sentiment was a desire to provide fibre in regional and remote communities.
“In order for this to happen, government and industry financial support is vital, particularly in regional areas in the Northern Territory, Far North Queensland, Western Australia, South Australia and other remote locations.
“The Government has $400 million at its disposal to help telecommunications in rural and regional areas. This would be the most logical place to start,” Mr Booth said.
David Bass
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