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Topic: Telcos

What's great about the NBN

Summary: Industry professionals and politicians of both persuasions have united to celebrate the positive aspects of the National Broadband Network.

Phil Dobbie

By for Twisted Wire |

When ZDNet approached Labor MP Ed Husic to say that we were putting together a program on all that's good about the NBN, he thought Christmas had come early. Then we told him the catch. On next week's program, he has to come up with an equal number of things that are wrong with it. Liberal MP Paul Fletcher was faced with the same dilemma — he can criticise it next week, so long as he says good things this week.

The same rules applied to our other guests: Peter Lee, CEO of the Internet Industry Association; telecommunications commentator Kevin Morgan; and Paul Brooks from Layer 10 advisory.

In a slightly extended edition of Twisted Wire — there was so much good news — you'll hear about everything, from the inevitable claims of economic benefits, through to praise for the government's wheeling and dealing in getting the whole thing through parliament.

Sadly, one guest has to be given a red card for repeatedly turning the positives into negatives to score political brownie points. Who it is won't surprise you.

Add your comments below, or call the Twisted Wire feedback line and leave a voice message you'd like included on the program: 02 9304 5198.

Topics: Telcos, Government AU, NBN, Australia

About

Phil Dobbie has a wealth of radio and business experience. He started his career in commercial radio in the UK and, since coming to Australia in 1991, has held senior marketing and management roles with Telstra, OzEmail, the British Tourist Authority and other telecommunications, media, travel and advertising businesses.

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26 comments
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  • Nice twist

    but do you really expect either MP to appear next week? :-)
    Restricted_access
    Reply Vote

  • High speed internet is an important infrastructure

    IT is rapidly changing our lives and the economy.

    Improved data connections makes entirely new services possible to a far greater reach.

    Investment uncertainty has halted investment in this area, resulting in stagnation available services. This is particularly true for regional users where cost of providing services isn't commercially viable.
    Richard Flude
    Reply 1 Vote

    • Really...

      You told me about 2 months ago that you personally and your company had just completed a comms project, Richard.

      So that was a blatant lie, since you now say investment has halted? Perhaps it just halted this morning... *shakes head*

      Today's contradiction C/- the contradiction king *sigh*
      RS-ef540
      Reply 1 Vote

      • Oh Batt Boy

        Not every comms project is wholesale telco infrastructure (topic of this article). The Dunning–Kruger effect in action.
        Richard Flude
        Reply Vote

        • Oh Batt girl

          So thats a YES, it was a lie, thank you
          RS-ef540
          Reply 2 Votes

  • Undecided

    Well i dont see any NBN until next 3-5 years and they were not sure when it will come. I live in a suburb that 30 years old (14K from Melbourne CBD).
    mybulk
    Reply Vote

    • mybulk

      Sans NBN you will probably never see the needed advancement, so...

      3-5 years NBN or never...hmmm?
      RS-ef540
      Reply 1 Vote

  • Out here Rice country!

    I think we will be looking at closer to 10 years. I think the NBN is a great idea but it worries me the the present clowns in the coalition (oh and I have voted for them in the past as I'm a swinging voter) keep to their current thinking we will never get it.
    martin_js
    Reply 1 Vote

  • What's Great about the NBN?

    First it is Great that this Government will connect 12 Million Australian homes to high speed internet for only 6 times the cost that China is connecting 130 Million homes to their equivalent of the fibre network. I expected the ALP to throw far more money away for far less result! But wait, the job isn't nearly finished, they may yet blow the cost out in their spectacular standard fashion - at the moment their original $30B is forecast to eventually cost $60B, but they can probably double that through intensive mismanagement.

    It is great that in areas where it has been delivered only 25% of households are interested in having the service connected. That means we will have for only $60 Billion only 3 million homes actually connected, compared to China's 130 Million, or wait, was that 1.2 Billion? Either way our gold-plated system will be so under-utilised it will never wear out.

    It is Great that an evil uncaring monopoly on copper wire (Telstra) has been replaced with ...er... an evil uncaring monopoly on Fibre optic cable, the NBN!

    And it is great that we still have 3G and Wi-Fi for an alternative when this thing goes the way of the Education Revolution!
    AlBlack52
    Reply 1 Vote

    • Yes thank you...

      AllBlack52, we've heard all the FUD before, you are just another mindless follower.

      Keep trying try hard ;)
      RS-ef540
      Reply 2 Votes

    • Please don't quote the Australian.

      Crickey destroys that "News" report on the Chinese broadband. The only thing it got right is that they are running fibre.
      Paul Krueger
      Reply 1 Vote

      • News Ltd. interests reign Paramount

        He should start finding out a little more, maybe some investigative journalism such as
        http://www.independentaustralia.net/category/independent-australia-journal/investigations/

        http://www.independentaustralia.net/category/politics/
        Abel Adamski
        Reply 1 Vote

    • You're wrong

      You're wrong AlBlack52 when you say "It is great that in areas where it has been delivered only 25% of households are interested in having the service connected". The actual figure is closer to half that. You've been listening to too many NBNCo press releases, which say "up to .." and quote the numbers for the best areas, not the average.
      Gordon D
      Reply Vote

      • Oh look...

        Gordon D, who's politically inspired BS has been systematically dissected at Delimiter, has ended up here, tail between legs, talking the same rubbish... GOLD
        RS-ef540
        Reply 1 Vote
        • oh yes, gorden, who could forget the dope that said "the majority of people who are quite well served by 8 or 6 or even the 2-3 Mb/s" amongst other "gems".

          You do have to admit as the days go by they do become more entertaining RS. Why just the other day I stumbled across a comment from that degeeto on an article dated 2011-02-15, he wouldn't be able to make the same sort of ridiculous comments today so in another 2 years time these comments will have aged just as well too I'm sure.
          Hubert Cumberdale
          Reply 1 Vote

          • LOL

            What ever happened to Matthew?
            RS-ef540
            Reply Vote
          • Apparently he died of embarrassment :-)
            Hubert Cumberdale
            Reply Vote

          • Indeed...

            But in his defence he was young (still at Uni) and impressionable...

            However, I can't sugar coat it for the latest bunch of cynical bigots :(
            RS-ef540
            Reply Vote
    • Wow, it's like an even more ill-informed commenter for an article on The Australian lost it's way and ended up on Zdnet somehow... impressive.
      Hubert Cumberdale
      Reply 1 Vote

      • Did I hear...

        the paraphrasing of A. Bolt ?
        RS-ef540
        Reply 1 Vote
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