Livingstone: 'Telstra supports NBN vision'

James Riley
Thursday, 17 September 2009 12:22

IT Policy - Government Tech Policy

Telstra chairwoman Catherine Livingstone says the company supports the National Broadband Network 'vision,' but has called on Government to provide additional backing for local industry in developing applications and services to run on the platform.

Livingstone repeated the company's "disappointment" at Government’s decision to introduce regulatory reform legislation this week and that it was committed to finding a "mutually acceptable outcome."

The successful roll-out of the NBN could lead to "blue-sky" opportunities for the creation of next-generation applications and services, she said. But it would only happen with the willing participation of Australian intellectual and investment capital, and only then with the tight support of Government.

"Make no mistake: Telstra supports the Government’s NBN vision," Livingstone told an audience at Murdoch University in Perth. "We are committed to engaging constructively to help find a solution that is in the best interests of the industry and the nation, as well as Telstra’s shareholders, customers and staff."

"Ultimately, though, the NBN in and of itself will not change anything. The transformation will come from the innovations the NBN enables," she said.

"We need a telecommunications industry with the capacity to – in partnership with government and other industries – sustain the lifeline of intellectual and capital investment necessary to see the NBN succeed over the long term."

"This investment needs to come from the telecommunications industry, as well as other sectors that will benefit from the NBN – such as health, education, mining, transport and agriculture." she said.

"It also needs to be seeded and fostered by Government."
 
Livingstone clearly sees a big role for Telstra in the development of applications and services for the NBN. She points to, for example, collaborative projects Telstra is engaged in with the CSIRO – including one residential Energy Management, which will lead to products that will use the capability of the NBN.

And then there are Telstra’s deep pockets: Livingstone used the example of the extent of investment in wireless technology in Australia. The industry invested more than $10 billion over the seven year period from 2002-08 – of which $4 billion was spent by Telstra, Livingstone said.

The speech, titled The Business of Science had several very clear messages for Government. The company sees a very big role for itself in relation to the NBN roll-out – and that Government needs Telstra at least as much as Telstra needs Government.

Livingstone also offered some free advice to Government: a veiled warning that it was in no-one’s interest to undermine the financial strength of the industry.

"The (NBN) initiative is a very positive example of how government can step up to take on part of the risk of establishing a state-of-the-art platform," Livingstone said.

"That being said, without the full engagement of the public and private sectors we will not develop in parallel with the NBN the new tools and applications needed to maximize its potential."
 
"What I am driving at is this: if Australia wants to make the transition to an innovation economy tomorrow we need a healthy and profitable telecommunications industry today."

Government also needed Telstra’s technical expertise. But the potential pay-off of a successful NBN were enormous.

"The design and rollout of the network will pose a multitude of technical challenges," Livingstone said. "Overcoming those challenges, though, will be worth the time and expense – because, if done right, they will open up so-called ‘blue sky’ opportunities for transformational services and applications."
 
"The NBN could be the macro innovation that launches a nation-wide revolution in micro innovation systems – and Telstra has the expertise and the experience to get it right."