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$162.5 million for Australian Broadband Guarantee
Source: DCITA Website - Posted 07 March 2007 Media Release from Sen. Helen Coonan
Australians will now be able to access broadband services regardless of where they live thanks to the Australian Government's $162.5 million Australian Broadband Guarantee, the Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator Helen Coonan, announced today.
The Australian Broadband Guarantee will fill in any remaining broadband blackspots across Australia and will build on the success of the Government's $878 million Broadband Connect program and the $50 million Metro Broadband Connect program.
It will provide a smooth transition to the $600 million Broadband Connect infrastructure program which will rollout sustainable and scalable next generation infrastructure in rural, regional and remote areas of Australia.
“Broadband is an essential service for both individuals and business and is vital for Australia's future economic prosperity,” Senator Coonan said.
“The Australian Government has already provided substantial funding that has seen over 205,000 homes and businesses get a subsidised high quality broadband service and an additional one million premises gain access to broadband services.
“The Australian Broadband Guarantee will provide universal broadband for all Australians. Anyone unable to gain a reasonable level of broadband service at their principal place of residence or small business will receive a subsidised broadband service. It's as simple as that.”
For consumers, the Guarantee will be very similar to the popular and highly successful Broadband Connect program. The Guarantee will continue to give eligible consumers subsidised, price capped broadband with a guaranteed minimum level of service, but with the benefit of simpler eligibility requirements.
The first phase of the Guarantee will run until June 2008 when the funds from the Government's $2 billion Communications Fund will come on stream. This will enable the Government to continue the Australian Broadband Guarantee for as long as in necessary to ensure all Australians have access to broadband regardless of where they live.
The Guarantee is part of the transition to the $600 million Broadband Connect Infrastructure Program. The infrastructure program will establish an efficient, sustainable broadband infrastructure base across regional Australia to enable the roll-out of higher speed broadband.
Everyone can get fast 'net'
Source: The Guardian, by Lisa Gervals
From an unlikely location at a Mudgee winery, a local enterprise is bringing the world to remote homes and businesses across the Central West.
Member for Gwydir, John Anderson – who has been instrumental in pushing the Federal Government’s $1 billion Broadband Connect Program – attended Friday’s opening of Harbour IT, located at Shawwood, just outside of Mudgee.
Michael Loughan and Charles Tym are the principals, working with Craig Bishop and Michael’s wife, Rani Loughan.
Basically, if you are a Central West home or business owner unable to get digital dial-up, from April 8, 2004 you are eligible for government-subsidised high speed internet access.
You can get a free satellite dish installed at no cost but must enter into a subsidised Internet plan and pay the one-off connection fee/set up charge.
Mr Tym said the federally-sponsored subsidy saves the average customer $3000.
These days, the Harbour IT team spends a lot of time travelling to remote properties, installing satellite dishes and getting people hooked up to high speed internet.
Clients are as big as Excel Coal, which is soon opening the massive Wilpinjong Coal Mine, to a law firm at Sandy Hollow, right down to tiny businesses and households.
Last week, for example, Harbour IT equipped a property that did not have electricity with high speed internet.
For now, it’s only available in the Central West, but in two months time Harbour IT hopes to offer its satellite internet services Australia-wide.
Mr Tym said the importance could not be overstated.
“Anybody that’s used a modem 10 or 20 kilometres from town will appreciate how slow and frustrating that is,” he said.
Bill and Christine Rix from Hargraves are satisfied customers. Christine said she tried to download a music clip before joining Harbour IT and was told it would take an hour-and-a-half. With the new satellite system installed, the same download takes a little over a minute.
While Mr Tym said Harbour IT has “a very significant amount of interest” in the Satellite internet.
Mr Tym added the team at Harbour IT “really wanted something we could sink our teeth into and this is a great opportunity since there is such demand for it.”
Mr Anderson said: “the future will be about bandwidth … it will be about talking to people via the ‘net’ over such things as voice over internet protocol.”
