Federal Regional Communications Minister, the Hon Mark Coulton MP said the announcement of $4.5 billion in additional investment by NBN Co will further boost connectivity for Australians living and doing business in regional areas.
Minister Coulton said the new initiatives would greatly boost the competitiveness of regional areas
“This investment includes $3.5 billion that will be used to provide access on demand to super-fast broadband connectivity for people on NBN’s fixed line network,” Minister Coulton said.
“Almost 50 per cent of the Fibre to the Node (FTTN) premises that will benefit directly from this investment are in regional areas.”
Minister Coulton said the $700 million investment in business fibre zones, which he announced yesterday in Port Macquarie, will provide a significant improvement in the affordability and accessibility of enterprise-grade fibre services, with 85 of these zones to be located in regional areas.
“Businesses in these zones will have access to super-fast data speeds at CBD prices, and this will be particularly attractive for companies that are considering regional centres as a base for their business,” Minister Coulton said.
The package announced today also includes $300 million for NBN Co to work with all levels of government on local connectivity priorities, including on projects funded through the Federal Government’s Regional Connectivity Program and Mobile Black Spot Program.
Minister Coulton said the latest NBN announcement adds to a range of other initiatives that are improving digital connectivity for regional and rural users. These initiatives include:
- NBN Co’s $800 million investment in Fixed Wireless upgrades to help manage capacity and performance on the fixed wireless network over the next four years;
- The launch of the NBN Sky Muster Plus wholesale product, which allows homes and small businesses in the NBN satellite footprint to access unmetered data for essential online activities;
- The expansion of NNB Local – NBN Co’s community and stakeholder engagement team; and
- Measures introduced by NBN Co to help regional Australians stay connected during COVID-19.
