The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission today issued a further update to its Snapshot of Broadband Deployment, a report providing statistics on broadband take-up across Australia.
"The report shows that as at the end of September 2002, there were 321,900 broadband services connected across Australia", ACCC Chairman, Professor Allan Fels, said. "Take-up of broadband services has increased by 162% since the ACCC began collecting broadband data in June 2001. Growth in the July-September quarter was 23%, which continues the pattern of steady growth shown in the past 15 months".
Broadband services allow users to access information from on line networks at much faster speeds than ordinary dial-up services. This also enables access to more diverse and richer audio and video-based content.
Broadband in Australia is predominantly provided using either Hybrid Fibre Coax (cable) or through Telstra's traditional copper network using digital subscriber line (DSL) technology. The most popular form of DSL technology is asymmetric digital subscriber lines (ADSL), which is particularly suited to Internet applications.
In June 2001 cable was clearly the pre-eminent broadband technology with 92,500 cable services connected, compared to 28,000 DSL services (with ADSL connections making up the majority of these at 26,600). However, take-up of DSL has been growing at a much faster rate than cable. By September 2002 DSL had almost surpassed cable as the pre-eminent broadband technology, with 151,300 DSL services connected (of which 128,100 were ADSL connections) compared to 158,200 cable services.
"The relatively faster growth of DSL services is not surprising", Professor Fels said. "DSL services are more widely available than cable services. There is also more intense competition amongst DSL providers thanks to the ACCC's efforts to open up Telstra’s local loop and ensure that appropriately priced and tailored wholesale ADSL services are made available to broadband providers.
"The ACCC also recently took another step forward in the development of broadband services in Australia, declaring 'line sharing' services".
Line sharing, also referred to as 'spectrum sharing', enables one telecommunications carrier to provide broadband services while another provides voice services, on the same telephone line, at the same time.
"Line sharing should ultimately lead to more competitive and innovative broadband service offerings being made available to consumers at lower prices", Professor Fels said. "Line sharing will enable broadband providers to focus on providing high-speed data services to consumers, such as the Internet, video-on-demand, and other multi-media applications, without needing to take on the responsibility and cost of providing voice services.
"It is crucial that new technologies and services are not driven by monopoly control of the local network, since competition by a wide range of players provides a superior way of meeting the new telecommunications needs of consumers and businesses".
The ACCC is aware of the central importance of access to broadband Internet services to a wide variety of consumers and will continue to monitor how the market for the provision of broadband services develops. A copy of the report is available below.
Further information
Professor Allan Fels, Chairman, (03) 9290 1812 or pager (02) 6285 6170
Michael Cosgrave, General Manager, Telecommunications (03) 9290 1914 or 0416 043 160
Ms Lin Enright, Director, Public Relations, (02) 6243 1108 or 0414 613 520
MR 303/02
2 December 2002