Broadband explosion expected in Australia
Broadband explosion expected in Australia
Despite the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission criticising Telstra for slashing its ADSL retail prices last month, small businesses in Australia are excited about the prospect of ADSL boon thanks to Telstra's recent price cuts of wholesale prices.
Telstra dropped its wholesale price of ADSL last week to $29.95 a month, which many companies in the market are already gearing up to take advantage of.
There is a widely held view that the new ADSL pricing structure will allow the Australian market for broadband equipment and services to be better placed for growth than at any other time in its history.
Smaller operators are expanded a sharp increase in the demand for the development of applications such as telecommuting, interactive broadcasting and entertainment, IP telephony, telemedicine, remote learning and security.
A spokesperson for NetComm, which sells broadband equipment to providers of high-speed, ADSL services, and has been in the modem business for 22 years outlined the excitement ahead of businesses in Australia, thanks to the drop in price. "This price is considerably cheaper than it was 2 years ago. There is going to a lot more opportunity for people to operate businesses from home, and have access in cafes. It will change the landscape of our working lives for the better. There is going to be a massive uptake in ADSL broadband access.
The other industry that will benefit include the entertainment industry, because there will be a bigger market for accessing music and movies from home, and also the e-commerce market too. This will be vastly more accessible through ADSL than through a dial-up network.
Telecommuting is becoming more popular in the States and in Europe, and now this is likely to increase in Australia too. The medical industry will also benefit. Small practices in remote locations will have access to a larger repository of data more quickly and this will provide them with the ability to make more accurate prescriptions."
ACCC chairman, Graeme Samuel, said last week that the new wholesale pricing is a victory for common sense for wholesale customers and consumers. "In short, the fact that smaller operators now have more room to move on price is a crucial step in fostering a vibrant and competitive local market for innovative, future communications.
"The vast majority if Australians are now able to afford access to high-speed, business grade communications which will see a burgeoning of important new applications for business and the home, in turn driving demand for services themselves.
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