105/07 Thursday 9 August 2007

Broadband speeds nearly three times faster than Labor’s plan, without any taxpayer funding

The Minister for Communications, Information Technology and the Arts, Senator the Hon Helen Coonan, today welcomed Telstra’s upgrade of its Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC) cable network in metropolitan areas to provide high speed broadband.

“The Government is delighted with Telstra’s announcement that it is upgrading its cable network to provide the fastest broadband services Australia has ever seen at a blistering 30 megabits per second,” Senator Coonan said.

Telstra’s announcement is a major advancement in the Australian broadband investment debate.

“Telstra has invested in a fixed high speed broadband network in commercial metropolitan areas and it has done so without any taxpayer funding and most importantly without winding back competition and consumer regulatory safeguards,” Senator Coonan said.

“Telstra’s cable broadband network will provide speeds nearly three times faster than Labor’s $4.7 billion fibre-to-the-node plan.

“This just goes to show that you should not be picking technology winners at the expense of all other platforms like Labor has done.

“It doesn’t matter what platform industry chooses to use to invest in high speed broadband as long as it delivers high speed broadband.”

Senator Coonan said a mix of technologies is always the best solution, especially for the widely variable conditions in a country the size of Australia.

“Australia will now have multiple high speed broadband networks including cable, WiMAX, ADSL2+ and following the completion of the competitive assessment process, another high speed broadband network, likely to be fibre.

“Telstra’s investment in cable broadband is a timely reminder to Australian voters that when issues hot up, Labor will simply turn to taxpayers even if taxpayer funding is not required.”

In March, Kevin Rudd announced that he would drain $2 billion from rural Australia’s Communications Fund, raid a further $2.7 billion from the Future Fund, and wind back the telco competition laws to induce Telstra to invest in a high speed broadband network.

“Kevin Rudd has egg on his face today, because Telstra is already doing this. Mr Rudd’s broadband economics are thoroughly discredited. Consumers in metropolitan areas will be getting another high speed broadband network and it has not come at the cost of competition with a multi-billion dollar slug to taxpayers.

“This is why Labor cannot be trusted with the economy. At the end of the day Kevin Rudd has no policy for Australia’s future. He either agrees with the Government or follows the Unions or Telstra,” Senator Coonan said.

ENDS

Media Contact: Katherine Meier 0417 441 141