The opportunity for Launceston on a fibre National Broadband Network, and the issues of its rollout, have been told at a Senate inquiry into the infrastructure.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Head of Launtel, Damian Ivereigh, made the comment at the second Tasmanian sitting of the Joint Standing Committee into the NBN.
During the sitting at Riverside’s Tailrace Centre the committee, chaired by former Health Minister Sussan Ley, heard from a range of speakers across several sectors.
Mr Ivereigh, who oversaw Launtel’s pioneering connection to gigabit NBN, spoke about the potential Launceston had with its fibre-to-the-premises network.
He said using the gigabit connection, clients had worked collaboratively to cut down time spent on projects from six to eight weeks, to two.
Mr Ivereigh said the state’s network put it in good stead for future development.
“Tasmania, because of its fibre-to-the-premises connection, we are more connected to the world than the rest of Australia,” he said.
Mr Ivereigh said the state had gone from being on the end of the line to being “arguably one of the centres of Australia in 20 to 30 years”.
But Mr Ivereigh acknowledged many residents found significant issues in connecting to the network – and said major providers had “spectacularly mismanaged” the rollout process.
Bitlink managing director and Start Up Tasmania director James Riggall said there was a socioeconomic issue emerging.
“Well funded schools might have access to a lot of equipment and technology,” he said.
“You go to a lower socioeconomic area and the school tends to have less.”
He said it was vital to improve access and levelling technology.
“It’s where you get your knowledge from it’s where you engage politically, it’s where you have your social life,” he said.
Mr Riggall said Tasmania was still figuring out benefits of fibre-to-the-premises.
He said fast internet was an “amplifier of decision making” for people considering moving to the state.
In his testimony, Kentish mayor Don Thwaites agreed the NBN could expand the digital divide between Tasmania’s cities and rural areas.
“It could certainly increase the difference between the rural area and anywhere that has got good internet,” he said.
The inquiry moves to Burnie on Wednesday.
