iiNet to multicast IPTV on NBN

Australia's third-largest internet service provider (ISP) iiNet has announced that it will trial Fetch TV services over the National Broadband Network (NBN) using its multicasting product in a new housing estate located in Rhodes, west of Sydney.

The multicast product is a cost-saving method of distributing single-source content, such as television broadcasts, across to multiple users on the NBN. It will ideally be used for IPTV products, such as Fetch TV and Foxtel.

iiNet completed the certification process with NBN Co in November, and will now commence a trial at a greenfields site in Rhodes, New South Wales.

iiNet's chief product officer Stephen Harley indicated that a wider rollout will occur once the Rhodes trial has been completed.

"We're looking forward to delivering fantastic IPTV services to even more of our NBN customers as it becomes available," Harley said in a statement.

The Australian newspaper reported earlier this week that NBN Co has been approached by pay-TV companies, broadcasters, and sports organisation that are seeking to use NBN Co's multicast product to deliver broadcast products over the NBN.

Fetch TV itself may also seek to become a backhaul provider, according to a report, because the company would require significant amounts of backhaul in order to reach all parts of Australia. With Telstra's stake in Foxtel, Telstra may not be inclined to assist Fetch in delivering IPTV services over the NBN.