NBN upgrades are on the way, so is your internet going to get faster? Here's who will benefit
Posted: Fri Sep 25, 2020 3:57 pm
Millions of Australians are set to get access to high-speed internet as the NBN is upgraded over the next three years, under a plan announced on Wednesday.
As part of the expansion, more people will receive it directly to their house, marking a backdown from the Government's previous positions.
But does that include you? Here's what you need to know.
Will I benefit from the NBN upgrade?
That depends on what kind of network you're on at the moment, but the Government's plan is to upgrade most that are currently operating to get speeds of "up to" 1 Gigabit per second.
If you're in one of 2 million houses on a Fibre to the Node (FTTN) network, the upgrade means you can ask for the NBN to be connected directly to your house.
The Government is going to create "local fibre networks" along street fronts, but connecting to houses would be a "principle of demand" and people would have to ask to have it installed.
There will also be a program to resolve in home cabling issues for houses on the FTTN network.
Only a write-down will fix the NBN
While a hodgepodge of technologies are behind some of the NBN's tech woes, it's an overvaluation of the network that's the biggest short-term barrier to faster internet speeds.
Read more
For 2.5 million houses on Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) (or pay TV cables), the capacity of the network is being upgraded so "all customers" will have speeds up to 1 Gigabit per second.
The 1.5 million homes on Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) are also getting some attention, with a program planned to make sure consistent speeds of up to 100 Megabits per second are available across the network.
The Government also wants to make sure people on those plans have access to capabilities to boost their speeds to 1 Gbps.
There's also $300 million in funding for NBN Co to work with governments and local councils to improve services in regional Australia.
As well as getting quick internet, you might also benefit from the 25,000 jobs that are expected to be created in the next two years as the upgrade's rolled out.
Will it cost me more?
Yes and no.
If you're one of the houses who can upgrade to the faster speed, NBN Co has confirmed you won't be charged a connection fee, but you will have to sign up to a more expensive plan.
"What we're simply doing is providing more options for people to buy higher speeds, to the extent that they choose to do so we'll put fibre to the home," NBN Co chief executive Stephen Rue.
He said currently 18 per cent of the company's "footprint" of customers could access the 1 Gbps speed and the goal was to raise that to 75 per cent.
Blue NBN cabling plugging into a computer server
There is no schedule yet for when the upgrades will start.(ABC News: Mitch Woolnough)
"The economics for NBN, the financial modelling has been done not for charging the customer for the upgrade but on the basis of [that] we'll be able to sell people higher speed plans," Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said.
When it comes to footing the bill for the entire upgrade plan, the Government said NBN Co would fund the $3.5 billion plan through private sector debt markets, meaning it won't impact the public purse.
When is this happening?
The Government's set a deadline for the upgrade to be done by 2023.
As for when the cable is laid in the ground and people can call and ask to be connected, that's still to be confirmed.
But NBN Co's chief operating officer, Kathrine Dyer, said she expected people with FTTN connections to be have connections to their houses and be able order high-speed plans "around the middle to the end of next year".
She said the company would have more updates on the rollout's timeline in the months ahead.
READ MORE
As part of the expansion, more people will receive it directly to their house, marking a backdown from the Government's previous positions.
But does that include you? Here's what you need to know.
Will I benefit from the NBN upgrade?
That depends on what kind of network you're on at the moment, but the Government's plan is to upgrade most that are currently operating to get speeds of "up to" 1 Gigabit per second.
If you're in one of 2 million houses on a Fibre to the Node (FTTN) network, the upgrade means you can ask for the NBN to be connected directly to your house.
The Government is going to create "local fibre networks" along street fronts, but connecting to houses would be a "principle of demand" and people would have to ask to have it installed.
There will also be a program to resolve in home cabling issues for houses on the FTTN network.
Only a write-down will fix the NBN
While a hodgepodge of technologies are behind some of the NBN's tech woes, it's an overvaluation of the network that's the biggest short-term barrier to faster internet speeds.
Read more
For 2.5 million houses on Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) (or pay TV cables), the capacity of the network is being upgraded so "all customers" will have speeds up to 1 Gigabit per second.
The 1.5 million homes on Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) are also getting some attention, with a program planned to make sure consistent speeds of up to 100 Megabits per second are available across the network.
The Government also wants to make sure people on those plans have access to capabilities to boost their speeds to 1 Gbps.
There's also $300 million in funding for NBN Co to work with governments and local councils to improve services in regional Australia.
As well as getting quick internet, you might also benefit from the 25,000 jobs that are expected to be created in the next two years as the upgrade's rolled out.
Will it cost me more?
Yes and no.
If you're one of the houses who can upgrade to the faster speed, NBN Co has confirmed you won't be charged a connection fee, but you will have to sign up to a more expensive plan.
"What we're simply doing is providing more options for people to buy higher speeds, to the extent that they choose to do so we'll put fibre to the home," NBN Co chief executive Stephen Rue.
He said currently 18 per cent of the company's "footprint" of customers could access the 1 Gbps speed and the goal was to raise that to 75 per cent.
Blue NBN cabling plugging into a computer server
There is no schedule yet for when the upgrades will start.(ABC News: Mitch Woolnough)
"The economics for NBN, the financial modelling has been done not for charging the customer for the upgrade but on the basis of [that] we'll be able to sell people higher speed plans," Communications Minister Paul Fletcher said.
When it comes to footing the bill for the entire upgrade plan, the Government said NBN Co would fund the $3.5 billion plan through private sector debt markets, meaning it won't impact the public purse.
When is this happening?
The Government's set a deadline for the upgrade to be done by 2023.
As for when the cable is laid in the ground and people can call and ask to be connected, that's still to be confirmed.
But NBN Co's chief operating officer, Kathrine Dyer, said she expected people with FTTN connections to be have connections to their houses and be able order high-speed plans "around the middle to the end of next year".
She said the company would have more updates on the rollout's timeline in the months ahead.
READ MORE