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All is not well in the brave new world of hi-tech living

From the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun – Ute Schulenberg – 11th July 2017

While some were celebrating the recent ‘win’ in negotiations with NBN Co to enable Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) technology into parts of the shire, there are still many who are not.

For campaigners Arne Hansen and Jason Errey, who are the driving force behind the Bellingen Shire NBN Facebook (which now has close to 200 members), the MTM or Multi Technology Mix planned for the shire, is more like a ‘Swiss Cheese’ than a carefully planned modern technology upgrade.

“Prior to October 2016, everyone was set to get Fibre to the Node (FTTN), which while it is far from the best of technologies, it would have at least offered an equitable service to everyone,” Arne said.

“Now we have the mixed model that divides towns and creates huge equity issues.

“Certainly there are the areas that will get FTTC but we also have one third of Bellingen with fixed wireless (FW) plus a third of Dorrigo and then there is Urunga staying on FTTN.”

Arne says the decision to put Sunset Ridge in North Bellingen on FW was driven more by the need to boost subscriber numbers than proper planning.

“Sunset Ridge declines off the ridge and people are in a radio shadow with no line of sight or reception to the tower up on Scotchman’s Rd.”

Jason adds the design specs for the town highlight that FW technology cannot be used without line of sight to the tower.

“If they were going to put FW anywhere, it should have been on the other side of Bellingen, which has clear views of the tower,” Jason said.

He said both he and Arne had bought homes under the assumption they would have access to wired communication.

“I work with high resolution virtual reality 4D models – I will never be able to do this with FW,” Jason said.

“Just down the road a competitor is being given FTTC … yet if I want that, I have to pay between $25,000 to $50,000.

“The NBN is making my business choices for me and costing me money. They are a monopoly and they are the most expensive layers of fibre in the world. Why do I not have access to a competitive market?”

This lack of equitable access to the latest technology and its affect on property values are at the heart of what they and other residents continue to argue must be remedied by the Federal Government.

NBN Co’s General Manager, State and Corporate Affairs, Sam Dimarco, refutes these claims.

“We did testing in Sunset Ridge before the meeting with the council in Bellingen on June 27 and found the signal exceeds the minimum level we have to guarantee to provide,” Mr Dimarco said.

“In our statement of expectations, NBN Co must provide the connections on time, on budget with a minimum of 25 megabits (MB) download and 5 MN upload speeds. We guaranteed to give our wholesalers those speeds … and if not, we guarantee to get them up to scratch. We sell our product to the service providers – if people are having problems, they should talk to their providers.”

Next week in the Courier Sun and online: Urunga’s NBN

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All is not well in the brave new world of hi-tech living

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Its the technology coup the shire needed

From the Bellingen Shire Courier Sun – Ute Schulenberg – 4th July 2017

The efforts of Bellingen Shire residents to put the issue of potential substandard NBN coverage firmly on the council’s agenda, as well as the Federal Government’s radar, have been rewarded.

In what is nothing short of a coup, a meeting on June 27 saw the council, residents and Chamber of Commerce representatives put their case to senior representatives from NBN Co, Telstra and a policy adviser to the Shadow Minister for Communications, Michelle Rowlands.

“We had a detailed discussion about the roll-out and NBNCo has now undertaken to install Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) in Bellingen and Dorrigo,” General Manager Liz Jeremy said.

“It took a lot of work to get these people into one room but it has resulted in an excellent outcome and these upgrades are beyond what was originally planned. We are continuing to monitor the service to the broader community, including Urunga.”

After the meeting Shadow Minister Rowlands said, through her policy adviser, that a lot could be learned from Bellingen Shire about the importance of high-speed broadband in supporting sustainable communities that attract professionals from the cities.

“I’m so pleased to see the Bellingen Shire Council advocating for access to better quality broadband on behalf of their constituents, and securing Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) rollout. FTTC is both a better technology and has a viable upgrade path to deliver better speeds over time.”

The following day at their monthly council meeting Cr Toni Wright-Turner said the council should continue to do everything possible to prevent the delivery of mixed technologies creating tiers in property values.

Cr Dominic King said Urunga was a particular case where the delivery plan for Fibre to the Node (FTTN), now deemed to be obsolete technology, was already well advanced.

“We need to see how we can best push this along,” Cr King said.

Cr Jenny Fenton’s unanimously supported motion was for the council to “lobby NBNCo and relevant State and Federal Ministers for the township of Bellingen Shire Local Government Area to receive Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) infrastructure as a minimum service level.

“Council is highly concerned with the impact on equity of access and property prices within the township areas should “Multi-Technology Mix” (MTM) extend into the town boundaries.

And further: “The council welcomes the decision to provide FTTC to the Dorrigo and Bellingen, however, requests NBNCo to provide Fixed Wireless to the Gleniffer Valley and Fibre to the Curb to Urunga.”

The council also thanked the Shadow Minister for her involvement.

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Its the technology coup the shire needed

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Bellingen Shire Council Pass Unanimous Resolution on NBN

That the Council:

  1. Lobby the NBNCo and relevant State and Federal Ministers in partnership with local businesses, education organisations and the community for the townships of Bellingen Shire Local Government Area to receive Fibre to the Curb (FTTC) infrastructure as a minimum service level. Council is highly concerned with the impact on equity of access and property prices within the township areas should “Multi-Technology Mix” (MTM) extend into the town boundaries.
  2. Welcomes the decision of NBNCo to provide FTTC to the Dorrigo and Bellingen Townships, however, requests NBNCo to remedy the Fixed Wireless deployment in Bellingen. Council further calls on NBNCo to provide Fixed Wireless to the Gleniffer Valley and Fibre to the Curb in Urunga.
  3. Acknowledge the representations made to the Shadow Minister for Communications the Hon Michelle Rowland MP and that she be thanked for the attendance of her policy officer at the meeting held at the Bellingen Shire Council on Tuesday 27 June 2017.
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Luke Hartsuyker stands for his job, does he stand for NBN?

This article is published by the Daily Telegraph on Feb 8th, 2017 by Sherri Markson.

Cory Bernardi quits: National MP Luke Hartsuyker considered walking out on Coalition

ROGUE Senator Cory Bernardi is not the only politician who has contemplated quitting the Turnbull Government, with Nationals MP Luke Hartsuyker issuing an ultimatum that he would consider walking if not given a portfolio after last year’s election.

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Senior sources told The Daily Telegraph the Nationals had not intended to give Mr Hartsuyker a portfolio, but the MP, who beat independent candidate Rob Oakeshott in his mid-North Coast seat of Cowper, raised the prospect of moving to the crossbench.

With only a one-seat majority, Mr Turnbull could not afford to lose Mr Hartsuyker in the lower house.

Other Nationals learned of his demand and some were furious, particularly after the party dedicated significant resources in the dying days of the campaign to secure Mr Hartsuyker’s seat. Mr Hartsuyker and Mr Joyce declined to comment.

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http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/luke-hartsuyker-nats-defection-threat-to-turnbull/news-story/eeb40512b350bd530f175831ac63103d

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