With all the politicking around the NBN, it’s easy to get caught in the misinformation crossfire. It’s an area I’ll be focusing on for Giz, and that includes linking some of the more grounded coverage we spot. The ABC has a great NBN post today, and though an opinion piece, it’s a well-reasoned primer on the telcos’ networks, and argues why fears of an “NBN monopoly” seem increasingly alarmist.
The NBN will be home to cheap ISPs favouring low-monthly fees over Australian-based customer service; it’ll cater to premium providers guaranteeing bandwidth and local support; and big-name telcos will compete by bundling several services (like VoIP or pay TV) over the NBN.
And though the deal signed by Telstra last week includes an agreement not to directly market against the NBN, Telstra’s chief executive has since told the Australian that the big T plans to continue promoting Next G wireless “very, very strongly”.
True, much of the fine print in both the Telstra and Optus NBN deals still needs to be fully investigated, but competition is here to stay. [ABC Drum]