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Interview with Rob Oakeshott – Full Transcript

Recently Arne Hansen of the Bellingen Shire NBN Group interviewed Rob Oakeshott on the future of the NBN and what he would do if elected at the forthcoming Federal Election on May 18.

Arne: Welcome to the Bellingen markets today Rob.

Rob: Thank you.

Arne: We’re just here talking about the NBN today, and I guess more broadly what’s happening in your electorate with the NBN.

Rob: And across the country.

Arne: I think we have a small sample here of what happened in many, many regional towns across Australia.

Rob: Look, so the broad comment is for Australia, we could be living in the ex-urban generation, with fiber to the premise not just on homes but hospitals, schools, businesses and this could be a really exciting opportunity for a country of Australia’s landscape, at essentially the bottom of the world. This would have been a brilliant policy change that would have addressed most policy problems that the country currently faces. We wouldn’t have had to do too much else if we had done this right.

I think it’s devastating that we’re involved in what is the biggest double handling exercise in Australian policy history. It’s changed from fibre the premise to a mixed model, which in itself is in recognition that at some point in the future we will go to fibre to the premises. So even the liberal and national party who chopped and changed this acknowledge that fiber to the premise will happen at some point in the future.

My view, after six years of being out of politics is: What the hell went wrong? How can we urgently fix this so that we get fiber to the premise to as many homes as possible? That’s a that’s a national not just a Bellingen comment.

As far as the local region I think our landscape is really challenging once you get west of the Pacific Highway. This is where it becomes technology difficult with the hills and valleys. I acknowledge there are challenges in building design, but that’s a reason to give it more attention not less attention. There has been a walk away from the National Broadband Network communications providers generally and I think that is damaging to our region.

You bring that down another level to Bellingen in particular. It is a symbol of all of that – where it is a vibrant and high energy community at the best of times. Normally it could be leading Australia and in many cases leading the world if it was given the opportunity to engage with Australia and engage with the world. From my point of view that is what I want to do is with the local community, with groups like the NBN Action Group, with the various businesses who I’ve talked to or want to talk to about how frustrated they are, and the missed opportunities that they can see by not being connected.

So ideally more fibre into the premise. If there’s got to be some sort of short-term compromise, well let’s get as much fibre to the curb as possible and let’s minimise this fixed wireless nightmare, sky muster and any other so-called mixed model technologies which just aren’t working.

Arne: Do you have a view on the ALP policy of moving away from fibre to the premises to fibre to the curb?

Rob: That’s disappointing. I think they’re trying to get through an election without creating controversy, but I would hope they re-look at that. The logic of their original position was good, particularly with a rate of return on investment and getting rid of all the copper out of the network. Essentially that’s what we’re doing. We are rewiring Australia with modern technology – the equivalent of what nearly a hundred years ago we did with copper. That’s had it’s time, let’s put in the new stuff for the next hundred years.

Arne: If you get elected, what steps will you be able to take to help remediate and fix some of the poor decision making we’ve seen?

Rob: I think it’s multi layered answer.

There are Bellingen specific issues and that’s coming together with the Action Group, and bringing NBNCo to the table. If need be it’s chasing government money. The rough figure from the NBN Action Group is just under a million dollars to go back to the 50-kilometer radius from the 25-kilometer radius. I think that’s a job worth chasing as the local member.

More broadly I’m going to bang the fibre the premise drum as hard as I can. I’m going to jam it to both major political parties as to what the hell went wrong with good policy? Where have we gone off the rails here? And what can we do about it

Arne: It seems that regional areas getting hit by more of these negative impacts of NBNCo than urban areas which have significant investment into HFC and fibre to the curb. It seems the wrong way around – surely the plan was to roll in than roll out?

Rob: We argued that case. In fact, it was part of the negotiations in 2010. What the LNP did was for spite as much as anything else. “Torch the house” from those three years was the view, post 2013, of the incoming national party. They are not going to come near any ribbon cutting of anything that came out of that. We’re going to flip all the policy decisions, kill the carbon price. It was part of the agenda, and I also think there was an audience behind it at the time as well. There was a lot of noise in that parliament; it did create an audience, and so the angry mob with pitchforks were saying “yeah” to any of this stuff. But I think five years after that, people have seen “whoa, hang on”, there was policy logic behind some of these decisions at the time, and policy logic for the long term; not just for the populist crowd with pitchforks.

Arne: And now we’re seeing the results and impacts of short-term policy decision making?

Rob: We are, and it’s really impacting people’s lives. I’ve spoken to people today who are weighing up whether to leave Bellingen because they can’t run the business that they want to run, but which they can run from other parts of Australia. I’ve been speaking online with real estate agents who are selling houses in areas with good fibre connections and using that as a selling point. They are getting more money for those houses compared to houses that aren’t on a good fiber network. This has created a new divide in Australia. And a completely unnecessary divide, if we had just stuck with good evidence-based policy. Policy that would have built so many opportunities for so many people. We could have really been one of the first countries in the world to create this ex-urban generation. The flow on cost-benefits – we don’t have to build a 50 billion-dollar WestConnex, we don’t have to get caught up in viaducts for NorthConnex; we don’t have to worry about congestion in Sydney, because it starts to after itself.

Arne: Do you see links between the NBN fiasco and other infrastructure rollouts that have been happening or not happening in this area? For example, the Port Macquarie pool, the Coffs Harbour bypass being redesigned, possibly as a consequence of you entering the race? Do you see a common thread between all these different things in terms of infrastructure delivery of lack of investment in this region?

Rob: Yes, I do. I think there are a number of answers to that. One is that the major cities are where the population is and political parties go to where those major populations are, so essentially Sydney wins. It’s not just at the expense of other areas. It is at the expense of other areas. And we are that other area.

Arne: The nationals have disproportionate power in the house of representatives?

Rob: But they never use it.

I lived through 1 seat parliament from 2010 to 2013. What people quite often forget is what we’ve just been through, while I haven’t been in Parliament, is a one seat majority Parliament with every single member of parliament, including the sitting party member here, with exactly the same power that I had from 2010 to 2013. Was it used? No. Is it noisy if you do use it? Yes. But do you get results if you use it? Yes.

That’s the direct comparison, but unfortunately what happens is multi-billion dollar cost blowouts on road and rail in Sydney, stadium knockdowns and rebuilds – which is a luxury and indulgence – all at the expense of your 50-kilometer network and rolling out the NBN more broadly. That money could be used much better, and for more political gain, for all people involved if there was smaller investments in communities like ours, in a lot more areas, with a lot more equity.

Arne: On that topic, are you concerned by a lack of transparency and lack of published business cases for a lot of infrastructure projects coming that we’re seeing coming out of government now?

Rob: I think infrastructure Australia would say exactly that!

I think they have said that, actually. They are the body that is supposed to be in charge of the process of what does Australia need, and what’s the priority list and the work schedule to make it happen? They’re forever getting gazumped by a whole range of decisions. I’m all for process, but you know what? If it’s a political game, I’m all for calling out that game. If it means applying competition here locally to get our area bumped up the priority list, then damn it, I’ll do it! I think the system only has itself to blame for creating that monster!

Arne: Thanks for your time today Rob, is there anything you wanted to say in addition?

Rob: No, just let’s get the NBN fixed and vote Oakeshott!

Arne: OK, thanks very much.

Media contact: Arne Hansen via Facebook Group “Bellingen Shire NBN”

Audio available on request.

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Response to “Walking out with NBN”.

Response to the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun article “Walking out with NBN”.

Thanks to the Bellingen Courier Sun for trying to hold NBNCo to account with respects to the adequacy of Fixed Wireless in the Sunset Ridge and Hospital Hill areas of Bellingen.

Let’s talk about dispelling “myths”. NBNCo and their representatives think we’re “misleading the community” when, as a matter of fact, we’re the ones fighting a professional, well-funded and well-resourced misinformation campaign from a government monopoly. How many staff did they dispatch to hose down the story whipped up by a journalist, local businesses and a handful of affected residents? How many times have they done this in the past? How many council meetings have they been hauled in front of? How many times have their “facts” proven to be, well, less than that?

Last year NBNCo even sent out “An open letter to Bellingen” coupled with a glossy brochure full of stock photos – and it’s a great example of misinformation peddled by NBNCo. On the second page of the open letter from Amber Dornbusch, it states that Fixed Wireless is “largely targeted at regional communities and provides the means for fast broadband to Australians outside the reach of the fixed line network”. Well, hate to break it to you, but we already have a fixed line network in town – and, get this, we even have telephone cables in those “regional areas” like Sunset Ridge and Hospital Hill! What NBNCo have foisted upon us is a distinct downgrade – from a fixed line network where we currently receive 13-18mbps with ADSL2, to a wireless network that delivers less than 10mbps when most people want to use it. That’s the reality.

Next Amber states that Fixed Wireless is “Launching at 100/40”, which in normal person speak means you can get 100mbps download and 40mbps upload speeds. According to her letter to this newspaper on October 4, 2017 these “new 100/40mbps wholesale speed tier plans are scheduled for release to retailer early 2018” (and it’s now August). Both patently untrue as I’ll explain next.

Amber goes on to state that Fixed Wireless will operate at gigabit speeds (or 1,000mbps) in the future. Strange… their own CEO Bill Morrow admitted at the end of May this year when he was hauled in front of Senate Estimates that the maximum that Fixed Wireless users will ever expect to receive is 50mbps and that it was “uneconomic” and “outrageous” and “wouldn’t make any sense” to ever expect speeds of 100mbps. In contrast, those on wired networks can order 100mbps connections today and can expect to get gigabit speeds (1,000mbps) in the near future. Indeed, if you believe Amber and NBNCo, it’ll be 10 gigabit, or 10,000mbps. So, 50mbps over here, 10,000mbps over there. Same town, different street. Yeah, no difference to see here, people. Totally the same thing – look, both have access to speeds of 25mbps!

Next, let’s examine the NBNCo statement “Our job is to provide access to peak wholesale download data rates… of at least 25mbps to all premises…” and then compare that with outcomes in Bellingen and beyond. Many Fixed Wireless users regularly get between 1 and 10mbps during these peak times, regardless of what RSP/ISP they use. Andrew Hart’s letter and data in your article is typical, not atypical. Indeed, Telstra reports that only “around 50% of customers achieve speeds greater than 10mbps” during evening peak on Fixed Wireless and as a consequence they will not sell speeds of more than 25mbps because they cannot generally be achieved. Indeed Telstra’s website has a link to “important wireless speed information”: “Your actual user speeds will vary throughout the day due to quite a number of factors, including the signal strength or obstruction of the antenna’s line of sight to the tower, weather conditions like extreme heat and heavy rain, as well as tower and network capacity.” Meanwhile, internally NBNCo has a “push for 50mbps” campaign – presumably that memo didn’t get through to Telstra wireless teams, or if it did, they laughed at it and filed it in the bin. Cue NBNCo default position: blame the RSPs, regardless of what facts are presented. But I think we can see what pattern that defence fits into.

Reports in the media this week point to a “discussion” that occurred between NBNCo and government, after NBNCo decided that Fixed Wireless connections would cost $20/month more than their fixed line counterparts, which goes to show that converting towns to Fixed Wireless was not even economically sound in the first place. It would have on aggregate cost Bellingen residents >$50k p.a. alone in additional NBNCo taxes extracted from these two specific areas. That move was kyboshed by the communications minister who presumably understands the phrase “political consequences”. But what happens when NBNCo is privatised like the government (and opposition) intend? Is this already Telstra 2.0 but without a universal service obligation (USO)? How will regional customers maintain equity with their city counterparts?

Next “myth”: NBNCo’s representative at the recent council meeting asserted that the North Bellingen Medical Centre uses Fixed Wireless for their phone lines and thus there was no problem with NBNCo infrastructure. Contacting them for comment, the NBMC stated that they still maintain their copper phone lines and use NBNCo for internet, although “there was no real discernible difference” for them between Fixed Wireless and their old ADSL2 service. This was an attempt by NBNCo to shut down debate about very legitimate concerns surrounding the suitability of Fixed Wireless for telephone services, particularly when discussing medical emergencies and those in the community who require a reliable phone service. The reality is that Fixed Wireless will never be as good as a wired connection for phone services. Everyone has experienced a mobile phone call dropping out. This is what Fixed Wireless phone services are like on a windy or rainy day – or so my elderly neighbour with a heart condition keeps on telling me. NBNCo’s response: pay for a copper phone line from Telstra (read: additional cost). The government USO with Telstra expires in 2020, so then what?

My question to NBNCo would be: do you really think it’s sustainable for 80% of town to have access to 10,000mbps while 20% are limited to somewhere in the range of 1-50mbps? Does it not concern your political masters that this digital divide generated by your actions will indeed have large political ramifications? Is it legitimate to not provide adequate voice services for residents that require it? My question to council would be: what impact do you think this will this have on property prices, land value and rental yields in these communications poor zones? Would it impact upon desirability? Will it encourage innovative businesses to move here, or will it drive them away? What technology mix would be deployed by NBNCo in new subdivisions?

Would I personally have bought my house had I known this would be in some special excised communications zone? Uh, no. I would have considered a farm had I known that. Or bought the next street over. Or I would have asked for $20k off the price of any house in the “special communications zone” to pay for FTTP to be installed. That said, I have a minor philosophical objection to handing over $20k in voluntary taxes to a government monopoly to get what should have been delivered as basic infrastructure in the first place.

And no, I have no plans to move my business onto infrastructure that has reportedly had 8+ hours of outages during working hours in the space of a week and crawls to 10% of what I currently get on ADSL2 during evening peak (when I video call Europe and the US). I’d prefer to get another ADSL2 connection and join them together to give me 30mbps. I wonder if FTTC users the next street over will have the same experience while spending the same amount of money (or less) as a Fixed Wireless user? I’m guessing not. Which is why this technology is not fit for purpose for this application and why I struggle to find value in their offering. To be clear, as per the original intent of the NBN, I think Fixed Wireless is entirely appropriate for rural properties by providing an upgrade from ADSL1 that actually adds value. It was never intended, nor was it designed to be used in metro and town areas, but this government is driven by motivations that can only be guessed at. Giving tax cuts to those unprofitable banks, perhaps?

A message to NBNCo and their political masters: admit you’re wrong and fix this mess. If you had done your job properly, I’d be a paying customer instead of wasting my time and yours trying to hold you to account. I’d much prefer to go back to employing people, growing my business and paying taxes. Right now, literally ALL you are is a major drain on productivity, innovation and jobs. 

Arne Hansen
Director
Buildings Evolved Pty Ltd

171000_NBNCo An Open Letter to Bellingen

171004_NBNCo Amber BSCS Letter to Editor

 

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More than half of Bellingen Fixed Wireless has no line-of-sight

According to spacial analysis conducted by members of the Bellingen Shire NBN action group, more than half of the NBNCo Fixed Wireless rollout within the Bellingen township has no line-of-sight to the tower that houses the NBNCo equipment on Scotchman’s Hill. Further analysis using drone technology shows that some areas of the shadow areas have up-to 30 meters vertical travel from the antenna on the house before the tower is visable, with many antenna pointing at earth banks, buildings and vegetation. Shockingly, NBNCo has allowed this to occur, downgrading communications for those residents during weather events, particularly wet weather. Residents have complained about call drop-outs, internet loss throughout the duration of rain or wind events. Many residents have opted to go back to ADSL2 in order to gain a reliable, albeit slower, service.

As this clearly breaches the design guidelines set down by NBNCo themselves, the Bellingen Shire NBN action group calls on politicians local, state and federal to reverse this decision and include these areas in the forthcoming FTTC rollout.

Bellingen Shire Fixed Wireless areas with no line-of-sight to the tower

 

NBNCo’s own Fixed Wireless Design Guide. Note that most of the Bellingen FW area does not comply

 

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Andrew Woodward, ALP candidate for Cowper commits to delivering more of NBN as FTTC

Andrew Woodward campaign launch for federal seat of Cowper

This article is by Janene Carey of the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun – published 8th July 2018

Delivered at a cracking pace that reflected either his first career as a radio sports journalist or the fact that he had 5100 words to get though, the campaign launch speech by Labor’s Andrew Woodward this  morning was chock-full of ideas, facts, figures, arguments and plans connected to the theme of a “positive, prosperous and sustainable future” for the federal seat of Cowper.

Stepping up to the stage with Mr Woodward to affirm that he is “smart, energetic and strategic” and “friends, you are so lucky to have him” were Joel Fitzgibbon, Shadow Minister for Regional Australia; Kaila Murnain, General Secretary NSW Labor; and Greg White, President of the Coffs Harbour branch of Country Labor.

The audience in Bellingen’s Memorial Hall numbered about 75 people and included state Labor candidates Susan Jenvey (Oxley), Tony Judge (Coffs Harbour) and Peter Alley (Port Macquarie) as well as the person who has attempted to take Cowper for Labor five times, Paul Sefky.

The last time Labor held Cowper was 1961–1963, when Frank McGuren wrested it from Sir Earle Page with a 13 per cent swing.

Mr Woodward said he was determined to pull off a similar feat and described the three main platforms to his candidacy as employment, the environment and fairness.

He said nothing riled him more than the claim that looking after the environment was incompatible with jobs and growth, and he outlined plans to improve education and training, deliver more of the NBN as FTTC, combat climate change and focus on jobs of the future in renewable energy, sustainable agriculture (including forestry, as long as it’s in the right place using the right methods) and nature-based tourism and conservation initiatives such as the Great Koala National Park.

Check out more policy details at https://changecowper.com/agenda/

Read More

Andrew Woodward campaign launch for federal seat of Cowper

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NBN delay in Bellingen

This article is by Janene Carey of the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun – published 13th June 2018

If you live in the parts of Bellingen township that are slated for the Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) service, you might be wondering why you haven’t spotted any workers digging up the footpath outside your home.

At the beginning of March, the NBN rollout web page https://www.nbnco.com.au/ was indicating that the town would receive FTTC “progressively from April to June 2018”.

“No explanation, no detail, no respect,” fumed Andrew Woodward in a Labor for Cowper media release. “Under this government, the NBN has become the no broadband network.”

Asked to explain why there was a six-month delay, given that Urunga got its network installation on time, NBN Local spokesperson Lynette Keep said it was because NBN are less experienced with the FTTC technology.

“Urunga did get their install on time – because it was FTTN technology; a technology we have been rolling out for some time,” she said.

“Bellingen’s rollout dates for the NBN broadband access network have been moved out because of the introduction of FTTC technology.  This has impacted the FY18 build times and the resources required to build this newer technology type.

“What this means is around 1,300 Bellingen premises are expected to be ready to connect to the  NBN broadband access network from around October 2018.”

Ms Keep also noted that “Currently 1,740 premises in the Bellingen Shire area can connect to the NBN broadband access network over the fixed wireless technology.”

Mr Woodward (and many others) have been vocal about the shortcomings of the fixed wireless technology in Bellingen, citing problems with premises not having the requisite line of sight to the tower and towers being overloaded.

Related content:

Sunset Ridge: the NBN divide

Bellingen Shire micro businesses not happy

NBN Co and the federal government had previously stated that people would eventually be able to access speeds of 100Mbps on fixed wireless, but they retracted this promise last month, saying it would be too expensive to upgrade towers to handle peak time congestion.

“The cost of rolling out the required technology to enable Australians living in all regional areas to access 100Mbps speeds is so high, the NBN Co has ‘killed’ any plan to provide it and has taken it off the road map,” NBN CEO Bill Morrow told a Senate Estimates hearing.

A week later  he put forward the idea that “extreme users” such as gamers were overloading fixed wireless networks, adding that fair use policies to throttle their data usage may need to be introduced.

However, this is at odds with a finding by the Australian Communications and Media Authority in 2016 that “increases in the amount of data transferred in Australia appeared to be driven by video content downloading”.

Read More:
NBN Fibre Install Delay in Bellingen

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nbn’s official response + a contrasting tale of two towns

This content was originally printed by the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun – published 1st October 2017

Related content:

A letter from nbn to the Bellingen Shire community:

nbn appreciates the community in Bellingen Shire is passionate about the rollout of the nbn broadband access network to the region. However, in recent coverage of the deployment of the nbn™ access network it has been misreported that nbn was lobbied successfully to change the multi-technology mix for your community. Concerns about the performance of our fixed wireless network are also unfounded. I would like to share with you the facts around our rollout in the region:

nbn did not change our multi-technology mix for Bellingen Shire as a result of lobbying. nbn’s Multi-Technology Mix (MTM) model enables flexibility for nbn to select the most cost-effective, best-fit and efficient rollout technology for each home, business, and community across the country. Using a set of criteria based on existing telecommunications infrastructure, cost, and the local geography, our remit from the government is to deliver the best technology mix to ensure all Australians have access to a minimum of 25MBps download, and 5MBps upload, within the funding available. Many areas are serviced by multiple technologies in order to get this mix right. The anticipated access technology to be deployed in communities can and does change throughout the planning and design phase, and also as new technologies or processes emerge. In the case of Dorrigo and Bellingen, nbn recently took the decision to change access technologies for these areas due to cost and geographical factors, following the incorporation of the new FTTC technology into the mix. To be clear, this was an nbn decision, and was not influenced by the Bellingen Shire Council, as was incorrectly reported. The only avenue available to interested parties that wish to choose the technology deployed at their location is to pay for a switch to an alternative nbn™ network technology via the nbn Technology Choice program. You can find out more about this program at www.nbn.com.au/technologychoice.

Where our nbn Fixed Wireless network is available across Bellingen Shire, we have tested and verified signal strength and capacity . In response to concerns raised in the community, technicians have physically tested signal strength in the streets of Bellingen Shire to confirm viability. In addition, we have analysed the throughput of the nbn™ Fixed Wireless network to confirm it is operating without congestion. It’s important to remember that the nbn™ access network is only one component of your internet experience – congestion can be experienced within your Retail Service Provider’s network, particularly during peak times, unrelated to the nbn™ access network. If you are experiencing issues with your service I encourage you to speak to your Retail Service Provider who will investigate on your behalf. To learn more about factors impacting your experience, head to www.nbn.com.au/guide.

Upgrade paths are also available on the nbn Fixed Wireless network. In fact, nbn has announced plans to launch one of the fastest Fixed Wireless broadband services in the world. The new 100/40Mbps wholesale speed tier plans are scheduled for release to retailers in early 2018.

Keep an eye out for more from nbn to further clarify what you need to know as we continue to roll out the network in your region.

Amber Dornbusch

Head of nbn Local NSW/ACT

The digital divide

When the Coalition government was elected in 2013, and the then Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull outlined their changes to the NBN rollout, experts were unanimous in their warnings that it would create a digital divide between those who got a full-fibre NBN, and those who didn’t.

The complaints of Bellingen business people about the state of their NBN simply show that all those warnings were correct.

My family and I currently divide our time between Thora and Coffs Harbour. At home in Thora, our internet is all the things described by others in Bellingen: expensive, slow, limited for data, and unreliable. In Coffs, which was lucky enough to get full-fibre NBN under the original Labor rollout, we get 5 times faster speeds (we could get 20 times faster if we wanted), have had one dropout this year that lasted 30 seconds, and have no data limit. For this massively superior service, we pay less per month, pay no line rental, and get a free phone service.Chalk and cheese doesn’t begin to describe the difference.

The digital divide is right on our doorstep, just north of Urunga and south of Sawtell.

It’s going to take a lot of money to fix it, as all the copper-based nodes in the Coalition’s NBN plan, including those yet to appear in Bellingen, will need to be scrapped to upgrade to the standard of internet already available in Coffs. It will take decades and cost far more than the small percentage saved by cutting corners in the current rollout.

It will take a lot of political will to fix the NBN, and that political will is sadly lacking at present. Hopefully the efforts of people like Jason Errey to highlight the problems will create the pressure needed to push our politicians towards a real solution that provides equal access to the most important technology of our century for all Australians.

John Kramer

Thora

Read More:

nbn’s official response + a contrasting tale of two towns

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Bellingen Shire micro businesses not happy

This article is by Janene Carey of the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun – published 21st September 2017

Micro businesses are a crucial part of the Australian economy, a force in their own right as well as a springboard to bigger things.

In 2016, the ABS Counts of Australian Businesses reported that 1.8 million of the nation’s total 2.1 million businesses (85 per cent) were either sole traders or employed fewer than five people.

And a vocal subsection of them are not at all happy with it – especially those on Sunset Ridge.

The photo above shows just a few of the 24 businesses who responded with alacrity to a call by local NBN activist Jason Errey to help illustrate this story by mimicking the classic shot of Steve Jobs standing outside the garage where Apple was born.

The businesses they represent are diverse. For instance, Jason (top right) runs OEMG Global, an award-winning ground modelling, oceanography and environmental management business. Arne Hansen (top left) runs Buildings Evolved, which creates customised building technology analytic and reporting systems. Gethin Coles (centre left) is a professional fine art, landscape and commercial photographer. Paula Whiteway (bottom right) is a prominent freelance designer in the Australian film industry.

Others not in the photograph include Colin Thompson, a children’s book author and illustrator who lives in Gleniffer. He’s published over 70 books that are sold internationally and also creates very large, detailed pictures for Ravensburger, the world’s biggest jigsaw puzzle company.

He connects to the internet via an ADSL landline (slow) or the NBN satellite service, Sky Muster (faster but with a limited data allowance even on the most expensive plan).

“These illustrations are sometimes over 750 gigabytes,” Colin said. “I recently tried to upload a file of this size via my ADSL landline and was informed that it was going to take over eight days – arguably longer than Australia Post would have taken to deliver the image on a memory stick.

“I uploaded it via Sky Muster and even that took about three hours.  It also cost me $100 of my $120 per month data allowance.”

Colin noted we are always hearing our cities are overcrowded and that people should be encouraged to move to less urbanised areas.

“But to get people to move to areas like Bellingen we need an infrastructure to support them and that includes high-speed internet,” he said. “Over 75 per cent of my income is generated overseas and helps to boost the Australian economy. A decent internet is vital to my work.”

Another respondent is an IT professional living in Brierfield. She has a tower 5km away but seems to be in a fixed wireless blackspot. So she is forced to use the Sky Muster satellite, which she describes as ‘grossly overpriced and not sufficient for my needs’.

“With satellite I have to do the majority of my work in off-peak times. I rise at 4am and work until 7am or my monthly download runs out within 10-20 days.

“I have data tracking applications on my devices to track download and uploads but each month my ISP will advise my data has been used up prior to end of the month.

“My children’s usage is blocked to  one hour morning and afternoons so the data lasts for us all – we don’t use Netflix, iView, YouTube or any streaming service and it honestly is very stressful monitoring this each month so I can have a usable internet for working.”

A recent NSW Business Chamber survey found widespread unhappiness about costly delays and disruption caused by poor NBN service.

Sixty per cent of those connected on the Mid North Coast reported slow speeds and poor levels of customer service by both wholesale and retail telecommunication providers and 42 per cent said their NBN was unreliable.

“The Chamber’s NBN and telecommunications survey found that due to disruptions, investment in new equipment and lost business, on average connecting to the NBN was costing businesses up to $9000,” Regional Manager Mid North Coast NSW Business Chamber Kellon Beard said.

Jason Errey has resisted switching from ADSL to fixed wireless NBN because he sees it as too risky.

“It’s not a stable service. Seventy per cent of Sunset Ridge, which has been pushed onto fixed wireless, doesn’t have line of sight to the tower. And as well, that tower is congested. So it’s got really questionable service.”

Line of sight is important because the signal is disrupted by structures, trees and land formations. Fixed wireless technology is capable of download speeds up to 100Mbps but it is a “shared” network, so is slowed down during times of peak use, similar to current phone networks.

Legislation currently before the Parliament would require wholesale broadband providers to offer peak broadband speeds of at least 25 Mbps download and 5Mbps up to every premise in Australia, even those within the fixed wireless and satellite footprint.

Jason said at Sunset Ridge, download speeds can be as low as 5Mbps, and that NBN had upgraded the tower five times in the last 10 months but it still could not deliver stable service.

“If NBN chooses not to put us onto a wired connection, I don’t see a future for businesses in the Sunset Ridge area,” he said. “People will either have to pay for a wired connection or move.”

“For small businesses, that’s just a kick in the guts. We employ people and we generate income for the shire, and to be kicked in the guts by the government is just ridiculous.”

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Bellingen Shire micro businesses not happy

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Bellingen Shire Council Open Letter to NBNCo

Full Text:

An Open Letter to NBN Co on Behalf of the Bellingen Community

Bellingen Shire Council (Council) is pleased to see that NBN Co is rolling out high speed internet access across its Local Government Area (LGA). Council also welcomes the decision of NBN Co to provide fibre to the curb (FTTC) to the Dorrigo and Bellingen townships.

Council is however concerned with the impact on equity of access and property prices within the township areas should the “Multi-Technology” mix extend into town boundaries. Council further requests NBN Co to provide fixed wireless to Gleniffer Valley.

According to NBN Co’s network rollout map, the Bellingen Shire seaboard is scheduled to receive fibre to the node (FTTN) in early 2018. While this may be considered as improved high speed internet access, Council is highly concerned that this is not a long-term, technologically sustainable option for the townships on the seaboard.

The Urunga township is the main centre on the seaboard and currently boasts 295 businesses. This coupled with its expanding residential population, would see increased benefits by being connected to a long-term sustainable option that supports business and residents in a growing area. Council understands, according to the notifications on NBN CO’s website, that planning g is currently underway for the Urunga township and surrounding seaboard areas.

Council formally requests that NBN Co plan to future proof the seaboard and provide quality of services across the Shire through the provision of FTTC. According to the 2011 ABS Census, 24.3% of residents in the Bellingen Shire do not have internet with 3.5% only having access to dial up and 3.2% having a connection other than broadband.

With Australia moving to a fully digital economy, it is important that, where possible, all areas area connected to the latest technology so as not to be disadvantaged. A 2013 report commissioned by the Australian Government and undertaken by Deloitte Access Economics outlines some of the benefits, economically and socially, that high speed broadband brings particularly to businesses and occupations that are affected by technological change.

The Deloitte Access Economics report (the Report) outlines household benefits, including quantifying data, as:

  • Communications (social engagement and social media) – $74
  • E-commerce (travel savings and choice) – $565
  • Online services (entertainment) – $269
  • Travel savings (e-health, e-education and e-government) – $217
  • Employment (telework and travel) – $634
  • Productivity (lower prices and better quality) – $1,930

This outlines a total household benefit of $3,800 by 2020 in current dollars.

The Report also states, ‘A significant social benefit from improved communications is the increased opportunity for social inclusion. For example, people in regional and remote areas in particular will have more opportunities to communicate with their friends and family – overcoming the tyranny of distance – through broadband communication. This will particularly assist communities with large rural and remote populations such as farmer and indigenous communities’.

NBN Co’s own website outlines the benefits for business stating, ‘As small to medium online businesses are having a greater impact on the Australian economy, and demand for more efficient and reliable service increases, the nbn™ network is essential for supporting our future economic and social growth’.

A 2011 report by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Infrastructure and Communications (Parliamentary Report) raised the link between faster internet connection and the role it plays in everyday life. The report showed that high speed connectivity plays a central role for peoples’ social connections, education opportunities, employment prospects, health and access to services. The Parliamentary Report emphasised the potential role of the nbn™ in enhancing greater equity in digital access to services in regional and rural areas.

The Bellingen Shire seaboard is an area in transition. With the Pacific Highway Urunga bypass now open, businesses need to stay connected and relevant to their customers. The area is also becoming highly sought after due to its quiet location next to beaches and rivers. New development is being opened up with a residential allotment of 240 blocks recently being approved. This is a Greenfield estate and great opportunity for NBN Co to provide access to FTTC making the area more enticing for anyone looking to move to the region. Council’s Growth Management Plan indicates that other surrounding seaboard areas also have the potential for an additional 670 residential lots over the longer term.

NBN Co’s Chief Network Engineering Office, Peter Ryan, stated in a blog post that FTTC and FTTN are closely related. The blog post gives promise to how easy it would be to upgrade from FTTN to FTTC. It is also our understanding that the cost to rollout FTTC is only marginally higher than FTTN with the expenditure decreasing over time through the use of newer construction techniques. With FTTN and FTTC becoming more cost competitive, it makes sense that preference would be to rollout the superior service the first time than having to upgrade again in a few years’ time.

Council will continue to actively advocate on behalf of the Bellingen Shire Community to ensure our community is well served in this era of digital transformation and seeks a timely and positive response from NBN Co.

(Signed)

Liz Jeremy – General Manager

Mayor Dominic King

Councillor Gary Carty

Councillor Jennie Fenton

Councillor Desmae Harrison

Councillor Steve Jenkins

Councillor Toni Wright-Turner

 

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Questions of Cost and Speed Continue to Dog NBN Debate

This article is by Uta Schulenberg of the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun – published 25th July 2017

The Bellingen NBN Group say they have proof the cost of Fixed Wireless (FW) is more than Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) and the decision to install the former was more about the need to meet government milestones than consumer needs.

“We have received figures that show that while the cost of installing FW is $1300/home, increasing demand will require constant upgrading of the Scotchman Rd tower,” spokesman Jason Errey said.

“So far 65 homes have been connected and there have already been four tower upgrades, each one costing in the vicinity of $60,000 … and the plan is to have 247 homes connected to FW.

“With ever increasing data consumption and demand, the need to upgrade tower capacity will be ongoing.”

He said the installation of Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) was a one-off $2600/home.

“More than 50 per cent of GDP is generated outside the cities – that includes farming as well as the new generation of people who are able to run their businesses from rural addresses thanks to increased internet speeds.

“Having access to Gigabit connection will mean productivity in the bush will bloom.”

NBN Co General Manager for Corporate Affairs, Sam Dimarco, said access to Gigabit speeds was market driven.

“NBN Co is the wholesaler; when the service providers start selling those speeds en-masse, we will provide them,” Mr Dimarco said.

He said at present, the FW network serving Sunset Ridge and surrounds was capable of delivering wholesale speeds of 50Mbps down and 20Mbps up.

“And to put that in perspective, more than 91 per cent of residents and businesses are subscribing to plans of 25Mbps down and 5Mbps up or below.

“In 2018 in the township of Bellingen, irrespective of what NBN technology serves the premises, each home and business will have access to wholesale speeds of 100Mbps downstream and 40Mbps upstream.”

He said all networks had upgrade paths and the NBN technology on offer was capable of delivering Gigabit speeds. There is also a technology choice program, which offers the opportunity to switch to an alternate NBN technology.

“There are many factors to be considered when switching networks that can influence the cost, as such each application is treated on an individual basis,” he said.

“More information about the technology choice program can be found on our website at http://www.nbnco.com.au/connect-home-or-business/technology-choice-program.html”

 

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Questions of Cost and Speed Continue to Dog NBN Debate

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