Hobart leads internet roll-out
11 September 2015 by News Desk
The roll-out of the new National Broadband Network in Hobart, Australia is now 50% complete and the price of broadband has plummeted.
As the latest fixed wireless tower was switched on in Neika, it has emerged that the cost of internet access across Australia has fallen dramatically in recent years.
The price per GigaBit of data for broadband customers in Australia has fallen from around $30 in 2007 to less than $1 per Gb today, according to Rod Sims, chairman of the Competition and Consumer Commission.
Tasmania will be the first state in Australia to have the new hi-speed broadband rollout completed with a target set for June 2018.
Residents of rural and remote mountain communities around Hobart are now able to access high-speed fixed wireless broadband services. Six service area modules have been completed in Hobart, deploying FTTP technology to 14,500 premises in the areas of Hobart City, Battery Point, Sandy Bay, North Hobart, Glebe, South Hobart, West Hobart, and Dynnynre.
National Broadband Network operators say that a further six service area modules in Hobart are actively under construction or planning. The remainder of the roll-out is due to begin construction before the end of 2016.
In total, over 83,000 premises will be connected to the Nbn across greater Hobart. There are now more than 90 fixed wireless towers in operation across Tasmania, covering over 27,000 premises. Currently around 40,000 homes and businesses in Tasmania have an active Nbn connection.
